In today’s increasingly competitive business environment, creating high-performing teams is more crucial than ever.

For leaders the challenge lies in integrating belonging and performance.

Finding ways for people to feel a sense of belonging and achieve high performance is essential for fostering a workplace where employees feel valued and motivated while driving organisational success. 

Belonging refers to the sense of being an integral part of a team or organisation, where individuals feel accepted, valued, and included.

High performance is about sustainably achieving high standards of work output and meeting goals, strategies, plans, KPIs – or however your organisation measures performance.

Both elements are crucial: while belonging fosters engagement, and high-performance drives productivity and business outcomes, they are not mutually exclusive.

If people feel a sense of belonging, feel safe and engaged at work, they can bring the best version of themselves – driving high performance. Here’s how to do it.

1. Cultivate an inclusive culture                                                                             

Creating a culture of inclusion is foundational for merging belonging with performance.

Research from the Australian Human Resources Institute (AHRI) underscores inclusive workplaces boost employee engagement and retention.

An inclusive culture ensures that all team members feel they have equal opportunities to contribute and succeed.

Action Steps:

• Diversity and inclusion learning: Ensure a strong foundation of easy to access learning to raise awareness and reduce unconscious biases is an important start.
• Employee resource groups (ERGs): Establish ERGs to support varied groups to connect and enable them to provide feedback and shape organisational decisions.
• Leadership commitment and role models: Ensure senior leaders are prioritised for education and awareness, encouraged to visibly support and engage in relevant initiatives.

2. Align individual and organisational goals

A high-performing organisation is one where individual aspiration aligns with organisational objectives.

When employees see how their work contributes to the company's goals, they feel a greater sense of purpose and belonging.

Action steps:

• Goal setting and evolving: Cascade goals so people’s personal goals align with that of the organisation. Regularly revisit goals to ensure they are meaningful and helpful. Create systems for regular feedback and alignment.
• Career development: To foster performance, ensure people have career development conversations with their leaders. This will drive development, future success and provide a sense of connection to the organisation.
• Personal goals: Don't just stick to the “work stuff”, we want people to bring their whole self to work so discuss personal goals and how work can assist.

3. Foster open communication

Effective communication is crucial for both performance and belonging. It helps clarify expectations, build trust, strengthen relationships, and resolve conflict.

Action steps:

• Regular connection: Schedule team meetings and check-ins to discuss progress, address concerns, and celebrate achievements. Create the space for personal connection too.
• Transparent policies and decision: To avoid misunderstandings and foster trust, ensure that policies and decisions are clearly communicated.
• Feedback culture: Encourage a culture where feedback – positive and constructive- is welcomed and acted upon, by everyone.

4. Recognise and reward contributions

Recognition and rewards play a significant role in maintaining high performance while reinforcing a sense of belonging.

According to the Australian HR Institute, recognition of individual and team achievements contributes to higher job satisfaction and motivation.

Action steps:

• Celebrate successes: Regularly acknowledge and celebrate team and individual accomplishments.
• Reward systems: Ensure reward systems recognise both performance (the WHAT) and contributions to team culture (the HOW).
• Peer recognition: Implement peer recognition programs that allow employees to acknowledge each other’s efforts and successes.

 5. Promote work-life blend

In a post-covid work of hybrid working, I prefer to talk about work-life blend rather than balance. A supportive work environment that respects and promotes work-life blend, looks different for different people, but can enhance both belonging and performance.

Action Steps:

• Flexible working arrangements: Offer options, like remote work, flexible hours, and leave policies.
• Wellbeing support programs: Provide resources, like Employee Assistance Programs, coaching, learning, to advocate and support mental health and wellbeing.
• Role clarity and workload management: Even the best wellbeing support won’t drive performance if people are not clear on their roles and workloads aren’t sustainable.

By integrating belonging and performance organisations can create high performing teams that are engaged, productive, and healthy.

Cultivating an inclusive culture, aligning individual and organisational goals, fostering open communication, recognising contributions, and promoting work-life blend are key strategies for achieving this balance.

By focussing on these areas, it will build teams that not only excel in performance but also thrive in a supportive and inclusive environment.

Georgia Russell is executive director, consulting and product innovation for HR consultancy Shilo, a leading provider of on-demand human resources professionals and consulting.