Leveraging Individual Strengths for Team Success

Cathie Leimbach • November 13, 2021

Win/Win/Win situations are the reality in healthy workplaces. Individuals, teams, and the organization are all successful. Individuals are engaged and morale is high. Trust within the team is strong and team goals are achieved. The organization is serving its mission and reaching its targets.


However, such success isn’t magic. It requires clarity and collaboration on everyone’s part. The organization needs to set growth-oriented yet realistic goals and allocate adequate resources. Each team requires clear goals that support the organization’s success and appropriate resources.  Then, team leaders have the task of determining how to engage their people and apply their resources to achieve the expected results.  Also, individual employees have the responsibility to fulfill their role. To achieve individual, team, and organizational success, good communication and strong collaboration are essential at all levels.


First, let’s look at the benefits of leveraging employee strengths to achieve team and organizational goals. Recent global research by Gallup found that when employees are regularly using their strengths at work, the organization experiences:

  • an increase in engaged employees by 9%-15%
  • a decrease in turnover by 6% to 16% in low-turnover organizations and 26% to 72% in high-turnover organizations
  • an increase in profit by 14% to 29%

 

Second, let’s look at the challenges of leveraging employee strengths:

  • Some employees may not be particularly strong in the skills required to complete the work of their current team or the organization as a whole. Or, their strengths may only add value a few hours per day or week.
  • The organization or team leader may not be interested in knowing and considering the strengths of each employee.
  • Most jobs include essential tasks that everyone must do, regardless of their strengths or interests. Seldom is it practical for employees to be using their strengths every hour of the day. 
  • When an employee’s strengths don’t contribute to achieving their employer’s long-term results or current priorities, it is necessary for them to complete whatever tasks are assigned to them.
  • If the employee’s strengths and preferences don’t match the needs of their current team, they are likely in a wrong-fit position. It’s time to explore if there are right-fit opportunities elsewhere within the organization. If not, then leveraging their strengths likely requires a job search to find a better-fit position.


Third, when the team leader wishes to leverage the strengths and preferences within his team, effectively redistributing the work requires a focus on achieving team results as well as buy-in from all team members. During a collaborative team meeting, discuss the team’s tasks, understand each member’s strengths and preferences, and match strengths to tasks as much as possible. This usually results in everyone’s strengths being better utilized, increased morale, greater job satisfaction. 


Leveraging individual strengths for team success is both desirable and achievable. How strong is your organization in this area? What step could you take this week towards leveraging workplace strengths? 

Same Conversation, Different Expectations: Why One-on-Ones Need a Clear Close

By Cathie Leimbach • September 29, 2026
Jason left his one-on-one feeling encouraged. His supervisor, Ellen, had listened as he described competing deadlines and his interest in becoming a team leader. They talked about the possibility of shifting some of his workload. Ellen also suggested that training might help him prepare for a leadership role. "Let's work on that," she said. Jason thought help was coming. Ellen thought Jason would bring her a plan. Two weeks later, the deadlines were closer. Nothing had been reassigned. Neither had looked into training. During their next one-on-one, Ellen asked how things were going. "I'm still waiting to hear which project you want me to focus on," Jason said. "I thought we agreed that you would work that out." "And the leadership training?" "Did you find a course?" Jason paused. "I thought you were going to recommend one." They had discussed the same topics. They had left with different expectations. Neither intended to let the other down. But they hadn't agreed on who would do what, or when. Turn a Good Conversation into Clear Next Steps Listening matters. So does what happens after you listen. Before you end your next one-on-one, take a few minutes to make sure you and your employee understand what comes next. Talk about priorities. If everything can't be done at once, agree on what comes first. Ask what might get in the way, and what support would help. Make room for professional growth, too. What does the employee want to learn? What responsibility would they like to prepare for? Identify a step you can each take to move that development forward. Then write down your agreements. Keep the notes simple: what needs to happen, who will do it, and by when. Include your own commitments. Putting It Into Practice Ellen and Jason tried again. "The client proposal comes first," Ellen said. "I'll talk with Marcus today about taking over the weekly report. By Friday, I'll let you know whether he can." "I'll find two leadership courses before our next meeting," Jason said. "Then we can talk about which one fits." Both Jason and Ellen knew what to do next. The following week, both reported their findings and they made decisions on how to move forward. Jason’s work became more aligned with Ellen’s departmental goals. Jason felt valued and appreciated. Their weekly one-to-ones became the backbone of their workplace success. Want to Make Your Workplace Conversations More Productive? Join us for the Workplace Conversations Clinic on October 19 . Bring a conversation you want to handle more effectively, and let's work on making the next steps clear. Register Here

Want High-Performing Employees? Make Expectations Clear During One-on-Ones

By Cathie Leimbach • September 29, 2026
Sally appreciated that her supervisor made time for weekly one-on-ones. It made her feel valued. But after 18 months with Emerald Corp, something was missing. She rarely received feedback. Her supervisor didn’t tell her what she was doing especially well—or where she needed to improve. And although the company had promised continuing education when she was hired, no development opportunities had materialized. Sally loved learning. Several next-level positions interested her, but she knew she needed additional knowledge and skills. Meanwhile, two college classmates working in other departments had already been promoted. She was a fast learner. She was getting bored. And she was beginning to wonder whether she had a future at Emerald. So Sally started applying elsewhere. During Monday’s one-on-one, she asked her supervisor whether he would serve as a reference. He was stunned. “You’re doing well,” he said. “There are lots of opportunities for you here.” Sally asked whether he would support her applying for an internal position. “Well, you’re doing fairly well,” he replied, “but there are several things you could be doing better. You’d also need more experience or training before you’d be ready for the next level.” Sally was confused. “What should I be doing better?” Her supervisor mentioned a few areas for improvement. “Why haven’t you told me this before?” Sally asked. “No news is good news,” he replied. “You’re certainly not at risk of losing your job.” “But you’re telling me I’m not ready for a promotion. How am I supposed to improve if I don’t know what you expect?” Her supervisor assumed Sally would figure it out over time. Sally had assumed she was already meeting expectations. Both assumptions were costly. Within days, Sally had two interviews with other companies. One-on-Ones Should Help Employees Succeed Employees shouldn’t have to guess what high performance looks like. One-on-ones are an opportunity to make expectations clear and help employees become more successful. Talk about what they are doing well. Be specific about where improvement is needed. Ask about their challenges, interests, and future goals. Then provide the coaching, training, and support that can help them succeed. Don’t wait until an employee asks for a reference to talk about their future. Ask before you assume. Conversation is where leadership happens™ Want to Make Your Workplace Conversations More Productive? Join us for the Workplace Conversations Clinic on October 19 . Bring a conversation you want to handle more effectively, and let's work on making the next steps clear. Register HERE