one of the questions you should ask when you are assigned to a team is course hero

by Chaya Medhurst 6 min read

Communication is one of the key team management skills

It’s been suggested time and time again that communication is one of the most vital skills you can build, not just in the workplace but in your personal life as well. Open communication with your team comes from them trusting you enough to share their opinions.

Implement feedback

Now that you’ve set up lines of communication, you should have a much easier time getting feedback from your team. Opinions tend to have a major impact, and when not shared accordingly, they can lead to employees feeling isolated from the group. You should ensure that your team can give feedback to you on how you’re doing as a manager.

Introductions

No one will feel comfortable discussing personal issues with a manager they don’t know. That’s why in the first few weeks, even the first few days of managing a new team, you need to set time aside to ensure every single person on the team knows who you are.

1. What do you need from me to do your best work?

It’s essential to devote time to your team. You get busy as a leader with meetings, and you get pulled in tons of different directions. You must ensure your team feels like they have the resources they need to do their jobs and that you have their back.

2. How would you like to grow within our company?

Discover where your team wants to grow. Find out what career development opportunities they need to seek out and enable them to seize their chances.

4. Do you feel a sense of purpose in your job?

This question will help you connect their personal values to the organization’s values. Find out what’s meaningful to them and connect the dots for how their job helps the overall company.

5. Do you believe the company is acting on feedback?

Have a discussion to learn how the company is doing when it comes to day-to-day operations. Find out if they feel the company could be doing better in specific areas and how you can help them influence those areas.

6. Are you able to do your best work every day?

This question helps you identify their strengths. You must figure out if they are playing to their strengths every day. You could perhaps ask them a follow-up question such as: “What tasks would you eliminate if you could?”

7. Are there specific activities we should be doing as a team?

This question drives home if they feel like part of the team. Research has shown that employees who have friends at work are more successful in their careers. It’s essential to host events outside of work to thank your team and show them that you value them.

Bringing It All Together

As a leader, it’s essential to make sure your team feels valued, appreciated, and satisfied. When your team feels valued, they will feel energetic and are more likely to produce excellent results.

Why is it important to ask Agile questions?

We’ve outlined the importance of each question with the hope that teams can engage in more focused and fruitful conversations and leave with joint clarity and understanding.

What does it mean to know the owner of a backlog?

The team needs to know the owner (executive or body) who can be contacted for each piece of work in order to get the correct wording, criteria around the placement, steps to be taken, etc. Anything added to the backlog is articulated by the owner, who can provide the reasoning behind why this is being added. These owners are also the ones to whom the work will be showcased. This helps in identifying demo attendees. If the team doesn’t know the owner, it can cause an unnecessary level of frustration and anger, because rework is often involved due to unclear requirements and the team “winging it”.

Why do you ask your team questions every month?

These go-to questions to ask your team every month will help take a load off your shoulders to make sure you don’t miss anything important.

What does it mean to be a strong team?

Stronger teams mean better teamwork, which results in superior outcomes. The more employees know about one another, the more they’ll be able to help each other do better work. Helps build up connections on remote or distributed teams. Follow up questions.

Why is communication important in a team?

Having better communication structures helps you focus your attention on listening, taking action, and accomplishing your to-do list — without your team’s needs falling by the wayside. Ask the right questions to your whole team, and to each team member, using this handy database.

Why is asking questions in one on one important?

This is a great way to show you care about their personal progress, and be empathetic to hearing about their challenges.

How many employees don't feel their manager is aware of their pain points?

1 in 4 employees don’t feel their manager is aware of their pain points (Officevibe Pulse Survey data). It can show them areas where they can focus on improving their skills. It gives you a better idea of what types of work challenge them. Follow up questions.

Can employees bring things up if you don't ask?

Solutions could be simple, but employees might not bring things up if you don’t ask.

image