If you’ve ever tried to keep several teams on track while also juggling everyone’s targets, you know it gets messy fast. Too often, tools pretend it’s all drag-and-drop dashboards and instant motivation. In reality, setting up and running multiple groups in Spinify takes a little planning, a bit of grunt work, and some trial and error.
This guide is for managers, team leads, and anyone tasked with keeping groups moving in the right direction—without losing your mind or turning Spinify into a spaghetti monster of goals and leaderboards.
Let’s get to the real stuff: how to organize multiple teams in Spinify, set unique goals for each, and what to watch out for before your well-intentioned setup turns into chaos.
1. Know What Spinify Actually Does Well (and What It Doesn’t)
Spinify is built for gamifying performance with leaderboards, goals, and a bit of fun. It’s not HR software or a deep analytics tool. If you want to run highly complex, cross-team OKRs with dependencies, you’ll hit Spinify’s limits quickly.
Spinify works best for: - Motivating sales teams and support teams - Running competitions or sprints - Making progress visible and public - Simple, quantifiable goals (calls made, tickets closed, deals won)
Spinify isn’t great for: - Tracking qualitative goals (“improve team culture”) - Heavy-duty reporting or advanced analytics - Anything that needs tons of granular permissions or custom workflows
Set your expectations accordingly. The trick is to use Spinify as the engagement layer, not your source of truth for everything.
2. Get Your Teams Straight Before You Click Anything
Before you even log in, sketch out your real-world org chart. Who actually works together? Who needs to see what? Don’t just mirror your company’s hierarchy—think about how people operate day to day.
Quick checklist: - Who are your distinct teams? (Sales, Support, Onboarding, etc.) - Do you have sub-teams or pods? - Are there people who should be in more than one team? - Who needs to see other teams’ progress (if anyone)?
Pro tip: If you’re inheriting a messy Spinify setup, clean house before adding new teams. Archive or rename old teams rather than piling on more.
3. How to Set Up Multiple Teams in Spinify
Here’s the step-by-step, minus the fluff:
Step 1: Create Teams in Spinify
- Go to the Teams section.
- Add a new team for each group that needs its own goals or visibility.
- Name them clearly. “East Coast Sales” beats “Team 2.”
- Assign members to each team. People can be in more than one team if needed.
What works:
Clear, descriptive team names and accurate memberships save you headaches later.
What to skip:
Don’t bother creating teams just for fun or for one-off competitions. It clutters things up fast.
Step 2: Set Up Team Owners or Managers
- Give at least one person on each team the manager/owner role.
- These folks can set goals and manage the team’s competitions.
- Don’t make everyone an admin—too many cooks, too much risk.
Step 3: Double-Check Visibility and Access
- Test what each user can see. Spinify’s permissions are simple, but mistakes happen.
- If you need tighter controls, you may need to adjust at the integration (e.g., Salesforce) level, not just in Spinify.
4. Setting Unique Goals for Each Group
This is where most teams get tripped up—copy-pasting goals across everyone and hoping it works. The best use of Spinify is to set specific, relevant goals for each team.
Step 1: Decide What Actually Matters for Each Team
- Sales might care about closed deals or revenue.
- Support might focus on tickets resolved or CSAT scores.
- Marketing might track leads generated.
Don’t:
Create a “one-size-fits-all” goal unless it really, truly fits all. People tune out if a goal isn’t relevant to their day-to-day.
Step 2: Create Goals in Spinify
- Go to the Goals or Competitions section.
- Choose the team you want to assign a goal to.
- Set up the goal: define the metric, the target number, and the time period.
- Assign the goal to the right team (not the whole company unless that’s intentional).
Real-world tip:
Keep goals as simple as possible. “Make 50 calls” is better than “Increase pipeline velocity by 7.2%.” If you can’t explain the goal to a new hire in 30 seconds, it’s too complicated for Spinify.
Step 3: Mix Team and Individual Goals
- Use team goals for collaboration (“As a team, resolve 500 tickets”).
- Layer in individual goals for personal accountability.
- Don’t go overboard—too many leaderboards and people will stop paying attention.
Step 4: Schedule and Rotate Goals
- Set clear start and end dates.
- Use short sprints for motivation (weekly or monthly works well).
- Retire old goals. Stale targets make people stop caring.
5. Make the Most of Leaderboards (But Don’t Let Them Backfire)
Spinify’s gamification—leaderboards, celebration alerts, trophies—can be powerful. But too much competition or public shaming can kill morale.
What works: - Show team progress, not just individual rankings. - Celebrate improvement, not just the top dog. - Give everyone a chance to win (e.g., random prizes, “most improved” awards).
What to watch for: - If a leaderboard never changes, people stop trying. - Publicly highlighting the same winners over and over creates resentment. - Don’t use Spinify for serious performance management—keep it fun.
Ignore:
The urge to over-customize every visual. Focus on what actually motivates people.
6. Integrations: Keep It Simple and Reliable
Spinify pulls data from CRMs, support tools, and spreadsheets. If your integrations are messy, your goals will be, too.
Checklist: - Make sure the data source (like Salesforce or HubSpot) is clean and up to date. - Test each integration before rolling out new goals. - When in doubt, start small—a manual spreadsheet integration is fine for a pilot.
What works:
Automated, real-time data where possible. But don’t be afraid to keep things low-tech if you’re just starting out.
7. Common Pitfalls (and How to Dodge Them)
- Too many teams: More isn’t better. Combine where you can.
- Vague or irrelevant goals: If it doesn’t drive behavior, don’t bother.
- Neglecting updates: Review goals and teams regularly. Outdated stuff kills engagement.
- Overcomplicating permissions: Spinify is simple—work with it, not against it.
- Ignoring feedback: Ask your teams what’s working and what’s not; tweak as you go.
8. Pro Tips for Real-World Success
- Start with one or two teams: Nail the basics before you scale up.
- Keep communication open: Tell people why you’re using Spinify, not just what the goals are.
- Iterate: Nothing is set in stone. Adjust teams and goals as you learn what motivates people.
- Celebrate milestones: Don’t just focus on the finish line—call out progress.
Keep It Simple, Review Often
Spinify can absolutely help wrangle multiple teams and keep everyone pointed in the right direction—if you set it up with intention and don’t try to make it do things it’s not built for. Focus on clear teams, simple goals, and regular check-ins. Don’t overthink it, and don’t be afraid to change things up if it’s not working. The best setups are the ones that actually get used, not the ones that look perfect on paper.