How to Encourage Better Teamwork Among Employees

6 ways to improve teamwork in your workplace

1. Create a safe and trusting environment

Psychological safety is fundamental to high-performing teams, and leaders should strive to create an environment in which team members feel secure sharing their perspective. In fact, Google’s Project Aristotle research identified psychological safety as the most important factor in team effectiveness, more crucial than individual talent or team composition.

One way to create a culture of psychological safety is by opening up your workplace to feedback. Enact a system of regular, structured feedback where you ask everyone on the team to share something. Appreciate and listen to their thoughts and ideas — positive or negative. This will gradually increase feelings of trust throughout the team.

2. Schedule time for team collaboration

Research shows that collaboration can increase creativity by 20%, and teams that collaborate see a 5.5% boost in productivity compared to those that don’t prioritize collaborative work. 

But healthy collaboration doesn’t just happen; you must create opportunities for cooperation. Encourage workplace collaboration by scheduling fellowship sessions during the workday. Consider hosting weekly brainstorming sessions with various team members to discuss solutions. Make collaboration social by alternating quiet work time with open Q&A time.

Most successful problem-solvers don’t find answers immediately or in isolation. They’re often curious and ask questions in a group setting. Create an atmosphere where this can happen.

3. Form diverse, cross-functional teams

Data from Gartner confirms that diverse teams achieve 12% higher performance, as different perspectives fuel innovation. Diverse teams motivate each other to think independently and dive deeper into issues.

With each new opportunity for collaboration, ask yourself how you can mix up team members to challenge the status quo. Consider background, gender, ethnicity, age and personality types. Get your employees out of their comfort zones — that’s where they’ll grow.

4. Use technology to enhance communication

Modern collaboration tools have proven their effectiveness: Gartner research shows a 44% increase in workers’ use of online collaboration tools since 2019. Even when your team is distributed, it’s possible for them to work closely together.

“It’s important to foster a sense of community and camaraderie among your team members in order for your organization to run efficiently,” explained Brad Hall, co-founder and CEO of SONU Sleep. “You may have a lot of top talent on your team, but nothing good will come out of that if your team isn’t communicating.”

Intuitive collaboration tools that help keep employees engaged include:

• Slack: Ideal for teams of all sizes seeking real-time messaging, file sharing, and integration with multiple business applications. Best for companies with distributed teams needing asynchronous communication capabilities.
• Microsoft 365: Comprehensive suite perfect for organizations already using Microsoft products, offering seamless integration between email, document collaboration, and video conferencing. Most suitable for enterprises requiring robust security features.
• Asana: Project management tool that excels at task tracking and workflow organization. Best for teams managing complex projects with multiple dependencies and deadlines.
• Trello: Simple, visual project management using boards and cards. Ideal for smaller teams or departments needing straightforward task organization without complex features.

“Any tool or app that allows your team to easily communicate with one another, keep track of project status and share files with each other is going to help foster a teamwork environment,” said Kyle MacDonald, VP of marketing and business development at Mojio. 

5. Define roles clearly and celebrate individual contributions

Having clearly defined roles within their team helps employees feel valued and more comfortable contributing.

“While it might not seem connected, your team will function much better as an actual team if each member knows what their individual role in the team is,” MacDonald shared. “This way, each team member can fulfill their duties and then help out other team members that might need it.”

When your team has clearly defined roles, each team member can get their work done more efficiently. “Your productivity and performance stats will increase by being clear on each individual’s roles and responsibilities,” MacDonald explained.

6. Set and track shared goals

Setting and tracking goals as a group fosters a sense of teamwork and encouragement. “If employees are all working toward the same thing as one, they are much more likely to help each other out, communicate and work together to reach the goal, especially if it benefits everyone as a whole or there is a shared reward,” explained Joanna Zambas, content and social media manager and career expert at CareerAddict.

Individual goals can be valuable, but they’re not conducive to team building. For example, say you’re building a sales team and create a contest for the top salesperson. People may be encouraged to attain a sales goal, but it won’t foster teamwork. Zambas noted that — if anything — that type of goal creates gaps among the team.

Real-world companies that improved teamwork and collaboration

Here are three examples of organizations that successfully enhanced collaboration and achieved measurable results:

Google’s Project Aristotle

Google conducted extensive research on team effectiveness, studying 180 teams across the organization. The company discovered that psychological safety — the ability for team members to feel safe taking risks and making mistakes — was the most critical factor in high-performing teams. After implementing structured team discussions and feedback mechanisms, Google reported significant improvements in project success rates and employee satisfaction scores.

Microsoft’s Cultural Transformation

During a major cultural shift toward collaboration, Microsoft moved away from a competitive “know-it-all” culture to a “learn-it-all” environment. The company implemented cross-functional team structures and collaborative goal-setting processes. As a result, Microsoft saw increased innovation metrics and improvements in employee engagement scores within two years of the transformation.

Patagonia’s Collaborative Culture

Outdoor clothing company Patagonia restructured its organization to emphasize purposeful collaboration across departments. The company implemented shared environmental and business goals, creating cross-functional teams that brought together design, marketing and sustainability experts. This approach resulted in faster product development cycles and stronger alignment with the company’s mission-driven objectives.

The benefits of effective teamwork

Companies that excel at collaboration see significant returns — team collaboration can result in a 41% increase in customer satisfaction, and collaborative teams are 56% better at making decisions than individuals working alone. 

Additionally, Stanford research shows that employees who work collaboratively stay focused on tasks 64% longer than those working alone, while being more engaged and displaying less fatigue. Perhaps that’s why, according to a recent study by the Institute for Corporate Productivity (i4cp), high-performance organizations are 5.5 times more likely to promote collaborative teamwork than their lower-performing counterparts. 

You can expect the following benefits when you have an engaged, collaborative team that prioritizes working closely together.

Enhanced creativity and innovation

Team building is one of the most crucial yet undervalued aspects of emotional intelligence in the workplace. Business is an inherently social environment. People must access collective energy and ideas to innovate.

Without effective teamwork, you’re missing out on creativity. When employees feel disconnected, their ability to think outside the narrow confines of basic tasks is impaired. However, when your staff is part of a healthy group, their work life is eased and empowered. It’s a phenomenon that James Coan, a neuroscientist and researcher at the University of Virginia, calls “load sharing.” When individual pressure is reduced, creativity thrives.

Improved problem-solving capabilities

Research from the American Psychological Association found that teams of 3 to 5 people performed best at solving complex problems, benefiting from collaborative information processing and the ability to dismiss incorrect answers. Groups consistently outperformed pairs and individuals in tackling challenging tasks.

Increased employee retention and satisfaction

Studies show that employees in collaborative work environments report 12% higher job satisfaction rates. Additionally, effective communication and collaboration generate 4.5 times higher talent retention, significantly reducing costly employee turnover.

Common teamwork pitfalls and how to avoid them

Understanding what doesn’t work is just as important as knowing what does. Here are the most frequent mistakes organizations make when trying to improve teamwork:

1.  Focusing only on team-building activities without addressing systemic issues

Address underlying organizational problems like unclear communication channels, conflicting priorities, or inadequate resources before investing in team-building exercises.

2. Creating teams that are too large

Research shows that the most effective teams consist of 4 and 9 members. Larger teams often struggle with coordination and decision-making, while smaller teams may lack diverse perspectives.

3. Rewarding only individual performance

Only 25% of organizations align effective collaboration with their performance management processes. Companies should establish metrics that recognize both individual contributions and collaborative achievements.

4. Ignoring remote and hybrid team dynamics

With remote work becoming permanent for many organizations, leaders must adapt collaboration strategies. Provide training on digital collaboration tools and establish clear communication protocols for distributed teams.

5. Lack of psychological safety

Teams cannot collaborate effectively when members fear judgment or retaliation. Leaders must model vulnerability and create environments where mistakes are viewed as learning opportunities.

Measuring teamwork success: Key performance indicators

To ensure your teamwork initiatives are effective, track these essential metrics:

Collaboration-specific KPIs:

• Cross-functional project completion rates
• Average time to resolve team-based problems
• Number of ideas generated in collaborative sessions
• Employee satisfaction scores related to teamwork
• Knowledge sharing frequency and quality

Business impact metrics:

• Customer satisfaction scores
• Revenue per employee
• Employee retention rates
• Innovation metrics
• Time-to-market for new initiatives

The evidence is clear: organizations that prioritize collaborative teamwork consistently outperform their competitors. By implementing the strategies outlined in this guide—from creating psychologically safe environments to leveraging the right technology tools—you can transform your workplace into a collaborative powerhouse that drives both employee satisfaction and business results.

Sean Peek and Kerry Goyette contributed to this article.