Performance Development begins with your organization's Mission and Vision Statements. Whether you are setting short term or long term goals, what you do and who you want to become must be in clear focus. You should be able to very easily explain how goals, at every level are aimed at fulfilling the company mission and realizing its vision. That is what General Media Consulting aims at helping you be able to do through the development and implementation of your performance development system.
Organizational goals are high level goals that each sub-level will be responsible for helping to attain. These goals can be both short-term and long-term. This set of goals should also be well communicated throughout the organization. The responsibility for fulfilling these goals ultimately rests on the C-Suite members of the organization (CEO, CFO, president, business owner, etc.).
Setting goals that are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely begins at the C-Suite level. It is the responsibility of leadership to develop a culture of helpful goal setting and that includes developing metrics to track progress as strategies are implemented to attain the various goals.
Within most companies and organizations there are various groups or departments that have specific responsibilities. These sub-groups contribute uniquely to the overall success of the organization. They will have goals that contribute to the achievement of organizational goals, yet they will be specialized based on the department's purpose. In other words, the administrative team's goals will not be the same as the manufacturing department's goals. However, the success of both of those teams in attaining their goals will be directly related to the success of the organizational goals being met or exceeded.
Each team or department should also follow the S.M.A.R.T. goal setting method to help ensure that they are successful in attaining or exceeding their set goals. Developing KPIs or Key Performance Indicators and other metrics is necessary. Proactively monitoring these indicators to assist the team in staying on track to success is vital.
Each and every member of a team is an important contributor to the department's success as well as the overall success of the organization. Individual goals that are clearly tied to department and organizational goal attainment and success lend to a rewarding environment. Individuals flourish and report higher levels of motivation and productivity when they can clearly see how their work contributes positively to the organization.
A team member with a clear path for progress set before them will be far more successful than that same employee in an environment that lacks this kind of clarity. In an effort to help ensure the highest levels of motivation and morale, a performance development system will be designed to meet these individual needs through the creation of landmarks along the path toward the achievement of set goals. These will include monitoring KPIs and other metrics, coaching conversations, training in new skills, continuing education and more. Properly done, individual team members will know what they are aiming for, how to stay on track, how to get back on track if they need to, and what to expect in the case of failure and success in meeting goals.
Developing a work environment that is experienced as a safe place to learn and grow is an art form. On one hand you are in business to make money and get the results needed to do so. On the other hand your ability to do so sustainably is tied directly to company reputation, your ability to attract, and keep the most talented team members and to win at what you do, day in and day out. Developing a mentoring or coaching culture is vital to ensuring that the organizational needs and wants and the needs and wants of each individual are aligned into a synergistic, balanced harmony.
Successful listening is paramount to the success of any performance development system. Leaders must listen to team members from every level of the organization, customers, vendors, colleagues, and so forth. The ear needs to be tuned to hear praises and turn that into greater celebration and recognition and hear criticism and turn that into corrective action and up-building.
High level contributors: whether through hard work, intellectual contribution, emotional intelligence or other significant factors need to be regularly acknowledged and celebrated. This helps to ensure the team member or group within the organization knows that their contributions are valued and it clarifies vision and pathways to success for other individuals and teams within the organization. How individuals and groups within the organization are recognized needs to be thought through, it must occur on a regular and ongoing basis and it must be meaningful.
Your business exists to deliver a valuable product or service and produce a monetary profit for owners and shareholders in doing so. This is true for each individual within the organization as well. Employee pay and related increases should reflect changes in the overall economic environment as well as be in alignment with the individual, group and overall organizational performance. Cost of living adjustment (COLA) to payrolls should occur at least annually and be tied to a specific measure such as the national or local inflation rate. Merit increases in the form of raises in salary, hourly rate or a well designed bonus structure should be transparent in what is necessary to obtain them. They should occur at least annually and should be used as an opportunity to coach, build-up and celebrate. Properly done, the times of COLA and Merit increases will become a time of celebration among the whole organization where the team is unified in their focus on mission and vision and the progress the organization is making as a whole.
Everyone knows the term 'dead-end job' and no one wants to be stuck in such a thing. Communication through properly implementing a quality performance development system with effective coaching at every level of the organization is important. It is in these ongoing coaching conversations that leaders can discover what motivates each individual that has come under their wing. From there, an empowered leader can help to develop a clear path for advancement that includes personal and professional development for their protege'. Developing this kind of performance development culture is one way that General Media Consulting helps you connect with people.