Disconnected teams makes ‘reteam-itis’ the needle of the hour
With society returning to normal and businesses bringing their staff back to the office, many organisations are struggling to unify their teams. In fact, the issue is according to Christina Foxwell (CEO of Ignite Purpose) causing so many problems for businesses that it is affecting productivity, service and morale. Foxwell explains why ‘reteam-itis’ needs urgent attention.
Businesses all over the country have been operating from home remotely for the better part of three years. Some have transitioned to a hybrid model where staff come into the office occasionally for meetings and townhall events, but for the most part, workers have been doing the bulk of their work from home.
During this time, people and workplaces have changed. People have gone through a process of incredible personal change. Some people have got married and had babies. Others have lost friends and family members and endured sickness and life-changing events.
Across the board, many people have simply changed their approach to life and work and have reprioritised the things that are important to them.
Businesses have also recruited new team members and these people have been onboarded and in many cases never really worked alongside their new team members in person. Now that workplaces are bringing staff members back to the office, people are now having to work together in person for the first time over an extended period and thereality is that many simply don’t like each other.
I am being inundated with calls from business owners and managers urgently needing help to reunite their people as a team. People are not getting along and this is causing a lot offriction, unhappiness and discontentment. Mistakes are happening, targets are not being met and workplace complaints are on the rise.
Meanwhile, good people are leaving organisations to move on to other workplaces where they feel more comfortable and in alignment with the workplace culture.
Clearly, ‘reteam-itis’ is a very serious issue and businesses need to address the issue with priority.
Why is reteam-itis occurring
Many workplaces were so busy during Covid-19 simply trying to deliver on their work and deal with ongoing business requirements that issues such as training, cohesion and culture fell to the wayside.
In addition, most workplaces recruited during Covid-19 and many of these new recruits have never stepped foot into the office since starting their new role. While recruiting online may seem efficient unfortunately it can be difficult to get a real sense of whether someone is going to bond with other team members in person without getting to know them face to face.
The labor shortage also saw a lot of businesses recruiting people that they normally would not onboard but because they needed people so desperately they employed people who probably were not the ideal fit for their business. For all of these reasons, workplaces are now experiencing reteam-itis. Essentially people are not getting along and conflict is on therise and productivity is being impacted.
Is the workplace affected?
Workplaces are already seeing an increase in the number of complaints that involve issues with the behaviour or actions of other workers. HR leaders are noticing a rise in conflict.
Sometimes conflict isn’t always obvious. It can manifest in different ways. Staff can become withdrawn. Customer service levels drop. There may be arguments or disagreements between people in the workplace and in meetings.
Productivity slippage is always an obvious sign. An increase in absenteeism is also another indicator that shows people are choosing to stay away from work to avoid stress and angst. Team issues tend to creep up on you and are usually quite serious by the time you notice them. The priority is prevention and early intervention where possible.
How to deal with reteam-itis
If there is any hint of reteam-itis, it is important to act quickly. This is an issue that cannot be solved with a simple team lunch or out of office team activity, it requires a more comprehensive and strategic approach.
The risks to people and the business are too high. My advice is to call in an expert who has experience in dealing with the issue. The first process involves understanding the depth of the problem and clarifying the reasons for the issues.
Once this is established, the expert can then develop up a strategy to address the issue across a number of levels including support, training and coaching, leadership and mentoring. Ongoing consultation will be required to monitor progress and outcomes. Sometimes it will be necessary to move people on in order to de-escalate the situation.
Reteam-itis is a serious issue that not only impacts the ability of a business to retain and attract good people, it also impacts business performance and introduces a range of other risks including complaints and legal action against a business for failure to provide a safe workplace. Psychological safety is becoming a more serious issue in workplaces. If businesses do not provide mentally safe workplaces, they are exposing their staff, customers and the business to serious risk.
