Your first priority should be to create a safe and comfortable working environment for your team. You should ensure that you risk assess every person’s workstation and environment so that it is safe for them and to ensure that they are working in optimum conditions. You might find that you need to alter the position that people sit at their desks, you might need to order anti-fatigue mats for those employees who are on their feet for much of the day or perhaps you need to get in some safety equipment for some tasks to be completed. Along with safety, you should think about making the work environment a pleasant place to be in. You might find that little things like allowing more natural light to flood in, adding a drinks machine or playing music makes all the difference in the world to your employees’ moods each day, so take the time to try a few things and get input from your team. 

Train and coach consistently

Whenever you hire a new team member, you need to take the time to fully train them. This not only equips them with the necessary skills to do their job, it also fills them with the confidence to do so. After their initial training, you should ensure that you follow up on it through regular and supportive coaching sessions. Training and coaching is not just for new starters. There are likely to be new procedures or products launched from time to time, so all staff will then benefit from training. Some people will also be striving to advance their careers and might require upskilling or relish you delegating some tasks to them, so work to identify those individuals and then get a training plan in place for them. 

Focus on motivation

When you are leading a team, you need to focus on motivation every single day. Whilst a happy and engaged team will seek to do a good job for you most of the time anyway, it is always worth looking for more ways to boost morale and motivation. One of the simplest ways to motivate your team is to keep them in the loop and take the time to praise and thank them when they are doing a good job. This one does seem obvious, but many employers overlook this, yet it tends to have the greatest impact. Work hard on keeping the lines of communication open and ensure that everyone feels that their voice can be heard. Hold team meetings, arrange a team trip, and take the time to get to know people on a personal level. 

In addition to this, have regular chats with your team so that you can keep motivating and supporting them in their roles, reward with treats, time off or bonuses where appropriate.