What Is Team Chemistry?

A business is only as good as its workers. Owners and managers who understand how to best utilize each employee – who to team them up with, for example, and what projects to put them on – can help shape the success of the business. One key is to figure out what combination of workers and responsibilities creates the best chemistry between team members.

Team chemistry is an intangible concept, though you often know it when you see it. For example, you know it's present when the team members get along with one other, are loyal to each other and work toward the same goal. Teams with good chemistry understand each other's strengths and weaknesses and work in a way that maximizes the strengths and minimizes the weaknesses.

Team chemistry is not something that happens overnight. Many factors contribute to it, beginning with choosing the right people. Business owners and hiring managers must understand their employees from a 360-degree perspective. Talent and experience are not enough to make someone a good team player. She must also be willing and able to interact and get along with others, communicate and listen effectively, and put aside her own personal goals for team goals.

Once the right team is in place, it takes care and attention to grow and maintain team chemistry. Teams need measurable goals they can work together to achieve. There will be times you need to test and push them, and times you need to let them relax and take a breather. Communication is key. To build trust and chemistry, team members need to know they can communicate with each other honestly.

Even after a business puts the right people in place, owners and managers need to carefully monitor the team’s progress. Team chemistry ebbs and flows. If an owner or manager falls asleep at the switch, an otherwise healthy team can quickly regress. Be aware of signs that indicate dissension in the team, such as apathy, conflicts and complaining. Owners and managers who notice the signs early can take the necessary steps to improve team chemistry and, ultimately, the performance of the business as a whole.