The importance of team spirit and morale is recognised as a key factor in achieving goals. This recognition can be seen in the rise in popularity of such bonding exercises as paintball sessions and group learning on external workshops. But after these activities have transformed a loose-knit group of individuals into a veritable A-Team, the team's performance still needs to be managed. One way to study team performance management in action is to watch televised football.

Managers are household names these days and the modern team boss often becomes an animated figure in his pitch-side technical area, watching developments in his team's performance and barking orders if he sees a weakness that needs strengthening, or taking advantage of a frailty he spots in the opposition.

Just as the football manager watches the game carefully, the team manager should monitor the performance of his team regularly. This allows the early detection of any issues that may affect the morale or productivity of the team. If a problem does arise, then the manager has to ascertain whether it lies with an individual, or it runs across the whole team.

If an individual member of the team is under performing, then that problem can be addressed by speaking directly to that person. If the team as a whole is performing poorly, this calls for a more delicate approach, as there may be some within the team who are working perfectly well and who might feel slighted that they should be put in the same boat as the under-performers. It is best not to criticise the entire team for what may be a problem caused by only one of a few members.

An often heard criticism of football managers is that they play key players in the wrong positions. A similar flaw in team management can slow down the team as a whole. Empowerment is one way to be sure the team is firing on all cylinders. Empowerment is taking all that you know about your team, the skills and experience of individual members, and utilising this knowledge to achieve maximum efficiency.

A football manager doesn't need to read the name on the back of a player's shirt to know who he is. Most managers have an open door for players if they have any problems and relationships are strengthened on the training ground. A good team manager will know each member of his team individually. This does not mean that he needs to spend long periods hanging out with the team in order to get to know them better. Rather he should utilise to the full the time he does spend with them. Short bursts of quality time are more effective at strengthening a bond than simply being there.

After the full-time whistle, the manager will emerge from the dressing-room to face post match questions on his team's performance, win, lose or draw. You will notice that during these interviews, even after a heavy defeat, the manager will be reluctant to criticise his players. He knows that team morale is important and it must be preserved even when it is running very low.

Just as a football manager will praise his team if they perform well, so should the team manager. "I thought the lads were tremendous," the football manager might say, and you should offer praise where it is due too. Be sure to give credit to the team as a unit, rather than individual members. Positive feedback is essential to maintain the morale of the team. This will increase team spirit even further, and the group will be stronger again when they embark on their next project - like a football team making it through to the next round of a cup competition.