Do You Make These Goal-Setting Mistakes?

January 14, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Goal-Setting MistakesHave you just spent the last two weeks working through your goal-setting for 2013?

If you’re like most of us, January is a time when you think about what you want to achieve during the year.  And in our professional lives we’re knee-deep in business plans, budgets and annual goal-setting.

Few management tasks consume more management time than goal-setting.  In conventional thinking, the way to deliver results is to set a goal and then create a plan to work towards it.  Defining specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, time bound (SMART) goals has been a mantra for generations of managers and HR people.

But, contrary to popular opinion, quality expert W. Edwards Deming noted how, in most organisations, goals and standards limit performance rather than improve it.  That’s not because goal-setting isn’t a valuable tool for managing performance.  It’s because managers don’t do goal-setting effectively.

Goal-Setting Mistakes

There are 3 big mistakes that managers make when using goals to manage performance:

1. Setting “challenging” goals.  The most common goal-setting mistake is to set “challenging” or “stretch” goals.  Goals that are hard to achieve result in few opportunities for positive reinforcement and reward.  Although it may seem counter-intuitive, the best approach to goal setting is to set goals that are easy to achieve.  If the goal is easy to achieve, it increases the likelihood of success.  If the employee reaches the goal and celebrates success, they will be motivated to do even more next time.

2. Setting goals for the year.  The other mistake managers make is to use too long a time frame.  Business planning and budget setting happens yearly so managers set annual goals for their employees.  But they will make much more progress if they use shorter time frames (days, weeks) and smaller goals than they will if they set big goals on longer time frames (month, quarter, year).

3. Setting the same goals for everyone.  The third mistake managers make is to set the same goal for everyone.  As Vince Lombardi once said “Nothing is more unequal than the equal treatment of unequals”.  For example if we ask for 10% increase in productivity from everybody, it will be too difficult for the lowest performers and too easy for the best performers.

A more effective approach is to set attainable goals based on individual performance.  For each person you should set the first goal slightly ahead of their current performance, say a 1% improvement.  If you use daily or weekly goals, it won’t take long for a person who you regularly praise and reward for each of their I% improvements to reach the 10% target.  And when he or she gets there, you will have an engaged, motivated individual ready to progress even higher.  Compare that approach to one where you tell the entire team that everyone needs to improve by 10% and then wait until they get there before you reward or celebrate any achievement.  You might wait a long time.

Goal-setting does have the potential to improve performance if used in the correct way and that is to recognise that goals provide an opportunity to positively reinforce those behaviours and actions that deliver results.

The fastest way to change individual behaviour and therefore improve performance is to set small individual goals that employees can achieve in a short time frame, then positively reinforce progress and celebrate achievement.

So please look back at the goals you’ve set for the coming year.  What did you find?  Are your goals small, achievable and rewarding?  If not, perhaps there’s still some work to do to make sure you’re setting yourself and others up for success.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Case Study: How a Coaching Style of Leadership Can Help Employees Take Ownership & Responsibility

July 2, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Earlier this year, Coaching at Work Magazine featured a programme I am working on as a case study in an article they called “The Ripple Effect”.  If you are a subscriber, you can read the full article here.

Or read on to learn more.

In 2008, Mark McKergow, the Director of sfwork, invited me to be the Programme Director for a‘Solutions Focus Coaching for Leaders’ programme for Avon & Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership (AWP).

AWP recognised that a key role of senior leaders is to support and develop levels of management and leadership at all levels.  So they wanted a programme that would help these leaders adopt a coaching style of leadership with their staff.

I have been privileged to deliver the programme for eleven groups of managers, with the twelfth group now underway.

The programme uses the Solutions Focus (SF) coaching model, OSKAR – a valuable way to introduce coaching to groups of managers as it provides them with a set of tools they can use rather than a prescribed process.  This gives them the flexibility to use the tools in many different circumstances and in short periods of time rather than waiting for an illusory serious coaching session which never arrives.

The programme consists of a two-day “Solutions Focus Coaching for Leaders” workshop to introduce managers to the OSKAR model.  After the workshop the managers begin using coaching in their roles, coming back together for two review workshops to discuss how the tools and techniques can be applied to specific management challenges such as managing performance, developing teams etc.  They also receive six months of individual support from an external coach to facilitate their own personal development.

Managers have benefited considerably.  They spend less time talking about problems and why “it’s not fair”.  Instead they use their new-found coaching skills to get others to think for themselves and to recognise the skills and knowledge they have to move forward.  There has been an observable decrease in anxiety and a noticeable positive impact on ability and action, a can-do attitude.  There has been clear recognition that small steps help create progress.

Managers found they started to use the skills on themselves in a form of self coaching so they too find their own solutions to problems with positive results.  All of these developments have helped increase their confidence and helped them feel more in control.  This led them to feel less stressed and be more efficient and effective

As more managers complete the programme they have seen the positive effects rippling through the organisation.  These include:

  • Less negativity.
  • A more positive culture
  • Team members empowered and energised, giving everyone more time.
  • Staff becoming more self-reliant and less dependent
  • People feeling more positive and enjoying work therefore being more proactive
  • Greater progress being made.  Things moving forward
  • Improved relationships
  • More frequent celebration of progress
  • More action, less discussion

AWP, like most organisations, is going through tough and challenging times.  Solutions Focus coaching isn’t a silver bullet but it’s helping them make progress in tough situations and has given leaders a set of tools to help them when they’re stuck.  You can find out more about the principles behind Solutions Focus Coaching here.

Filed Under: Leadership Development Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Why you should help your employees develop their careers

January 3, 2012 By Leave a Comment

In today’s tough economic circumstances, business leaders are seeking competitive advantage through the best use of their people more than ever before. In a time when the job market is uncertain many leaders may feel that supporting the career management of their staff is not a priority, seeing it as something that is personal to employees.

But the challenge is, that while you as a leader will want to maximise your employees performance, your employees want to maximise their careers – and these goals are not one and the same.

Years of change, restructuring, outsourcing and down-sizing have caused people to take a more active role in managing their careers. Employees at all levels face career decisions on a daily basis: is my job safe? Should I stay or should I leave? Should I change careers? Should I pursue new projects? Should I go back to university? Should I start up on my own? And in a rapidly-changing work environment, the answers are not always obvious.

It is in the context of this economic reality that supporting employees in managing their careers assumes more significance not less. Career management is about getting people to where they want to be and where the organisation needs them to be. If you want your people to be committed to the organisation, engaged with their work and driven to perform you need to provide them with the tools and resources they need to manage their careers within the organisation.

Sadly, in a buoyant job market it’s often easier for employees to leave a company than to manage their career internally.  In the tough economy we’re in right now, the bigger risk is that employees quit (mentally) and stay!  So supporting your employees in managing their careers isn’t just a “nice” thing to do – it’s a business imperative.

Support your employees in managing their careers and they will feel connected to their work, valued for their contribution, engaged with the organisation, and motivated to contribute. Their willingness to apply and increase their capability will be enhanced.

Ignore the subject and you risk the capability of your team being driven down as individuals exit either psychologically, becoming disengaged or demotivated, or physically by moving to competitors.

Filed Under: Career Management Tagged With: , , , ,

What can we learn from the Great North Run about Employee Engagement?

September 29, 2010 By Leave a Comment

motivating employeesLast week I wrote about the leadership lessons we can learn from the Great North Run.  I haven’t been running much this week but I have been enjoying the post-race footage in the papers, on the TV and on running websites and Facebook.  One of the things that has struck me is that it’s not just the 39,000 runners who make the Great North Run what it is.  Over 70 different organisations supported and assisted in staging the race, there are at least 17 different bands who keep runners and spectators entertained, there are 488 medics on the route and many, many others hand out water and ice pops and line the route to cheer on the runners.   Different people doing different things based on their individual skills and resources.  And the fact is that most of these people don’t get paid to take part – quite the opposite.  For most of them they give time and money for the opportunity.

So what can we learn from the Great North Run about how to engage individuals to achieve a common goal and commit the time and effort to take on difficult challenges and hard work?

Every leader knows the importance of creating and articulating a compelling vision to engage employees but it’s more than that.  Brendan Foster is the founder of the Great North Run and is rightly proud of the event realising his vision of being the biggest and best half marathon in the world.  While I’m sure none of us begrudges Brendan his vision, that’s not why the rest of us do it.  We’re not doing it to help the Great North Run be the biggest and best in the world.  Like I said last week 39,000 runners are doing it for 39,000 different reasons.  It just so happens that by satisfying those different reasons they collectively achieve a bigger goal.  Brendan and the event team put in place a framework that allows everyone else to work towards their own personal goals which in turn makes his vision a reality.

There are many psychological theories of motivation but I like the simple approach of a colleague of mine who says that in any specific context, individuals are driven by one of five things.  If I think about the different motivations behind people involved in the Great North Run I can see how that works.  The five motivators are:

  1. To get something done e.g. that strangely emotional feeling as you complete the challenge of 13.1 miles
  2. To get something right e.g. achieving a personal best (not something I experience often!)
  3. To get approval e.g. approving comments from friends that you’re taking part
  4. To get recognition e.g. the congratulations from complete strangers at seeing the finishers medal round your neck
  5. To gain security e.g. raising a certain amount of money for a preferred charity

So, when you want to engage your employees behind your vision ask yourself the question “what’s in it for them?”  How can you translate that vision or the change you want to create into something meaningful for employees (rather than senior execs) and how can you create a framework that ensures that your vision will be realised if employees work towards goals that they are personally motivated to achieve.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: ,

How to get demotivated employees committed to your company’s future

September 13, 2010 By 2 Comments

Effective leaders and managers need to have enthusiastic followers.  Since people are your key source of competitive advantage, you need every single employee to be fully committed to taking the company forward and doing everything they can to make it a success in the future.

Unfortunately, the recession forced many companies to alter their course.  In recession-altered workplaces, employees are often adrift, not really clear what the future holds for them or the company and not sure if or how they can make a difference.

This is where it becomes crucial to create a positive picture of the future that enthuses and energises the workforce and gives your employees something to believe in.

Imagination can have a powerful effect on motivation and belief.  It can also have a direct effect on behaviour.  Why do you think golf coaches advise their students to always visualise good shots, rather than think about all the ways the shot can be miss-hit?  Professional athletes and coaches in all sports know that imagining positive future scenarios is a powerful way to increase the likelihood of achieving a positive result.  People become excited by their idea of a positive future, they become motivated to make it a reality and their behaviour becomes more focused on achieving the desired outcome.  In the same way, you and your teams will have a much better chance of success if you create a picture of the future that leads to positive outcomes.

So how should you go about creating a positive future?

  • Involve your employees.  The process of creating a positive future can be energising and engaging.  Participation in creating their own professional future – and the future of their working environment – is often the critical factor in ensuring employees buy-in to the vision and take responsibility for making it happen.
  •  Start with strengths.  Even though you’ve gone through a difficult time, you and the company have survived.  Establishing a strong foundation of strengths reminds the team of their skills and achievements and provides a starting point of positivity and optimism.  Things to think about and discuss are:
    • What do we know about the strengths of the company, our team, each of the individuals?
    • In spite of all the things that we might want to change, what are we happy with?
    • What do we not want to lose as we move forward?
  •  Describe the perfect future.  If your organisation could be everything you dreamed, how would it be?  Imagine the future as you want it to be, and then describe what you see in specific, detailed terms.  In other words, look “back” from your success and see what helped you succeed in getting there.  When this exercise is done with a team, they will typically see world-class processes, culture, technology, people and performance.  Importantly though, this attractive picture of the future doesn’t just come from anywhere; because you started with strengths, it is built on the foundations of what you know you can do, meaning that the imagined perfect future is essentially both desirable and achievable.
  • Help each person identify the “What’s in it for me?” factor.  Creating a positive future as a team is a great opportunity for synergy.  However, while the whole team may have the same positive picture of the future, the benefits of making it a reality are likely to be different for each person.   To really gain commitment and collective action, each employee needs to fully appreciate its meaning for them personally see what is in it for them personally.

Finally, demonstrate your own personal sense of excitement about the positive future you’ve created.  Constantly express your personal confidence in ultimate success and endlessly seek, find and use examples of success and progress to build a sense of momentum.

Walt Disney was a genius at getting his employees committed to his organisation’s future.  When he started his theme parks he was clear on their purpose and their strength.  He said “We’re in the happiness business”.  That is very different from being in the theme park business.  Walt Disney’s picture of the future was clear.  “Keep the same smile on people’s faces when they leave the park as when they enter”.  He didn’t care whether a guest was in the park two hours or ten hours.  He just wanted to keep them smiling.  A clear picture of the future drives everything the cast members (employees) do with their guests (customers) and inspires excitement, commitment and ownership for making that picture a reality.

Filed Under: Leadership Development Tagged With: ,