Formula for Results
Donna DeChant, MBA
Human Resources Executive | Team Builder | Leadership Coach | Culture Champion | Organizational Architect
Between newsletter subscriptions and my curated LinkedIn feed, I am overwhelmed with advice on how to navigate complex business issues. Over the course of an average week, I read dozens of articles on building culture, assessing talent, and developing leaders. These topics are my priorities -- necessary ingredients for creating a healthy, high performing organization.
Facing new theories and recommendations, I reflect on my personal experiences in diverse industries and career roles. I've seen some really good action plans that did not translate into results, which was a problem. Business is about outcomes, not activity.
What do companies need to do to get (more) people doing the (right) things to achieve expected results?
A quick scan of talent management trends may convince you that we need to do personality tests on all candidates, we should only promote from within, or all performance reviews should be abolished. There is more than one way to build a culture and lots of things work in one place that would not work elsewhere. I've been trying to boil down to one common attribute from successful teams and organizations in my career, and here it is. Success requires alignment. Everyone from the executive team to front-line employees understand the purpose and can point to recurring accomplishments contributing to achieving purpose. That's it.
I've worked for organizations that were risk-adverse and some on the cutting edge, in every setting the most successful teams and projects are those where everyone knew what the end game is (how will our success be measured?) and focused only on that. No confusion. No mixed messages. No tolerance for those who are ignoring the plan and making up their own plans. Rewards for outcomes, not for being busy.
We talk about how vital self-awareness is as the foundation of leadership development. Organizational alignment is just as essential to realize strategic business objectives. Today's workers need to see, hear, and experience consistently the connection between purpose, metrics and outcomes. We can't confuse people with distracting priorities or by measuring things that won't get results. We can't tell employees one thing and then do another. We can't create an Employer Brand on the internet that doesn't match the way we actually work.
Beyond the organizational dynamics, leaders need to deeply understand job requirements to carefully select and promote the right people. We often don't have the time/resources to up-skill or retrain people for basic job requirements. We must assess skills, background and documented accomplishments to ensure that a person can step in and make a contribution (quickly). Applying "best practices" and research findings will not change the trajectory for a company that does not have the right people focused on the right priorities.
So, my current thinking is that one simple formula is alignment. What simple formula do you find most effective? Please share.
Director of FP&A
5 年Great article, Donna!? Every successful project I've been a part of has had strong alignment from the executive level down.? In my experience, an element that can strengthen and reinforce alignment is deliberate and frequent messaging of shared successes along a project's journey.? When everyone gets credit and recognition for their contribution, no matter how big or small, they often better understand their link in the critical value chain and are motivated to continue playing a part in delivering successful outcomes.
Awesome conversation and love all the focus on enlightened leadership. Focus on what is important, what are the behaviors that support that and stay consistent to holding ourselves accountable to it! And oh yeah measuring it is nice as well!
HR / People Operations Executive | Driving Excellence in People & Culture | Trusted HR Partner | Elevating HR Shared Services, Talent Management, and Technology
5 年#4DX is how we are honing in on our strategic goals, the wildly important ones. Lead and Lag measures to help us determine where we are winning and where we need to readjust focus. Sean Hampton probably can speak to it better and comment on your question, which all organizations struggle with IMO, there is no secret sauce, you have to do what makes sense for your organization and learn from through leaders.
Founder & President – M. Knox and Associates ? Executive Coach ? Leadership Development Consultant ? Strategist ? Facilitator
5 年Agree. And here's a simple (but not necessarily easy) formula I've seen that works well. Don't focus on creating the document, or getting posters on the wall, or filling out the form, or checking the box. Focus on having two-way conversations, asking questions to understand what's getting in the way of alignment, then closing the gaps. Do it until everyone gets where everyone needs to go and why. The documents, the posters, the forms, and the checked boxes can come later.
Run Happy
5 年I fully agree, Donna and thank you for sharing your insight. I’ve adopted several philosophies in my current manager role and feel you get more support from your team and upper management when you are kind and fully communicate your needs. I do this by touching base with each team member on a recurring bimonthly basis. Because the daily work responsibilities may not allow to fully engage with each team member taking at least 15-30 minutes focused on them to discuss anything they want helps build our relationship and provide support. With that I’d say my simple formula is to carve out that one on one time with your team and achieving positive results will rise. Hope all is well and Happy Friday.