13 Nov 09 Make your Goals STRONG instead of SMART
In the last post I talked about the difference between assessment and evaluation and how both are needed in order to provide strong performance management feedback to employees. In this post I would like to finally offer an alternative to the well-used (and perhaps outdated) SMART acronym of goal-setting. In the standard approach, goals are defined as good if they are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-Bound. These are o.k. characteristics and they have worked for decades. However, I am not sure they cover all of the elements necessary for successful goal-setting in times of great challenge. Today we need more than smart goals…we need STRONG ones.
Simple. For a goal to be useful, it has to be understandable. By “simple” I don’t mean it has to be elementary, but it needs to be focused on a single activity and outcome. Goals that have multiple parts are hard to understand and are difficult to deliver since the employee is unsure of what part of the goal is most important. A simple goal for one person may be an overly complicated goal for another person so this is a relative term based on the individual and the task at hand.
For 2010, your goals will need to be STRONG
Timely. For a goal to be useful it also has to be relevant to the situation at the moment. Each goal should have an importance that is immediate. If you truly want me to make this goal a priority, I have to see how it plays a role in our success right now.
Realistic. For a goal to have its desired effect on performance, it has to be seen by the recipient of the goal as somehow possible to achieve. Unrealistic goals create demoralized troops. This is a point of negotiation. If you see the goal as realistic and your follower does not, you need to take the time to explain your thinking in a way that they can see the same reality you do. This does not mean the goal has to be easy..just possible.
Objective. For goals to be strong, they must be viewed as unbiased and real. One of the definitions of “objective” is “having a real existence.” If you want me to attempt to achieve a goal, it has to be termed in a way that it is real. “Making people happy” is not an objective goal. “Improving customer satisfaction” is.
Necessary. Useless goals are the bane of high-performance. For a follower to be motivated to achieve a goal he or she has to see the value of the goal they are pursuing. Goals need to be provided in a context of understanding so that employees understand not only the specifics of the goal, but also the goal’s importance in the bigger picture. The necessity of the goal can be a strong performance driver, especially for employees who are personally committed to the overall success of the department or organization.
Grand. Goals need to be aspirational. They need to represent performance that requires ingenuity and persistence. They need to be challenging. Remember that I suggested they are realistic, which means they are not SO grand that they are unattainable. But realistic does not mean that it’s a piece-of-cake…it just means that it is doable. Grand goals are goals that stretch us to grow in ways that mediocre goals do not. Grand goals can be exciting, if they are agreed upon by both the leader and the follower.
Ultimately, this last statement is the key to successful goal-setting. Whether SMART or STRONG or some combination of the two, goals that are imposed on people tend to be less successful than those that are established with people. A goal-setting session should be a dialogue…the actual establishment of the goal should be the outcome of the dialogue. “Gifting” your employees with their goals creates confusion about what you mean and what the priorities are. But a goal-setting session where each individual has the opportunity to share in the crafting of the objective can be inspirational in itself.
Tags: communication, expectations, goal-setting, motivation, strong goals, trust, vision
10 Nov 09 Assessment versus Evaluation
There are many things coming down the pike at this time of year for leaders in organizations. Very soon most will be doing the end-of-year performance reviews as well as goal-setting, budgeting and finalization of strategy for the next 12 months to 5 years. Each company or organization is difference so I would never be able to cover all the possible topics and not all of them would be relevant to you anyway. What I would like to do instead is use both postings this week to address two areas of end-of-year activity that apply to just about everybody. The first of these is assessment and evaluation.
The important thing about assessment and evaluation is that you need to do both. Yes, they are different, and they are different in substantial ways and they serve different purposes. This is not just hair-splitting when it comes to terminology. If you only focus on one or the other you miss an opportunity to develop your people and give them the feedback that they need to be successful.
Evaluation
This is what most leaders and managers are doing at the end of the year in terms of performance management. Evaluation is summative. By that I mean it is the result of activities that have gone on during some defined period in the past. For most organizations, this is a one-year period although some forward thinking groups make the evaluation more frequent and covering a lesser stretch of time. Evaluations are also results-oriented. They focus on what has been produced during a period of time. The findings of evaluations are judgmental. I don’t mean to say that in a negative way, just that evaluations are for the purpose of judging performance and usually determining a score or rating. From a 
timing standpoint, evaluations are designed as a quality-gate. In other words, they are for the purpose of giving feedback on performance in a segmented manner. For too many, this is once a year. In fact, mid-year evaluations used by many are not as much evaluations as they are corrections. If compensation and other important decisions are made based on the once-per-year function of performance evaluation, then your evaluation cycle is yearly.
Assessment
Actually, mid-year evaluations often fall into the category of assessment rather than evaluation. Assessments are ongoing and process-oriented. They check the status of progress and provide direction or correction. By process-oriented, I mean the question for an assessment discussion is “How is it going?” whereas the question for an evaluation is “How has it gone?” So assessments are formative rather than summative. They happen as performance is being conducted, not after the fact. Assessments also tend to be more flexible than evaluations. With an assessment, modifications can be made either to the development and performance of the individual, or to the desired outcomes. With evaluations, that horse has already left the barn.
The point of calling out the difference between assessment and evaluation is to realize that both are different but important. Employees and followers need feedback in both areas. From an assessment standpoint, reflection on how things are going and adjustments to the tools available or expectations are important on an ongoing basis. Assessment in this sense is not about grading…it’s about providing an honest and helpful viewpoint on the process being used by the leader or the follower in achieving objectives. Every performance management process should include ongoing assessment, but without defined evaluation periods, followers will have a “sense” of how they are doing, but will have nothing to measure their performance against.
From an evaluation standpoint, it is also important to give honest and real feedback about how effective performance has been to a certain point. For most people, this “score” is an important indication of how well they are meeting expectations. Evaluation is not coaching…it’s judging. One of the benefits of evaluation is that it marks a close to the end of a performance period. If I have been doing great, it acknowledges my performance in a positive way and gives an opportunity for us to refocus on the next evaluation period. If my performance has been poor it provides an opportunity for some pre-defined consequence and then a clean slate for the next evaluation period.
The point to take away from this. Provide both! Evaluation without assessment is just a random score that surprises our followers and provides no real direction for improvement. Assessment without evaluation is an ongoing discussion that has no end. There are no points for either rewarding or correcting poor behavior and performance. The leader who wants to give the most powerful feedback defines the opportunities and the value of both for all followers.
Tags: accountability, consistency, evaluation, expectations, feedback, performance, performance review
05 Oct 09 Change Acceptance–Part 2
If Change Acceptance starts with Unawareness and ends with Owning, how long does it take and how do you advance through the stages? This is an important question since, left to our own devices, we will advance at least to the “Knowing” stage. Eventually. Helping your followers discover Buying and Owning however is usually a conscious effort. But it doesn’t have to be a complicated one.
1. When your followers are Unaware. The challenge with unawareness is timing. There may be a short period of time where followers need to be unaware because whether or not a change is likely to happen may be unsure. It will always be that, as a leader, you have information that not everybody else has. While I strongly support transparency, there is sometimes a period of time where you have to get it together before discussing it. But beware…this has to be a very short period of time. Unawareness starts to go away with the first hint of new information or activity. As soon as the change begins, it is important to provide information to everybody as quickly as possible.
2. When your followers are Suspicious. Once information begins to flow, suspicion will follow even in the healthiest situations. Followers have to go from hearing the information to somehow understanding it. While information is the antidote to unawareness, dialogue is the antidote to suspicion. Our minds hate a vacuum, so if you do not provide an opportunity for us to air our concerns and for you to answer our specific questions, we will add to the story ourselves. Open and honest discussion will eliminate much of the space available to rumor.
3. When your followers are Knowing. You must really pay attention once you feel that your followers are up-to-speed on the new direction and the change that is underway. This phase is crucial because here there will be some who decide to “opt-out.” Now that they are aware of the change, they may decide it isn’t worth it to be invested in the change. In this arena, both passive and active support and resistance start to take place. And the danger around those checking out is that they will take others with them. To continue a positive momentum, not only should you be sharing information and continuing dialogue, but actively engaging followers to make the change happen. Committees or project groups should be put together in this stage so that they can take the next step to owning. We don’t own those things that we talk about…we own those things that we do.
The team has to be involved for change to be accepted.
4. When your followers are Buying. Once you see the support building for the change it is time to stop talking so much about it and start supporting whatever activity that you see moving the organization in the right direction. This is a time of great positive action, yet it is also a time to be careful. Your objective in this case is to make the change concrete. You don’t want to continue building cheerleaders…you want to start developing owners. Let go of some of the details and let their creativity take a role. Continue supporting, but stop shaping and let others take that role. Only then will they feel it is their own.
5. When your followers are Owning. It is likely that another change will come soon, if it hasn’t already. In many cases, organizations are still trying to figure out how to buy one change when they are suspicious of another. It is important to celebrate the ownership of the change by reflecting to your followers what THEY have accomplished. This is sometimes a difficult place for leaders because they have worked hard on the success of the change and now feel that they no longer get credit. Don’t worry…everybody will know the role you played. But you should not be reminding them. All of your conversation should be about when “we” started this and how “we” or “you” have succeeded. If you insist on taking credit in the end, you will find it harder to pass along ownership in the future.
Unfortunately, there is no hard-fast rule about how long this takes. It takes as long as it takes. But if you will focus on moving your organization through the process, you will find that you can accelerate it. Remember, you are ahead of them in coming to grips with the change. Be patient but be diligent. The sooner your followers own the change, the more effective you and your organization will be.
Tags: change, courage, expectations, Global Leadership, trust
02 Oct 09 Change Acceptance Part 1
Any leader who has had any kind of training in change management is familiar with the standard model of change: First there is denial, then resistance, then exploration and finally acceptance. While this is a perfectly legitimate approach, I think there might be a more interesting and productive way to look at change. First of all, since change is actually not a topic that lends itself to “management,” I offer a view of “change acceptance.” Since change is inevitable, it is important as leaders to judge where our followers are on this acceptance continuum in order to gauge (a) how successful the change process has been and (b) what communication and support are needed at any given moment in time. Here is a simple and straightforward version of what I’m talking about:
1. Unaware. When change within an organization first begins, it is likely that there is a period of time where followers are not in denial, they are simply not aware of the change that is on the way. They may have a sense that there WILL be change, but in terms of understanding exactly what is happening, they are fairly clueless in this beginning phase.
2. Suspicious. As time goes on and more activity is underway, people become aware that there is SOMETHING happening and as a result start to look for explanations. If they find them, and the explanations are satisfying, then no problem. However, there is usually a period where there are more questions than answers. In this phase, people are trying to predict what is going to happen in order to prepare themselves. Even if they start hearing about it in formal communication, followers in this phase are trying to determine the “reality” of the situation.
Suspicion unattended can lead to paranoia.
3. Knowing. Eventually people become aware of what is up. They are involved enough, and see enough, to not only know for sure that change is happening, but to predict what the change will ultimately mean for them. This is perhaps the most crucial phase because it is here that people also decide whether they support the process or they will battle against it (actively or passively). Once you know there is a change afoot, you have the opportunity to pick sides. It is almost impossible for neutrality in this phase because anybody who cares about the organization or their future will be trying to determine their next step and what their actions should be.
4. Buying. In the positive sense, as people begin to understand what the new situation is and what the needs of the change process are, they will begin to buy-in to the process. They still see it as an externally driven phenomenon but they can decide to “enroll” and be a part of it. This stage takes some time to achieve but once there, the change takes on more internal momentum. In the negative sense, this is also where some people will decide that they know what the change means and they do not support it. These people will often check out of the process and simply not participate. Unfortunately, it is during this time as well that those who choose not to buy-in will often recruit others to be the negative forces in the process.
5. Owning. Ultimately, the change is adopted in the organization and becomes part of who you are and what you do. At some point, it is no longer an external force but becomes woven into the organizational culture. Again, this takes time…a long time. Managers often push their employees to get to the “ownership stage” faster than employees are comfortable (or able) to do. When your followers own the change, it is successfully implemented in your organization.
While this is a fairly simple description, it is extremely difficult to deal with in practice. Within each of these phases, followers are trying to sort themselves out and determine what to do next. There are actions you as a leader can put into place for each of these areas and we will talk about those in the next entry.
Tags: accountability, change, congruency, expectations, Leadership characteristics, leadership integrity
23 Sep 09 Moving Into the Space
This is an interesting time for many who are in leadership positions because, on the one hand, they have either recently been promoted or recently taken on greater responsibility. As a result of reorganization or restructuring, I have met many people who have been promoted even at a time where the focus of the news is on those who have been laid off from their jobs. These are the “Survivor” leaders whose career advancement is bitter sweet. They are in new areas of responsibility with new employees but at a time (and sometimes speed) that they did not anticipate.
At the same time, there are, and will be, a large number of people who have new leadership roles, not because of negative business outcomes but because their business is in recovery. As much as we are skittish about whether or not the business world is really on the mend, now a year after Lehman’s demise, business are getting their feet back under them. This requires strong management and leaders who can take new positions with authority and success.
There are plenty of challenges to making this happen but one of the most difficult to figure out is how to take the role previously filled by somebody else and make it your own. If your predecessor was a well-loved figure, you have the challenge of “filling big shoes.” If your predecessor was a jerk, you have the additional challenge of letting people know that you are not the person who was there before you. In either case, while wanting to move at a speed that does not overly disrupt the lives of employees, you also need to start making things happen. The “I’m new in this position” response is short lived because, in your new position, you are expected to deliver results. New results as a new leader.
Be yourself in your new leadership role.
Tip #2: Listen. Often leaders in new roles have the unbearable urge to start “doing something” immediately in order to establish that they are not the boss.While it is likely that there are expectations that you do, indeed, get things done, there is an opportunity at the onset of a new position to listen to those who are going to be impacted by your leadership. Even if this is a leadership position in an area where you have been working for 20 years, taking the time to listen to your new followers will not only send the message that you want to make changes together, it will start to cast you in the new light of your new position. No matter the urgency, have at least a few small group or one-to-one conversations with your employees about what they see as the priority and even what advice they have for you as the leader.
Tip #3: Let your predecessor go. By this I mean there is little or nothing constructive to talk about when it comes to the person who was in the position before you. In your very first communication with your new employees it may make sense to in some way honor the person who preceded you. But that’s about it. Whether they were great or terrible, they are now in the past. Don’t participate in the inevitable employee conversations about the “old days,” and don’t let comparisons drive your behavior. It is only normal that employees will, for awhile, measure your words and behaviors against those to which they have become accustomed. But that doesn’t mean you need to. Soon enough, the past will be behind you and continuing to evoke history, or compare yourself to the one who came before, will only make that transition more difficult.
When Jeffrey Immelt took the reins of GE he told people, “There is no way I am going to out-’Jack’ Jack.” The same is true for your new role. Don’t try to outdo somebody who is no longer in the picture. Be yourself, listen to your folks, and move on. Comparisons are inevitable but they should not drive any of your behavior. The problems that you inherited are now your problems and the fact somebody else may have created them is irrelevant. It is your chance to lead and to do it as only you can do.
Tags: authenticity, congruency, consistency, expectations, Global Leadership, Leadership characteristics, leadership integrity
08 Sep 09 Speechs to Engage your Followers
How do leaders motivate followers in troubling times? Look no further than the President’s speech to schoolchildren.
The mood of the country has become even more critical since the beginning of the last school year, so President Obama’s audience of schoolchildren, parents and teachers are starting the term with a greater level of uncertainty about a greater number of things than before. In his speech, the President had the daunting task of not only reassuring his audience, but also motivating them to become involved in their own future. You can follow the same structure as you address your employees, volunteers or members in moving them from victim to active participant.
1. “I know where you are coming from today.” President Obama’s speech began with a connection. I went to school as well and I remember what it’s like on the first day. Had he given his speech on the second day, or the second week of school, he would not have been able to do this. He chose THIS day as a way to connect with his audience from the beginning. When you are planning to speak to your followers, see if there is a day or an event that you can select that will allow you to show the common ground from the beginning. Then relate to them about that day.
2. “This is important to me.” The President revealed the importance of the topic very early in his speech by mentioning all of the speaking he has done previously. He mentioned his speeches on education, his speeches to teachers and his speeches to parents. Even to a kindergartner, it is clear that the President feels this is important because he has obviously talked a lot about it. Once you have related to your audience, let them know the topic you are speaking on his important to you. Don’t just say it is…provide the evidence.
3. “You are the key to success.” Don’t mislead or lie to your followers about this, but if you truly believe that your employees are the difference between success and failure, tell them so. If you want to engage your audience, show them how YOU see them in the grand scheme of things. President Obama pointed out to his audience that, while he has spoken to many different constituents, the students themselves will make the difference.
4. “Because you are so important, you have a great responsibility.” This is the focal point to the President’s speech and, as a leader trying to engage your followers, this should be the focal point for you. Engaging employees has nothing to do with how hard YOU have been working or how much YOU care about the topic. If you have established already that it is important to you, you can then focus on what is important to the rest of us…us. The important issue here is that you first have to establish our role, then you can remind us that we are accountable.
5. “You are showing the way already.” Through the use of many positive examples, President Obama also shows his audience that they are capable of making the right choices and benefiting from their responsibility. He emphasizes his message of accountability and commitment through using personal examples (“I understand”) but more importantly, through examples of people from the same audience who have been successful. Corporate leaders especially tend to be unaware of the positive examples in their workforce. If you can include the element of success in your presentation, you can encourage your followers that it is possible.
6. “Be proud of who you are.” This is not only a message about individuality, but a message of pride in the group. For you as a leader, it can be pride in the organization. President Obama not only talked to his audience about their abilities as individuals, but included one sentence that you can emulate to support the followers as a team. His comment was, “The story of America isn’t about people who quit when things get tough.” He is relating to the pride of his audience in their country. As a leader, you can do the same about your organization.
7. “Work with me on this.” The final section of President Obama’s address could be done a number of ways, but in essence he is reminding his audience that all of the outside sources…his office, the teachers, the parents and the system in general…are doing everything they can to contribute to success. This reminds the audience that they are a part of the bigger picture and that not only does the “boss” want them to take responsibility, he EXPECTS them to do so. Consider your relationship with your followers and find a way to include the entire system in the future success of the organization.
Tags: authenticity, communication, congruency, Energy, engagement, expectations
10 Nov 08 Walking the Talk—Part 2 of 2
Last week I mentioned the challenges of leaders to ensure that they are seen as walking-the-talk or understood to have a strong link between their words and actions. Regardless of cultural background, industry or situation, great leaders are always perceived by their followers as consistent.
While it is always important to get input from others, some time of self-reflection can help set the stage for improved consistency and credibility. You can address these issues by considering the following:
1. Am I clear? Many times we confuse our employees about our expectations because we ourselves are not clear on what we mean. for example, “I expect us to focus on collaboration” could mean that you expect team members to work more openly with each other, with other teams, with other companies or in all three situations. Depending on background and culture of the follower, it could also mean that the objective is to work without a manager. Or it could be understood to have an underlying message that individual performance will no longer be rewarded. A team holding a variety of these interpretations could be trying to behave in very different ways.
2. Do I mean what I say? Have you fallen into the habit of explaining to your followers what you believe your expectations should be rather than what they are? As leaders in challenging times, we sometimes feel obligated to tell our employees that things will get better soon. The problem is, often we don’t know that…or perhaps don’t believe it. It is much better to be honest and brief than to be dishonest for the sake of morale. Our employees are smart people. They know when we don’t mean what we say.
3. Do I hold myself to a higher standard? Strong leaders are not only willing to behave as they expect others to behave, but they are willing to hold themselves to even higher standards than they expect of others. By establishing higher standards for yourselves than for your followers, you will find that you provide an authentic inspiration that goes well beyond simply stating the desired behavior.
4. Do I understand how I am perceived? As a popular saying goes, “It is impossible to see your own picture when you are standing in the frame.” For leaders to ensure consistency between words and actions, they must receive feedback on how they are seen by others. If you do not have a formal mechanism for getting this feedback, start soliciting it now. Be specific with your questions. Instead of “How am I being perceived,” ask “How did people feel about that statement,” or “What do you think I could do to be even more consistent?”
5. Do I truly care? The purpose of “walking-the-talk” is to reinforce positive behavior and to teach your followers how to be more successful. If you reflect on your own feelings about your followers, you will find that the only to care if you are consistent is to care about the success of your employees. If you are honest about your feelings on this, and you find that you really do not care as much as you want them to think you do, it’s time to step back and find your passion again.
True and effective leadersihp is built on trust. If your acions and your words are not in sync, followers will not trust you and results, morale and feedback will reflect this. If leadership effectiveness is important to you, then taking the time to reflect on your own consistency will be time well spent.
Tags: commitment, consistency, expectations, Global Leadership, trust
Twitter Updates!
- impactsuccess: 'Stop J_Canfield'impactsuccess: 'Stop J_Canfield' […]
- impactsuccess: Now that I'm professoring again I think I'll grow a long gray ponytail.impactsuccess: Now that I'm professoring again I think I'll grow a long gray ponytail. […]
- impactsuccess: On the plane and headed to Dallas to work with some awesome leaders!impactsuccess: On the plane and headed to Dallas to work with some awesome leaders! […]