What Does It Take to Be a Top Performer?
A team of top performers achieves their business goals consistently and seemingly without effort. We witness and envy their success. Their abilities are a near perfect match for their job function; they are a seamless fit for the culture in which they operate; and they are in a position to make a significant positive difference.
The 3 R’s of Building a Team of Top Performers
In other words, top performers are the Right people with the Right capabilities in the Right job.
For a salesperson, it might be their mindset, activity level, aptitude, and ability to consistently live and advocate for your brand promise. For someone in a research job, it could be their attention to detail. For a customer service rep, it could be their empathy and desire to solve customer problems gracefully.
Are your top salespeople experts at asking the questions that lead them to a customer’s greatest need?
Are your researchers methodical in the way they process and test information?
Do your service reps know how to build trust?
Once you determine which skills your “A” players have mastered and depend upon for their success, then you can identify gaps within the rest of your team to indicate where you should focus further development.Your mission to build a high performing team requires that you develop your talent in the best way to meet your short- and long-term goals. But training alone won’t do the trick. You need frequent, consistent, and quality coaching to reinforce the desired skills and behaviors into the daily pattern of your team’s activities.
The Bottom Line
According to Bain & Company, about 15% of all employees on average are what you could consider both high performing and high potential. And these employees, according to a study published in Personnel Psychology, produce 400 percent more than an average performer. Why wouldn’t you do all you can to build a team of top performers?
To learn more about how to build a team of top performers, download 3 Must-Have Ingredients of High Performing Teams for New Managers
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