Your team is struggling to work together. How can you get everyone back on track?

1 Identify the root causes

The first step to solving any problem is to understand what is causing it. Is there a lack of trust, respect, or feedback among your team members? Are there unclear roles, expectations, or goals? Are there external factors, such as workload, stress, or customer issues, that are impacting your team dynamics? Try to have an honest and open conversation with your team to identify the root causes of your struggles. Listen to each other's perspectives and experiences, and avoid blaming or judging.

2 Agree on a plan of action

Once you have identified the root causes, you need to agree on a plan of action to address them. This may involve setting or revising your team norms, roles, and responsibilities. It may also involve establishing or improving your communication channels, tools, and protocols. For example, you may decide to have regular check-ins, debriefs, or feedback sessions with your team. You may also decide to use a shared platform, such as a CRM system, to document and track your service requests, progress, and outcomes.

3 Build trust and rapport

A key factor for effective teamwork is trust. You need to trust that your team members are competent, reliable, and supportive. You also need to build rapport with them, which means having a positive and friendly relationship. To build trust and rapport, you need to show respect, appreciation, and recognition for your team members. You also need to share your knowledge, skills, and resources with them. And you need to have some fun with them, too. For example, you can celebrate your successes, share your stories, or have some team-building activities.

4 Resolve conflicts constructively

Even if you have a strong and cohesive team, you may still encounter some conflicts along the way. This is normal and inevitable, especially in a complex and dynamic field like field service engineering. However, you need to resolve conflicts constructively, not destructively. This means focusing on the problem, not the person. It also means using active listening, empathy, and assertiveness skills to communicate your needs and concerns, and to understand those of others. And it means finding a win-win solution that benefits everyone.

5 Seek feedback and improvement

Finally, you need to seek feedback and improvement as a team. Feedback is essential for learning, growth, and innovation. It helps you identify your strengths and weaknesses, and how you can improve your performance and results. You should seek feedback from your team members, your manager, and your customers. You should also give feedback to others in a respectful and constructive way. And you should act on the feedback you receive, by making changes, adjustments, or improvements.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?