Ever wondered how industry leaders cultivate unstoppable teams? Whether you're a Marketing Manager or a founder and CEO, you've come to the right place. First up is the critical importance of supporting personal branding on LinkedIn, with the final emphasis on recognizing effort and contributions. This article packs nineteen actionable insights from experts to empower your team like never before.
- Support Personal Branding on LinkedIn
- Encourage Curiosity and Ownership
- Commit to Continuous Development and Training
- Protect Team's Time and Well-Being
- Grant More Access Permissions
- Align Tasks with Individual Strengths
- Lead with Authenticity and Transparency
- Ensure Everyone Has a Voice
- Let Teams Organize Themselves
- Prioritize Weekly Personal Check-Ins
- Adopt a No-Rules Design Approach
- Create a Shared Vision
- Set Clear Values and Vision
- Implement Peer Coaching and Rotating Leadership
- Set Ambitious Goals and Grant Autonomy
- Celebrate Milestones and Achievements
- Be Passionate and Proactive
- Recognize Effort and Contributions
- Give Ownership of Projects
Support Personal Branding on LinkedIn
We encourage employees to build their personal brands on LinkedIn and provide support to help them do so. This enables our team to demonstrate their expertise and supports their career journey. All employees have access to content-creation tools and support from marketing, helping them become industry thought leaders while benefiting our brand-awareness goals.
Emily Neal, Marketing Manager, DSMN8
Encourage Curiosity and Ownership
Encourage curiosity and ownership.
When teams develop the habit of genuinely asking questions and creating new, innovative solutions to everyday problems, everyone wins! This also makes for a more collaborative environment where team members are valued for their unique contributions.
Oz Rashid, Founder and CEO, MSH
Commit to Continuous Development and Training
One key strategy for empowering an unstoppable team is our commitment to continuous development and training. We ensure our technicians have access to the latest advancements in non-destructive testing (NDT) technology and knowledge. By investing in their growth, we give them the tools and confidence to perform at their best, knowing their expertise is integral to maintaining the safety and integrity of critical infrastructure. This dedication, alongside fostering strong client partnerships, motivates us all to strive for excellence and reliability in every project.
Matthew Conway, Managing Director, NDT Group
Protect Team's Time and Well-Being
Value the time of the team as much as you value your own. In my experience managing teams, by far the easiest way to destroy team morale is to make people feel like their time isn't respected and they do not have control over their time and actions while on the job.
This is why I am always fiercely protective of the team's time, often taking some heat from senior stakeholders to make sure they can work reasonable hours, with a reasonable amount of work in those hours.
This care is very clear to the team and has made them take the work that they do that much more seriously as they know that they have someone championing their well-being and work-life balance. This care goes a long way, and it requires you to really put the team first—something that many leaders say they do, but few actually do when push comes to shove.
Greg Listopad, Consulting Partner, November Consulting
Grant More Access Permissions
Many companies are overly concerned about access controls, and as your team scales, you would be shocked at how much time is wasted waiting for employees to get approval from managers to get access to the tools and platforms they need to do their job.
To solve this, we closely track the access permissions that all of our employees have and review them regularly, but we err on the side of giving more access rather than less. This allows the team to move much more quickly, whether you are talking about marketing, sales, or development.
Basically, trust, but verify.
In my previous role at another company, there was much more of a culture of micromanagement. Every email had to be reviewed before being sent out to important prospects; every small payment had to be approved by finance. This led to literally at least one or two hours a day just being spent on access permissions, and it was a complete waste of time.
Ben Miller, COO, Undetectable AI
Align Tasks with Individual Strengths
A key strategy I've found to empower an unstoppable team is to focus on individual strengths and align them with the right tasks. Everyone has unique skills, and when they are utilized in the right areas, the team operates at its highest potential. Encouraging each team member to excel in what they do best not only increases efficiency but also boosts morale, as people feel valued for their contributions.
Equally important is cultivating a supportive environment where team members can learn from each other. Collaboration is powerful when ideas and knowledge flow freely. I emphasize open dialogue, where feedback is constructive and team members feel comfortable sharing their perspectives. This creates a culture of continuous learning and improvement, where every challenge is seen as an opportunity for growth.
Ben Whitmarsh, Owner and Managing Director, Generators for Export
Lead with Authenticity and Transparency
To empower a truly unstoppable team, my one effective secret is to lead with authenticity and transparency. Given my experience managing a remote team of twelve, spread across multiple time zones for over eight years, I learned that to foster trust and encourage open communication, one must first embody these values. For instance, we start each week with a team-wide session where we discuss successes, challenges, and everyone's key priorities. This not only keeps everyone updated but also promotes a culture of shared victories and collective problem-solving.
Lastly, emphasizing personal growth also plays a pivotal role. I engage regularly with each team member regarding their career aspirations and provide avenues for them to expand their role, helping them feel more invested in their job and, consequently, bolstering productivity.
Yulia Saf, Founder, Miss Tourist
Ensure Everyone Has a Voice
In my experience as a leader, I've found that the best way to empower employees is to make sure everyone on the team has a voice and is able to share feedback and contribute their input, particularly regarding decisions that will impact their roles directly. People automatically feel more ownership over decisions that they had a hand in making. This also gives employees the chance to speak up about tools or resources that would help them do their job more effectively, or to bring attention to issues in the workplace that are preventing the team from reaching its full potential.
The heart of this is effective two-way communication. There are a lot of ways to collect feedback from employees, and I recommend using a combination of them. For instance, having regular manager one-on-ones, as well as sending out occasional employee surveys and having an open suggestion/feedback form or box where employees can contribute ideas or thoughts on an ongoing basis.
It's just as important for leaders to actually listen to and implement this feedback. Employees will feel empowered within the workplace when they see their suggestions being taken, and they can feel like their input made a positive impact. On the other side, if employee suggestions seem to disappear into the void, they'll be less likely to make suggestions in the future because it will feel like it's not worth the effort.
Rob Boyle, Marketing Operations Director, Airswift
Let Teams Organize Themselves
Consider letting teams organize themselves. It can be tempting to assign roles within a team, but I've found stepping back to be a better strategy. Often, the leader a team chooses is surprising to me, but winds up managing extremely well. Workers tend to have a better sense of their fellow employees' personalities.
As the boss, I'm seeing a curated view, and that sometimes means that I'm not getting a complete picture. Team members know the full reality and might value the opinions or leadership style of a worker who is traditionally quiet and doesn't stand out. But this person can still effect an enormous influence through subtle tactics and passive strength. With them in charge, the entire team can reach new heights without a power struggle.
Rob Reeves, CEO and President, Redfish Technology
Prioritize Weekly Personal Check-Ins
Personal check-ins are something to which I give premium importance. Every week, I take the time to meet individually with all members of the team. These meetings are not about tracking the status of projects but are focused on exploring what each individual can do to be empowered and successful in their role.
This habit has been key, as it allows for individualized care and feedback, which is crucial in an industry that operates as fast as digital marketing. All members of the team have the chance to chat privately about challenges and come up with solutions so that small problems do not become huge issues. It also helps remind them that they are being cherished as people, not only for what they do but for who they are and how they can improve. As a result, this has led to a more driven and cohesive team, ready to go head-to-head.
Alex LaDouceur, Co-Founder, Webineering
Adopt a No-Rules Design Approach
One of the best ways we empower our unstoppable team is through our "no-rules" approach to interior design. This mindset really opens the door for creativity and innovation, allowing everyone to explore their full potential without feeling boxed in.
By ditching traditional constraints, we create a culture that embraces inclusiveness and open-mindedness. Team members are encouraged to think outside the box and come up with unique solutions tailored specifically for each client. This freedom not only sparks creativity but also helps our designers push their limits and learn continuously, which is key for personal growth.
We make this approach come alive by encouraging design exploration in various ways. Our team finds inspiration from Chicago's vibrant restaurants and cultural hotspots, as well as from the new cities we get to explore through our projects. This environment values everyone's unique perspective, fostering a strong sense of belonging and collaboration.
Overall, this "no-rules" strategy helps us build a dynamic team that's ready to tackle diverse projects with fresh ideas and innovative solutions. It’s all about creating a space where creativity can thrive, making our company a truly exciting place to work.
Sarah Kuchar, Creative Director, Kuchar
Create a Shared Vision
I have learned that team empowerment comes from clear, confident leadership and a collective sense of purpose. My top tip for empowering an unstoppable team stems from direct experience: creating a shared vision. When a team is united in their understanding of an organization's objectives and their individual roles in achieving it, they feel valued, connected, and driven.
For example, we designed an all-inclusive strategy that outlined our aim to provide robust student services and educational excellence. The clarity of our vision empowered my team to own their roles and responsibilities with confidence and commitment, enabling us to collectively drive our mission.
The impact was significant, leading to enhanced student-support mechanisms, streamlined operations, and a noticeable growth in our student satisfaction. The simplicity of a shared vision, therefore, has proven to be an extraordinary tool for creating an unstoppable team.
Rosario Maccarrone, Director & Head of Student Services, OPIT
Set Clear Values and Vision
When I want to empower an unstoppable team, I prioritize clear values and a clear vision.
This allows leadership to be consistent and clear about growth or current needs. To do so, the company owner needs to lead by example, be straightforward, and allow teammates to learn, fail, and improve.
Being clear on owners' values sets them up for growing and empowering a team with similar values and matching the company in all forms for all departments.
Zachary Colman, Owner // TEDx Speaker, Creatitive
Implement Peer Coaching and Rotating Leadership
Number one is peer coaching because it helps employees support and mentor one another, creating an environment where knowledge and experience are exchanged freely. This enhances individual skills and team cohesion, as members feel more connected and invested in each other's success. When team members guide and coach their peers, it encourages a culture of learning and development, which drives overall team performance and innovation.
Rotating leadership roles takes empowerment a step further by giving everyone an opportunity to step into leadership positions on specific projects or tasks. This helps individuals develop critical leadership skills and broadens their perspective on team dynamics. By sharing the responsibility of leadership, the team becomes more adaptable, and members are encouraged to take ownership of outcomes, which increases engagement and motivation.
Rotating leadership roles also ensures that no single person bears the weight of decision-making, making the team more resilient and capable of tackling challenges from multiple angles.
Adam Lenhart, Managing Partner, Optimum Supply Chain Recruiters
Set Ambitious Goals and Grant Autonomy
As a managing director, I've found that setting clear, ambitious goals, and then giving team members the autonomy to achieve them, is a powerful strategy for empowering an unstoppable team. I establish high-level objectives and key performance indicators, but I resist the urge to micromanage the process. Instead, I encourage team members to take ownership of their projects and make decisions within their areas of expertise.
This approach fosters a sense of responsibility and pride in their work, driving innovation and efficiency. I also ensure that resources and support are readily available, removing obstacles that might hinder progress. Regular check-ins allow me to provide guidance and feedback without stifling creativity.
By trusting in their abilities and giving them room to excel, team members often exceed expectations and develop new skills. This empowerment creates a positive cycle of achievement and motivation, ultimately resulting in a high-performing, unstoppable team.
Oliver Aleksejuk, Managing Director, Techcare
Celebrate Milestones and Achievements
We believe in acknowledging each other's achievements. That's why we find it important to remind our employees of exciting milestones and celebrate them together. For instance, recently, one of our team members celebrated one year at our company. Although we all work remotely, everyone found a chance to send their regards. We also set up a celebratory call to thank our employee and recall all the contributions they made to help move our business forward.
Alisa Volynets, HR Business Partner | HR Advisor | Human Resources Generalist | Recruiter, RankUp.ua
Be Passionate and Proactive
I believe that, as a manager, the most important thing is to first be passionate and proactive about the project yourself. When you are driven and excited about the vision, the team will notice and gain confidence in themselves. The second most important thing is to treat your team members as actual human beings—there is nothing wrong with caring for your team and helping them with personal issues whenever possible.
Lastly, you must maintain emotional stability, staying one level above everyone else. As the person who empowers the team, you need to show high levels of confidence and composure; you are the first domino and cannot afford to fall.
Grigory Silanyan, Founder, ReadPartner Inc.
Recognize Effort and Contributions
Empowering an unstoppable team starts with recognition. I’m not just talking about the occasional pat on the back, but real acknowledgment when someone goes above and beyond or when they bring something fresh to the table. People don’t just want to be seen for their output; they want to be valued for their ideas and contributions.
This is why our company has built a culture where we celebrate wins, big or small, as a team. Recognizing effort is a huge motivator, and it fosters trust and camaraderie that makes the team not just unstoppable but also eager to tackle the next challenge together.
Spencer Romenco, Chief Growth Strategist, Growth Spurt
Give Ownership of Projects
One strategy we've found highly effective is giving individuals ownership of their projects. By allowing team members to take full responsibility for outcomes, we foster accountability, innovation, and drive. People are more motivated when they feel their work truly matters.
We encourage autonomy by giving teams the freedom to experiment and iterate quickly. This not only boosts morale but also leads to faster, more creative problem-solving.
Benjamin Fine, Co-Founder, Formsort
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