Essay Example on Maximizing Team Performance in Retail: Analyzing Essential Factors

The study focuses primarily on the various factors that affect the performance of the workforce in a retail environment. In every business, the financial output and profits at the end depend on how well the employees work. The results can either be positive or negative, and the graph continues over an extended period depending on different elements. Substantially, team performance narrows down to the quality of output generated in achieving a particular objective determines the organization's outcome (Quain, 2019). This means that the various teams of workers in an institution directly influence the financial gains or losses in the retail business. Arguably, employee performance is an essential element in an investment, meaning that their affairs have to be in order.

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The essence of this study is that it addresses the need to look at employees as the heart of every retail enterprise. By so doing, the factors affecting team performance can be foregrounded and act as a guideline on what to do to improve their work experience. Considering the direct relationship between their satisfaction and the quality of output expected in the business, it would be logical to argue that the team makes up the backbone of the retail industry (Starks, 2015).. At the same time, the individual employee has to be happy for the team, which is made up of different individuals, to perform effectively.

Various scholars have researched the issue of team performance in the retail industry, each of them coming up with different observations and findings. For instance, Quain (2019) defines a team as a group of individuals working in a specific environment with an aim to achieve a similar objective. He also explains that the team is dynamic and changes depending on the nature of their working environment. In the same light, Hayes (2020) defines entrepreneurship as the act of pooling together the innovative and creative ideas of individuals to produce services and goods. Additionally, performance is described as the measure of a team's wellbeing, drawn from the output in terms of profits and losses (Lombardo, 2019). These definitions introduce the aspect of factors that may influence the performance of a team in a store, whether positively or negatively.

On a broad scale, some of these factors may include issues to do with employee motivation, rewards, job descriptions, and so on. When the workforce in a given institution is sufficiently motivated, the financial and all other forms of outcomes are bound to be positive (Lucky, 2013). Similarly, the reward system and habits pertaining to employee remuneration, such as wages, salaries, allowances, and other benefits plays a significant role in determining the output (Wilde, 2019). If they feel well appreciated, then the staff can work well, both at an individual level and as a team, to ensure that the set goals are met.

At the same time, the amount and nature of work allocated to a given unit, and the expectations placed on them to perform also determines whether or not the output will be positive. In standard measure, the primary aim of any investment is to maximize on making a profit while minimizing the expenditure. As Nini (2019) argues, employee performance directly impacts the smooth running of a business as well as the possibility of achieving the set objectives in the specified timeframe.

The business arena is made up of different bodies that work together towards making profit through the provision of goods and services. As a result, there exist various factors that have to be considered, which make up the problem in the said context. In this case, the main problem is that most businesses do not take the needs of their team members seriously (Kozlowski & Ilgen, 2006). The result is that the quality of work done keeps deteriorating with time, as long as their needs re not met. Among the common themes under which team members classify their needs include interpersonal relationships, communication, performance measurement and management, leadership, trust, as well as shared goals.

The greatest failure is that leaders in most retail companies and management fail to provide proper training, support, and necessary rewards. In the retail market, customer satisfaction, profit-making, and public relation comprise the essential motivators of team performance (Meier, 2019). For instance, when a company maintains a cordial relationship with their clients, they tend to increase trust, which results in a relatively high turnover (Madanchian, 2016). Arguably, unless these factors are addressed, team performance may not be achieved since there may be no cooperation.

Hypotheses

This study is based on various hypotheses, all of which revolve around the assumption that there are factors affecting team performance in a retail environment. Some of these factors include the presence of sufficient or lack of motivation, job description, leadership, and so on. One of the prevailing hypotheses is that team performance is directly proportional to the level of motivation. Thus, the more the motivation in a retail store, the better the result, and the less the individuals feel appreciated, the weaker the performance (K. Boies, 2015).

Motivation

Teamwork primarily depends on how well the members understand the need to work together and their attitude towards their job. Companies can motivate their workers in different ways to ensure that they all feel appreciated and that they agree to work together (Economy, 2016). One of the most common methods is through fairness in remuneration, in which case, everyone feels important (Ghaffari, 2017). When an individual receives everything owed to them in time and also gets additional incentives for their work, they tend to respond positively (Janet, 2002). A positive response means that the employees do their work in time and may even do more under minimal or no supervision at all. The opposite means that if a retail business fails to put the needs of its personnel ahead, the productivity decreases due to demotivation, thereby reducing the output.

Leadership

Leaders play an essential part in determining whether or not the teams will perform well. The first level of leadership that directly affects team performance is how human resource management handles their affairs (Ebreo, 2017). Human resource entails every individual working in the same organization regardless of their rank (LaMarco, 2018,). At this level, the said leader is responsible for guiding the team with the steps to take in the right direction and the work to be done at every stage (Fan, 2019). This means that in the absence of a leader, the team would not be operational as there would be no symbol of direction.

The interaction between leaders and those below them is crucial as it determines whether or not there will be proper communication (Janet, 2012). When the management creates an ample working environment for their workers, they ease the tension in the working environment, making it easier for the team to operate (Thamhain, 2004). The leadership first consults with the team to come up with the necessary policies for guidance. According to Garcia (2012), a constitution governs the activities of the group, conflict resolution, resulting in better performance.

Job description

The basic definition of teamwork is that each individual accepts to function as an organ with the rest of the members to achieve the set goal. It shows that each team has a specific duty to fulfill by the end of a particular period (Stokols, 2008). Their job description requires that everyone in the group contributes equally, making the goals achievable, as Sanyal and Hisam (2018) demonstrate. However, the nature and amount of work in question is an essential factor to consider (Zoglio, 2001). For instance, when the bulk of work is given to one team while the other receives the lesser share, there is bound to be a disparity between the timeframe and the quality of work done (Boakye, 2015). Consequently, it is essential that each group gets an equal share of the task to facilitate positive response and resultantly, excellent performance (Harris, 2000).

Nature and Culture

The kind of work allocated to a team is also a fundamental point of concern considering the value of the set goals. In reality, the team comprises people from different backgrounds, beliefs, traits, and so on (Zafar, 2017). It means that for the group to function seamlessly as a single organ, the assigned task has to be favorable and considerate of all the relevant parties (Chien, 2017). In cases where a particular member is uncomfortable with the nature of the job in a retail shop, there is bound to be some failure or difficulty in achieving the intended purpose (Manzoor, 2011). Additionally, when the goal, such as the expected profit returns, seems unachievable, some members may feel discouraged and end up failing to perform well (Stel, 2017). As a result, the institution should make realistic and achievable goals, which is part of the motivating factors for the team (Korner, 2015). This way, there would be minimal conflict and dissatisfaction in the long run.

Theoretical framework

Apart from the fact that team performance should be positive, one has to consider the importance of ensuring that the goal is clear and that everyone understands the expectations. One of the theories applicable in this study is the Equity Theory by Stacy Adams. According to Stacy, an employee's perception is a fair trade when they believe that the compensation rate is equal to their output. This means that the team member is intrinsically motivated by the belief that the work done contributes directly to the betterment of the institution. (Shassere, 2018) Resultantly, the individual tends to put in more work and time to their work, in the hope that the output will be equally as much. At the same time, if the team member feels that the rate of pay does not match the efforts put in, they may tend to lay back, creating an imbalance (Yoon, 2010). According to Stacy, the behavior can either be motivating or demotivating, depending on the team's perception.

In summary, workers are the backbone of any business, especially in the retail arena. While an investor may want to get results from the establishment and the employees, various factors have to be observed. The most important is to ensure that all the members of the said team are appropriately motivated, all other factors can be addressed differently. Types of motivation include proper remuneration in terms of timely payment of salaries, wages, and allowances, ensuring that the working environment is favourable as well as facilitating adequate communication.

References

Boakye, E. O., 2015. The impact of teamwork on employee performance. Research Gate, November, p. 11.

Chien, S. F., 2017. Factors influencing teamwork and collaboration within ntertially medical center. 17 March.

D.Stokols, S. M. R. m. K. H., 2008. The ecology of team science. Understanding contextual influences on transdisciplinary collaboration.

Ebreo, E., 2017. Factors that affect teamwork. 14 March.

Economy, P., 2016. 9 super effective ways to motivate your team. [Online] Available at: https://www.inc.com/peter-economy/9-super-effective-ways-to-motivate-your-team.html'

Fan, M., 2019. Influence of business policy on organizational performance. 10 April, p. 3.

Garcia, V. J., 2012. Transformational leadership influence on organizational performance through organizational learning and innovation.

Ghaffari, S., 2017. The influence of motivation on job performance. A case study at university Teknologi Malaysia, March, pp. 92-99....