Productivity
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or circulating a memo for everyone to literally sign off. Most busi-
nesses give new employees a handbook outlining company policy,
sometimes in exhausting detail. So invest even more time orienting
everyone to the company’s strategic goals as well – especially when
there are changes in direction.
In most respects, strategic alignment is a vertical, top-down
process. But a horizontal component should also exist in any
organization consisting of two or more teams or departments. Goal
sharing between groups keeps everyone on the same page. What you
do doesn’t happen in a vacuum: It affects others. Without horizontal
communication, some people might lose track of what truly matters.
My father is a retired colonel in the U.S. Air Force, and I’ve heard
stories of military leaders withholding much-needed items from
soldiers on the front line for bureaucratic, often stupid reasons. They
became so focused on operating their personal fiefdoms they forgot
the overarching organizational goal: to win the war.
Goal sharing breaks down “silos” that keep groups from
sharing information and integrating successfully with each other.
Furthermore, if each group knows the other groups’ goals, they
can work together to identify areas of overlap and then devise
ways to eliminate redundancy and save the company money.
Education
A smart organization provides its employees with basic
strategic guidelines right along with their procedural and occu-
pational training. This falls under the heading of giving your
people the tools they need to do their jobs right. Strategic goal
education doesn’t have to take a ridiculous amount of
time. People need to understand where they fit in the
grand scheme of things and why their work matters,
so connect the dots for them. This demonstrates their
value to the company, which will motivate them and
hopefully increase their engagement level. Make it
clear that, from the youngest intern to the chairman of
the board, everyone’s work has importance if it moves
the organization toward its strategic goals.
Strategic education can encompass a wide range
of methodologies, in a number of areas important for
36
alignment. For
example, mentoring
can achieve the same
ends as orientation-
level education, with
the mentor passing
on strategic goals
during the process
of showing a new
employee the ropes.
If your company’s
goals are in a state
of flux, “just in
time” training can
teach people new
skills on the fly and
help them adjust to
rapidly changing objectives.
In more stable work environments, you’ll still need to schedule
the occasional event to pass along strategic adjustments and other
updates. The town hall meeting offers an excellent venue for doing
so. Companies like Apple, AT&T and Microsoft have leveraged this
format by taking advantage of modern teleconferencing technology.
I presented a keynote at Cisco using their telepresence room, and it
was amazing talking with employees around the globe.
Last – I have to say it – continued professional development
helps your people keep their heads in the game. Cutting training
in times of a weak economy is a bad idea for employee motiva-
tion, growth and retention. Goal-oriented training becomes
more important than ever during a recession, especially when
you have no money available for raises. Reminding people about
the importance of your investment in them can help you retain
workers who might otherwise go elsewhere when things turn
around.
As a leader, you
have a duty to share
your organization’s
strategic goals with
your team members as
plainly as possible.
Oversight
Back in the 1980s and 1990s, we used to talk about SMART
objectives: they had to be Specific, Measurable, Attainable,
Relevant and Timely. Now we’ve gotten SMARTER, adding
Evaluate and Re-evaluate to the end of the acronym. Individual
workers are, in essence, constantly justifying their return on
investment (ROI) by demonstrating their contributions toward
achieving individual, team and organizational goals. Therefore,
once you’ve defined the company direction, and provided the
tools and training, you must now check in regularly
to ensure employees are spending their time
executing effectively.
For example, my assistant, Becca,
sits at her desk working hard for hours
a day. I don’t look over her shoulder or
even talk with her daily, as I’m often
out of town. So as her manager, how
do I know I’m getting
the best possible ROI
out of her? How do I
know that what she’ll
be working on in six
months will achieve my
objectives? Training and