5 Ways Creative Teams Can Boost Productivity

August 30, 2021 - 5 min read

Brianna Hansen

Your big project has a hard deadline in just a few weeks. You host a kickoff meeting with your creative dream team to discuss what needs to get done and by when, while the attendees actively jot down notes and ask questions.

A week later you discover your team didn't quite understand the project after all. There's confusion around responsibilities, "completed" work has missing pieces, and some critical tasks haven't even been started. And then there's the team member who was absent from the kickoff and never quite caught up. Your team's barely had a chance to get started, and they're already behind.

What do you do?

It's not uncommon for creative teams to feel overwhelmed, miscommunicate, and then lose track of responsibilities — especially if things are only communicated verbally during a meeting. But if you can recognize where your team struggles, you can fix the problem before it's too late.

Use these five tips to boost your creative team's productivity:

1. Go Virtual

As surprising as it sounds, virtual teams can often be more productive than co-located teams.

In a study on working environments, 80 teams from the United States, South America, Europe, and Asia proved that virtual teams can perform with higher efficiency and productivity. This is because when teams are working virtually from all around the globe, the project never really sleeps.

It's a workflow known as "Follow the Sun." When the end of the work day arrives for some team members, their tasks are handed off to their teammates in a different time zone. Progress is made round-the-clock, and the project can be completed faster.

Another benefit: team members in varied locations offer different perspectives. This becomes especially useful when team members are located near customers, since they can meet with those customers and provide their insights.

2. Delegate Big Projects

Smart delegation goes a long way in creative teams.

If you have one or two top performers on your team, it's tempting to just give them all the responsibility. However, this can overwhelm them, and they might not have the bandwidth to get everything done up to standard. Plus, other team members may resent you for making them feel disposable.

Yes, you will have employees who are more experienced than others, but try to assign tasks based on strengths — or skills you know your team members want to sharpen. Soon enough, your entire team roster will be full of all-stars!

Watch this 4:42 video by Colin Boyd on his P.A.T. Delegation system where P stands for purpose, A for action, and T for timeframe:

3. Don't Rely on Team Meetings

Team meetings are great for project kickoffs and initial brainstorming sessions, but frequent meetings can quickly become a time sink.

And there is no guarantee that everyone's questions or requests are being addressed during your meetings. Creative teams need to communicate throughout the project so that questions can be answered as they arise, instead of three days later when a meeting is scheduled.

As team leader, you must lead the way by communicating constantly. Using the right technology allows team leaders to stay in touch with their team outside of meetings.

One of our most recognizable Wrike customers, Redfoo, is constantly traveling and often unable to attend team meetings. To solve the communication roadblocks, he uses our project management tool to manage his music and clothing businesses, and stay updated with project progress. He frequently checks project updates and answers questions from his team on his phone via the Wrike mobile app.

Watch this 4:40 video on how Redfoo uses Wrike for meetings. The pertinent section starts at 1:05.

4. Diversify Your Team

This isn't as simple as getting several people's opinions on your work. Studies show that it's ideal to have a 50/50 gender mix on a business team. One reason is because both men and women tend to struggle with contributing confidently when they are in the minority.

This quick 34-second video explains three reasons why a mixed gender team would lead to better productivity:

It's also good to have a mix of personality traits on your creative team. This allows for diversity in thinking and communicating, and it broadens the creative boundaries of the team itself.

We recently asked a group of founders for their tips on company success, and one said: "We have several differing personalities, but the temperaments are similar. That means we can all agree to disagree on many issues, yet still walk away without a lot of emotion and negativity."

5. Review "Lessons Learned"

It's a common misconception that once a project is completed there is nothing more to do. But don't just walk away once the project is delivered!

After the round of high-fives, go back through your process and evaluate what worked and what didn't. What communications fell through? How can you communicate better next time? Was this the most effective way to share new designs? Did everyone on the team feel like they had enough time to complete their tasks?

These are just a few starter questions that should be addressed with your team in order to optimize future projects and ensure successful delivery every time.

This 6:13 video thoroughly explains how to do a "Lessons Learned" session at the end of your project:

Creative Teams Can Work Better Together

How does your creative team boost productivity and get collaborative work done faster? Share your favorite creative team productivity boosters in the comments!

5 Ways Creative Teams Can Boost Productivity

VOCO Creative is Overcoming Challenges of Organizing a 100% Virtual Office

What are the advantages of a 100% virtual office? First, it’s inexpensive. You don’t have to pay for rent. Second, it gives people from different locations an opportunity to work together easily. Third, you can access your business data 24/7 from any computer. Read the story about VOCO Creative’s virtual office, find out their remote work guidelines, and learn how they keep everything efficient.

Collaboration 7 min read

5 Reasons Why Your Team Isn't Getting Stuff Done

“There’s no ‘I’ in 'team'!” You may have heard this saying once, twice, or a thousand times. Whether during sports, a school project, or a business meeting, this saying has made the rounds to many individuals who find little motivation in a cliché spelling lesson. And although the technicalities may be true, the meaning just doesn't resonate. There is an "I" in team — many of them. And each individual can impact how the team functions as a whole. Instead of drilling the overused “teamwork is key” speech, focus on the individuals on your team, and the common excuses they give when project hiccups arise. Here are five “I”s that can contribute to why your team isn’t getting stuff done: 1. Poor Prioritization "I didn't think that was a priority." Priorities are a common misunderstanding amongst teams. This can stem from miscommunications right when tasks are assigned, or incorrect assumptions about the importance of a task. These mistakes can affect the trajectory of the entire project if they're not addressed right away. Even when a task is assigned and flagged via email, it can be difficult to know what should happen next. Instead of driving yourself mad tracking down which email was sent to whom and when, consider changing your work processes. There are several task management platforms, like Wrike, that allow you to prioritize (and reprioritize) a task list to tell your team what they need to complete first. Throughout the project life span, you and your team can go in and see what tasks need to be completed ASAP, and assign due dates and available team members accordingly. Some tools have dependency features, so you can make any task dependencies clearly visible for your team and they'll know what needs to get done first. 2. Undefined Team Roles "I wasn't sure who to ask." Clearly defined roles within a team are extremely crucial for both project success and team growth. This response may come up a lot in a team where responsibilities are not explicit. Questions are ignored, forgotten, and, at times, presented to the wrong person — who then gives an incorrect answer. Undefined roles can also lead to team members taking on tasks that don't fit their expertise. This problem sets the team, and project, up for failure. One of the most important roles to define is the team leader. Whether that person is yourself, a colleague, or multiple people, your team needs to know whom they can turn to for questions, progress updates, and changes to the current plan. Defining this role gives your team a solid foundation and direction. 3. Accountability Issues "I wasn't aware that was my responsibility." Tasks are assigned during meetings all the time. Even followed up on through email. Yet this excuse continues to be popular when tasks aren't completed. It may not have been clear who exactly was responsible for the task in the first place. Someone could have missed a meeting, skipped an email, or simply forgotten, and without a proper project tracking tool, there was no way for either of you to know the task was sitting in limbo. Scott Blanchard, co-founder of Blanchard Certified, also finds that accountability problems stem from alignment problems with the overall goal of the project. If you don't share the overall project plan, your team members may have trouble seeing the purpose of their task and its importance to the overall project — so they don't hold themselves accountable for quality work. Tools that allow you to clearly assign individuals to tasks as part of larger projects will help eliminate accountability errors. In most project management tools, a team member will be notified once they are assigned to a task, so there is no confusion on what needs to get done and who needs to do it. One of our well-known customers, Redfoo, uses Wrike to help manage his brand and both of his companies, Party Rock Records and LaFreak Clothing. Before Wrike, Redfoo and his team were struggling with accountability. Now, they open up Wrike during meetings to assign task owners as they're discussed, in a tool where everyone can see the new responsibilities. “It’s really hard in a company like ours, where we’re all creative people, and we’re trusted by our boss to accomplish tasks on our own,” says Charlie Pearl, Brand and Social Media Coordinator at LaFreak. “Wrike creates a timeline and makes it clear who’s assigned to what, so that there is no confusion.” 4. Inability to Resolve Conflict "I find it really hard to work with her." Team members don't always have to be friends, and sometimes they won't be. But workplace drama is not a good excuse to miss a deadline or perform poorly on a collaborative project. As a team leader, it's important to know that most damaging problems don't necessarily occur when a conflict arises, but when it's ignored. According to a study on team conflict resolution, a whopping 95% of the workforce struggles to speak up when problems arise. This may also lead to bigger issues, like wasting time ruminating over the issue, or permanently damaging employee relationships. When resolving conflicts, the best advice is to nip it in the bud. It may not be easy to confess to a mistake, or to talk to a team member about their error, but it's important to fix problems immediately before they get worse. Avoid pointing fingers and placing blame. Accidents happen, so it's important to remind yourself and your team members that you have a common goal, and that your intention is to address the conflict ASAP so everyone can get back to achieving that goal. 5. Lack of Vision "I really just don't see the point." One of the most crippling reasons that teams don't get work done is a lack of shared vision. A negative outlook may not only affect one person, but your whole team. If the ultimate goal is not clear to the whole team, then every team member will view a project's importance, urgency, and crucial steps differently. This can lead to divisions within the team, and may waste time as you figure out how to accomplish tasks. It can also damage productivity due to lack of motivation or enthusiasm for the project as a direct result of not seeing the same vision. One way to avoid this is by writing out clear, tangible goals before any work begins. This way, the team can start on the same page, and the important goals can be referenced when disputes arise. They also make team members feel like their role is crucial to the success of the project, because they can clearly link back their tasks to the vision. When each team member has a purpose, they are more likely to get the job done and do it well. What are some other reasons teams are unproductive? Share your experiences, along with your solutions, in the comments below. We'd love to learn from you! Related Reads:5 Ways Creative Teams Can Boost ProductivityDownload “Get Things Done with Wrike” (eBook)50 Productivity Tips to Boost Your Brainpower (Infographic)10 Reasons Projects Fail: Lessons from the Death Star

Productivity 5 min read

Productivity Experiments that Shaped the Way We Work

As the Industrial Revolution swept America in the late 1700s to the early 1800s, managers started to become more interested in productivity. Over the coming decades, Congress passed safety regulations that sought to improve working conditions and put a cap on the amount of hours that employees could work each day. At the same time, sociologists began studying exactly what influences productivity — and their experiments continue to shape the way we work centuries later. All of this research has revealed some timeless insight into human behavior, motivation, and how these factors affect productivity. The Hawthorne Effect One of the most famous studies on productivity set out to pinpoint exactly which variables influence individual performance. Researchers began with two groups: a control group, and a group whose environment they adjusted. Over time, the researchers improved lighting, altered working hours, moved break times, and shuffled other environmental factors. What they found was that whenever they made a change, productivity increased — while the control group held steady. Perhaps more interesting was the fact that any change, whether positive or negative, led to greater productivity. This held true even when all the environmental factors were returned to their original state. As it turns out, worker morale was boosted by the simple fact that the company was interested in making changes and showed concern about their work environment and well-being. Even if employees didn’t necessarily like the changes, they were bolstered by the fact that managers were trying to make improvements, which directly improved their productivity. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs In 1943, psychologist Abraham Maslow published a paper that outlined a 5-level hierarchy of individual needs. The idea was simple: if a person’s simplest and most basic needs weren't being met, they wouldn't feel motivated to achieve at a higher level. You have to start at the bottom and meet every need along each rung of the ladder in order to encourage high performing employees. The 5 Levels Physiological: in the workplace, this means food, water, and a comfortable place to work. Safety: this goes beyond immediate safety concerns and also involves financial security, health, and well-being. Belonging: feeling connected to others in the workplace and forming friendships. Esteem: feeling confident in their abilities and respected by others. Self-actualization: feeling that they can achieve anything and reach new levels of success within the company. Addressing each level of this hierarchy creates a happier and more productive employee. Expectancy Theory The Expectancy Theory takes a close look at motivation and what drives workers to try and reach their full potential. In 1964, Victor H. Vroom theorized that people make choices based on whether they think the results of their behavior will lead to desired outcomes. Essentially, all our choices come down to three basic elements: Expectancy: the belief that the effort you put in will result in your desired outcome. This is often influenced by individual confidence levels and the perceived difficulty of the desired goal. Instrumentality: the belief that you will be rewarded if you meet expectations. Valence: how much value you place on the reward. Workers need to believe that they will be acknowledged and rewarded with something valuable if they meet or exceed productivity expectations. Employers have to determine what rewards employees truly want, clearly communicate what those rewards are, and be consistent in handing out rewards for excellent performance. Higher Pay Doesn’t Increase Productivity It would be easy to assume more money equals stronger incentive, increased productivity, and greater work satisfaction — and more recent studies tend to focus on that relationship between money, rewards, and happiness. Somewhat surprisingly, however, the research shows that while happiness does affect productivity, money isn’t a large part of the equation. Some compelling statistics to consider: 87% of workers are disengaged at work Unhappy workers are 10% less productive Unhappy, unproductive workers cost companies around $500 billion a year Happiness improves productivity by 12% So how can companies create happier employees — and boost the bottom line in the process? The answer is to invest money in employee support programs instead of just raising wages. We are seeing this trend across the nation as more employers offer benefits like paid family leave, unlimited paid vacation days, health and wellness centers, and work from home opportunities. Essentially, this is another example of the Hawthorne Effect at work. When employees feel like their well-being is a priority, they are more productive. All of these theories distill down to a single simple truth: workers, no matter what industry or century, want to feel safe and appreciated. If companies make an effort to invest in their workers' happiness and well being, they will improve productivity. Investing in better benefits, increased employee support, and improved workplace conditions rather than simply handing out raises yields a bigger return on investment, because time and time again, studies prove that happy employees are more productive employees. Author Bio: Mike Hanski writes for Bid4papers. His productivity secret is simple: do what you like. And ear plugs. In that order. You can find Mike on Google+. Productivity Tips for the Modern Workplace Browse our collection of research-backed productivity tips, then put them into action and boost your team's productivity with a free trial of Wrike. Related Reads: 50 Productivity Tips to Boost Your Brainpower (Infographic) 20 Top Productivity Apps For Your Mobile Device How Writing a Journal Helps Increase Personal Productivity

For Teams

Use cases

Apps & Integrations

Explore Wrike

Learn and connect

Become Wrike Pro

5 Ways Creative Teams Can Boost Productivity

1. Go Virtual

2. Delegate Big Projects

3. Don't Rely on Team Meetings

4. Diversify Your Team

5. Review "Lessons Learned"

Creative Teams Can Work Better Together

Related Reads:

Brianna Hansen

5 Ways Creative Teams Can Boost Productivity

1. Go Virtual

2. Delegate Big Projects

3. Don't Rely on Team Meetings

4. Diversify Your Team

5. Review "Lessons Learned"

Creative Teams Can Work Better Together

Related Reads:

Brianna Hansen

Related articles

VOCO Creative is Overcoming Challenges of Organizing a 100% Virtual Office

5 Reasons Why Your Team Isn't Getting Stuff Done

Productivity Experiments that Shaped the Way We Work

Get weekly updates in your inbox!

You are now subscribed to Wrike news and updates