Creating high-performance teams requires more than just setting goals — it calls for a culture built on trust, engagement, and strong leadership. Organisations that succeed in this area consistently involve their people, embed recognition, and align strategy with day-to-day experiences.
Here are ten key practices that support high-performance teams:
Focus groups and surveys can reveal where processes or practices need to improve. Turning these insights into action plans encourages collaboration across the whole organisation.
Action plans centred on employees should be linked to the broader organisational mission. Progress updates throughout the year show genuine commitment to improvement.
Change requires leadership commitment, dedicated project teams, and persistence through challenges. This visible follow-through builds employee trust.
In a culture of trust, employees rally behind new strategies in times of change, knowing leadership decisions are fair and sound.
Recognition should be part of everyday culture — through peer-to-peer programs, sharing success stories internally, or celebrating achievements externally.
A workplace where employees feel safe and supported directly impacts retention, performance, and engagement. Psychological safety is a cornerstone of high performance.
Consulting employees not only highlights areas for development but also ensures they help shape the solutions. Engagement increases when staff are invested in the outcomes.
High-performance strategies require leaders to play an active role. Visible involvement demonstrates that culture is an organisational priority, not a side initiative.
When employees understand the broader mission and see how their contributions matter, they gain a sense of meaning, achievement, and progress.
Coaching techniques help leaders guide individuals to grow and perform at their best, creating a ripple effect across teams.
Across all of these practices, one theme stands out: culture and performance are inseparable. Building high-performance teams requires a whole-organisation approach, with leadership engagement, active listening, and action planning at its core. When employees see trust demonstrated in practice, they respond by giving their best in return.
About Great Place to Work®
Great Place to Work® is the global authority on workplace culture. We help organisations quantify their culture and produce better business results by creating a high-trust work experience for all employees. We recognise Great Place to Work-Certified™ companies and the Best Workplaces™ in more than 60 countries. To join the thousands of companies that have committed to building high-trust company cultures that help them attract, retain and take care of their people, contact us about getting Certified today.