Each year, I spend the last of December and the first part of January setting goals. I set both personal and professional goals using the same method. It goes something like this:
1. Evaluate successes and opportunities from the year
2. Ask myself what goals need to carryover in to the next year
3. Set new goals and objectives
4. Give it time to simmer
5. Evaluate and finalize
The first three items probably sound familiar and perhaps similar to your process. Items four and five are why it takes me in to January to finish. I tend to be really ambitious when it comes to setting goals and after living through a couple of weeks and looking back on them, I sometimes realize that they are either unrealistic, not all that important or not detailed enough. Taking some time from my goals is a good way for me to determine if I am going to maintain or transform.
Shouldn’t we do both? Perhaps, but each requires a different strategy and one that must be aligned with the overall goals of the organization. For example, I can set my goals based on maintaining, meaning; maintaining relationships with clients, co-workers and our product but if the overall goals of the organization for 2012 are to transform, then we are misaligned and I will spend the year feeling disconnected and always playing catch-up.
February is quickly approaching but it is not too late to set goals. I would challenge you to answer the following questions before tasking your team with the activity:
1. Does every member of your team understand what the goals of the organization are?
2. Do they have a clear picture about how those goals could work in tandem with their personal goals?
3. Are they empowered to set goals that align with the goals of the organization?
4. How are these expectations communicated?
Your goals and the goals of each member of your team or organization should insure that individual talents are aligned with business strategy so that value is added to the organization. Setting goals that are effective and stand a chance to be completed rather than being an “exercise” for the sake of it, takes time and effort, but one that I think you will find worth it.
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Results Oriented Culture
Results seem to be a topic of conversation quite frequently these days. Every organization is trying to figure out how to achieve more with less. We use words like accountability, engagement, and behaviors in our discussions about getting more results. We analyze our workplace to determine if we are truly productive. We dream of changing “the way things have always been done”, convinced that if we could only do things differently it would be better. Does any of this sound familiar? What we are really talking about is culture; and not just understanding culture but creating, adapting and changing culture. How overwhelming does that sound?
Culture in the simplest terms is the way we do things. Each group has a culture. The way I think about it is; our behavior is how we show up at work. A group of people and their different behaviors make up a culture. Conflict occurs when one or more of the people in the culture group lack the skill, ability or desire to adapt their behavior. Culture impacts behavior, attitudes and satisfaction. All of these translate to engagement in an organization. People who fit in to the culture tend to be more engaged while those who do not, don’t. Culture also affects the pace at which work gets done, how outsiders are treated, the attention paid to details, or risks that the group takes. These in turn influence the success of the group in meeting its goals.
I attended a webinar last week titled, How to Accelerate Culture Change for Game-Changing Results. It was an interesting and fast paced hour with several great tips for action. The speaker referenced their culture model that they call the Results Pyramid® http://www.ozprinciple.com/culture/results-pyramid/. Experience drives beliefs, beliefs drive actions, actions produce results and results create culture. The argument is that either you will manage your culture or it will manage you.
Changing culture to obtain results does not have to be completely overwhelming if you think of it this way:
1. Don’t just focus on responsibility, take accountability for achieving results.
2. Culture changes one person at a time.
3. Development is the key to creating culture change.
I narrow this down to how I think about most things. Small steps each day toward a defined goal will accomplish great things, even changing culture.
Culture in the simplest terms is the way we do things. Each group has a culture. The way I think about it is; our behavior is how we show up at work. A group of people and their different behaviors make up a culture. Conflict occurs when one or more of the people in the culture group lack the skill, ability or desire to adapt their behavior. Culture impacts behavior, attitudes and satisfaction. All of these translate to engagement in an organization. People who fit in to the culture tend to be more engaged while those who do not, don’t. Culture also affects the pace at which work gets done, how outsiders are treated, the attention paid to details, or risks that the group takes. These in turn influence the success of the group in meeting its goals.
I attended a webinar last week titled, How to Accelerate Culture Change for Game-Changing Results. It was an interesting and fast paced hour with several great tips for action. The speaker referenced their culture model that they call the Results Pyramid® http://www.ozprinciple.com/culture/results-pyramid/. Experience drives beliefs, beliefs drive actions, actions produce results and results create culture. The argument is that either you will manage your culture or it will manage you.
Changing culture to obtain results does not have to be completely overwhelming if you think of it this way:
1. Don’t just focus on responsibility, take accountability for achieving results.
2. Culture changes one person at a time.
3. Development is the key to creating culture change.
I narrow this down to how I think about most things. Small steps each day toward a defined goal will accomplish great things, even changing culture.
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
More on Motivation
We are all motivated differently and being aware of the nuances of motivation will make you a better leader. Intuitively we know that employees find motivation in work that matters and that makes a contribution in a larger sense. What else motivates employees?
The results of a 2007 study by global HR consultancy Hewitt Associates show that compensation is not the number one motivator for most. They researched high potential performers in seven Fortune 500 companies to examine the key drivers that inspire them to exceptional performance. The top six items on that list were:
1. Job Fulfillment/challenge
2. Total Compensation
3. Opportunities for Advancement
4. Good Work/Life Balance
5. Being Linked to Business Results
6. Integrity
Are you surprised to see that compensation isn’t listed as the number one motivator? Daniel Pink writes in his book, Drive http://www.amazon.com/Drive-Surprising-Truth-About-Motivates/dp/1594484805/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1319567268&sr=1-3, that research has shown over and over that a big paycheck—or the carrot on the stick—is not the key driver of your best performers. To be sure, people have to feel that they are paid enough and that they are treated fairly, as the other factors on this chart indicate, but once those needs are met, the most powerful driver is intrinsic motivation.
In short, Pink’s theory distills down the six motivation factors found in the 2007 study into three necessities:
1. Autonomy
2. Mastery
3. Purpose
If we take a look at autonomy we understand that we have to allow people to be self-directed. This encourages intrinsic motivation which is the drive to do things because they matter. Money is extrinsic and destroys motivation.
You don’t have to provide these in abundance (like full autonomy) in order to encourage intrinsic motivation. Even a little change in the work environment toward these things can make a big difference. Your challenge then as a leader is to figure out how to provide those opportunities to your employees.
There are five things that you can do to motivate your employees to care about their performance.
1. Know them
2. Grow them
3. Inspire them
4. Involve them
5. Reward them
This is a simple list that can make a big difference. Do you know what motivates your team? If not, have you asked?
The results of a 2007 study by global HR consultancy Hewitt Associates show that compensation is not the number one motivator for most. They researched high potential performers in seven Fortune 500 companies to examine the key drivers that inspire them to exceptional performance. The top six items on that list were:
1. Job Fulfillment/challenge
2. Total Compensation
3. Opportunities for Advancement
4. Good Work/Life Balance
5. Being Linked to Business Results
6. Integrity
Are you surprised to see that compensation isn’t listed as the number one motivator? Daniel Pink writes in his book, Drive http://www.amazon.com/Drive-Surprising-Truth-About-Motivates/dp/1594484805/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1319567268&sr=1-3, that research has shown over and over that a big paycheck—or the carrot on the stick—is not the key driver of your best performers. To be sure, people have to feel that they are paid enough and that they are treated fairly, as the other factors on this chart indicate, but once those needs are met, the most powerful driver is intrinsic motivation.
In short, Pink’s theory distills down the six motivation factors found in the 2007 study into three necessities:
1. Autonomy
2. Mastery
3. Purpose
If we take a look at autonomy we understand that we have to allow people to be self-directed. This encourages intrinsic motivation which is the drive to do things because they matter. Money is extrinsic and destroys motivation.
You don’t have to provide these in abundance (like full autonomy) in order to encourage intrinsic motivation. Even a little change in the work environment toward these things can make a big difference. Your challenge then as a leader is to figure out how to provide those opportunities to your employees.
There are five things that you can do to motivate your employees to care about their performance.
1. Know them
2. Grow them
3. Inspire them
4. Involve them
5. Reward them
This is a simple list that can make a big difference. Do you know what motivates your team? If not, have you asked?
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Your Attitude on Engagement
Engagement starts with attitude. Chances are that the employee with the bad attitude is also the one who is disengaged, same goes for you. Some attitudes are invisible; behavior is not and can be an indicator of engagement. Engaged employees are those who are committed and understand the phrase “be here now,” and live it. As a leader, you influence this idea by modeling the behavior you want to see. Do you come to work tired, overwhelmed and have a negative attitude and then wonder why members of your team do the same? Attitude is contagious and bad attitudes are toxic.
During these days of tightening budgets, layoffs, and demands on our time, staying engaged as a leader can be a big challenge. The addition of needing to inspire engagement in your team can seem overwhelming. So how can you inspire yourself AND your team? Here are several ways:
· Create a vision
· Manage your job role so that it is meaningful for you and aligned to your goals
· Promote work that is challenging and stimulating to you and your team
· Recognize the contributions of your team members and celebrate successes
· Demonstrate enthusiasm for your work and encourage others to do the same
I would challenge you to implement a couple of the suggestions above and notice how performance improves. Most of us understand the value that engaged employees provide an organization and engaged leaders increase this value.
During these days of tightening budgets, layoffs, and demands on our time, staying engaged as a leader can be a big challenge. The addition of needing to inspire engagement in your team can seem overwhelming. So how can you inspire yourself AND your team? Here are several ways:
· Create a vision
· Manage your job role so that it is meaningful for you and aligned to your goals
· Promote work that is challenging and stimulating to you and your team
· Recognize the contributions of your team members and celebrate successes
· Demonstrate enthusiasm for your work and encourage others to do the same
I would challenge you to implement a couple of the suggestions above and notice how performance improves. Most of us understand the value that engaged employees provide an organization and engaged leaders increase this value.
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Are You Coachable?
One of the goals of most leaders is to determine how to effectively coach. Some will attend training to learn more about coaching, others will read books and many will become better coaches through consistent practice with their teams. Leaders understand that coaching is not a one-time event, but an ongoing tactic that determines engagement, and performance. As a leader, have you ever asked yourself, “Am I coachable?"
In order to be coachable, you have to be open to ideas about what you are doing. Asking whether you are coachable may guide you to a more effective plan of action and can help you reflect and be forward-thinking. Those who won’t solicit feedback will not receive the objective input needed to make changes that will allow them to grow.
Steps to becoming more coachable:
1. Choose a stretch goal
2. Choose a coach and determine what sort of feedback will be most valuable
3. Work with your coach to get feedback along the way
4. Make a plan for follow-up and action
5. Commit to the plan
Choosing a coach can be challenging for leaders who are used to autonomy; remember that the coach’s role is to act as a nonjudgmental, strategic business partner. He or she provides guidance based on past experiences as well as aids application of new or improved competencies.
Today’s constantly changing marketplace requires all of us to be more adaptable. The days of doing things like we have always done them are over. Each level of employee, regardless of organization, needs to be willing to collaborate not only in their work but willing to collaborate on objectives and behaviors and therefore be open to coaching.
In order to be coachable, you have to be open to ideas about what you are doing. Asking whether you are coachable may guide you to a more effective plan of action and can help you reflect and be forward-thinking. Those who won’t solicit feedback will not receive the objective input needed to make changes that will allow them to grow.
Steps to becoming more coachable:
1. Choose a stretch goal
2. Choose a coach and determine what sort of feedback will be most valuable
3. Work with your coach to get feedback along the way
4. Make a plan for follow-up and action
5. Commit to the plan
Choosing a coach can be challenging for leaders who are used to autonomy; remember that the coach’s role is to act as a nonjudgmental, strategic business partner. He or she provides guidance based on past experiences as well as aids application of new or improved competencies.
Today’s constantly changing marketplace requires all of us to be more adaptable. The days of doing things like we have always done them are over. Each level of employee, regardless of organization, needs to be willing to collaborate not only in their work but willing to collaborate on objectives and behaviors and therefore be open to coaching.
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