Building a cohesive team is not always straightforward and managers sometimes struggle to get the best out of groups, although contacting a training provider about sessions could help to solve issues.

Appraisals are an effective way of establishing whether employees are meeting their current responsibilities, as you're able to compare their job performance with the description of their roles. Although this process tends to occur regularly within companies, there can be many months between each appraisal, meaning staff who are struggling in their roles continue to do so for several weeks and more. There are warning signs that your team need input from you and extra training to assist them in completing their allocated tasks.

Missed deadlines

When an employee misses an important date and fails to complete projects on time, they may offer an entire list of reasons why this has happened. For example, they could mention that they found it difficult to finish the task concerned as there were several other assignments to work on.

On the other hand, they may not have a clear reason why they missed the deadline; perhaps they simply forgot to record the date in their calendars. Time management training could help in this instance as it will expand the skills needed to plan and prioritise workloads.

Poor motivation

This could manifest in a number of ways, including being late and a high number of absences. There are lots of different reasons why staff do not give work their full attention, ranging from personal to professional issues. These colleagues are easily labelled 'lazy' and other workers may feel they are carrying them and they resent becoming responsible for their workloads.

This warning sign requires careful handling and investigation. You may find that team members feel under-stimulated in their roles and could do with more responsibility, or that they are overwhelmed by the amount of duties they are accountable for. In addition, it may be a question of strengthening your leadership skills, which training providers can assist you with.

Aggression/unassertiveness

Experts in dealing with difficult colleagues will tend to have lots of ways to manage those who can lose their tempers. There are strategies available to calm those that are hot headed and confrontational in the short term, as well as methods to reduce this kind of behaviour in the long-term. Working with colleagues who lack assertiveness skills could prove more difficult as it can be hard to read their thoughts and fears about their roles.

They may appear to be happy to continue in their roles, but this may not be the truth. If you suspect that colleagues are having difficulties expressing their beliefs and opinions about certain tasks, assertiveness training could help them to grow within the firm.

Lost opportunities

When colleagues continually return from meetings with potential clients without garnering extra business, it may be time to ask whether their behaviour is putting off customers in some way. Constant lost opportunities is likely to have a negative impact on the financial health of companies and the self-esteem of the workers who are responsible for attracting new business.

Adept influencing skills are a major advantage to colleagues that attend procurement meetings. They encourage the development of persuasive communication where both parties benefit from outcomes that are usually based on compromises.

High tension

Many employees in the UK workforce have felt tense and stressful during their daily working lives. Some stress is believed to be beneficial as it keeps minds primed and clear for the task at hand. But when a worker experiences these feelings every day they are sure to lose the ability to cope with constant negative responses.

Stress manifests in different ways and while one employee may withdraw another could become increasingly agitated. What they are likely to have in common is their working performance may begin to suffer and absences from their working environment may increase.

Stress management via a training provider helps colleagues recognise the early biological signs of tension so they can quickly feel in control of situations. They may also learn how to adapt their working environments or bring up and resolve issues that contribute to these negative feelings.