Research* of more than 1,500 team members working across businesses globally shows the best and worst team habits that are impacting overall effectiveness – and what businesses should avoid, or do more of, to supercharge their teams this year. This is according to a report by strengths development organisation.

Participants report they are struggling with stretch habits that enable continuous performance improvements. Specifically, teams are struggling to provide constructive feedback to each other and collect feedback from key stakeholders and customers. These results suggest that most teams need to be more proactive in the gathering and delivery of feedback.

Closely related to feedback, accountability was also found to be a challenge. The results show that team members believe their colleagues are less likely to be called into account when work is not delivered, or standards are not met. When teams lack accountability it can have a profound impact on motivation and cause a domino effect to other individuals within the team.

But while teams struggle with feedback and accountability, they excel in building trust—a critical ingredient for success. Team members feel they are able to share their ideas and views, openly and honestly at team meetings and can rely on each other for help and support to get the job done. This helps build the strong relationships needed for sustainable high performance.

When considering the most significant predictors of team effectiveness, the report identifies three standout areas that are common in high performing teams: each member’s role and contribution is clear, the team’s purpose is meaningful and understood, and there are measurable goals and implementation plans in place to help achieve this. All of which support the habit of clarity.

Dr Paul Brewerton chartered occupational psychologist and founder of Strengthscope, comments: “Team habits correlate with team performance. HR and Learning & Development Managers can support their teams by helping them to acknowledge where they’re currently at and what their challenges are. This will provide the context needed to build skills and behaviours that improve overall performance. In tandem, managers and leaders should ensure they are creating conditions for their teams to feel safe and confident, especially when it comes to delivering feedback.”

*The research is based on 1,588 team members completing Strengthscope’s assessment and development tool between October 2023 and September 2024. The assessments were completed by participants working in finance, marketing, HR, operations, IT, legal, sales etc. To further enrich analysis, the data is reflective of participants from the UK, Europe and the US. Download the full report to explore how your team compares.