INNERGISE!

  • 16 Feb 2016

    Does every employee understand what defines success?

    It is very telling when we go into a company and you talk to the receptionist, or the warehouseman or the customer service advisor, and you ask then what defines success for the organisation.

    I haven’t done a comprehensive scientific study on this, but in our experience it would be roughly 8 out of 10 who say that they don’t know.

    You of course get the cynical answers about “lining the management pockets” or a general “it’s all about making money”. Rarely when you dig deeper do you find that the tangible goals for the company are clear in the minds of the staff.

    How then should we expect them to second guess us as the leaders of the business to deliver towards our strategic goals every day? They may well have very clear job descriptions which they understand, but their engagement in the business will depend more about them understanding how their cog fits into the wheel.

    There is a lot of emphasis on employee engagement at the moment, and I don’t intend to re-iterate what has already been written about the subject (click here to read an article on this topic), but I would like to emphasise how important measurement of it is before you work out how to improve it.

    Instead, I would like to highlight what has worked for me in the past to change this gap in knowledge and attitude.

    1. Publish your organisation chart – how many businesses do not make this a public record to all staff?
    2. Have clear job descriptions for everyone from the MD down, and publish a summary to everyone, so there is no doubt how success in anyone else’s job is defined. This should probably not be metrics, since this will lead to discrimination and conflict, as people question whether so-and-so is pulling his weight. Performance management is the realm of the line manager not everyone else, although this will stimulate people not to make their role an anathema to others.
    3. All staff should know 3 things that define success in their job on a day to day basis. They need to be part of creating what these KPI’s are with their line manager, and they need to understand how they each contribute to the overall strategic goals of the business. These should be part of daily conversations with their managers, and they should be able to report on them at the drop of a hat, because they never stop thinking about them.
    4. Finally, communicate the vision to the staff in small groups directly from the MD or Chief Executive, and make sure you translate how their success will deliver success for the organisation as a whole. Never underestimate the power of direct face to face communication. This simply does not work by email or internal memo. They won’t get the passion, or feel that it is very important if they have to read it.

    This may seem obvious to many of you, but so few times is it delivered well.  

    Ask your receptionist!

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