Happy New Year, everyone!
As a new year begins, we want to start this first blog post by thanking everyone for not only a great year but for all the great opportunities, for all the support that we received, and for all the new members that joined our growing team.
Looking back, we are more than happy for all the accomplishments that we were able to achieve in a span of one year. So, let’s take a look at our year-in-review:
With that, we’re hoping that 2023 will be just as good, or even better, as it was for us last year. So, let’s start the year right with this question…
Are you a business owner looking to grow, expand and plan for the future of your company?Â
If so, having motivated and aligned employees is the key to successful growth. However, aligning everyone on the same page can be tricky – how do you make sure everyone is happy enough in their jobs as well as committed to helping take your business forward? In this blog post we’ll look at a few ways to align your key employees with your growth and succession goals. So, keep reading to learn more!
1. Create a one-page strategic plan
The One-Page Strategic Plan (TOPS) details every activity your business is doing as well as how its time, people, and financial resources are being allocated to achieve high performance and results. It also outlines your values, mission, and vision. Your top corporate priorities are then determined by your purpose and vision.
Clarity must be upheld, which is why one-page strategies are created. A one-page strategy keeps your business on track because it’s simpler for teams to relate to. Additionally, managers find it easier to explain the concise yet concentrated approach to their direct reports.
2. Set the company’s main priorities
Set company priorities by responding to the question:“What is most essential to the organization at this time?
Set Key Results (KRs) for the primary company objective, which may be anything like “Grow the corporate global business.”
By outlining the “what” and “how” of a goal, that’s when the OKRs function. The ideal KRs will adhere to SMARTÂ (Specific, Measurable, Aligned, Relevant, and Time-bound) goal criteria (the Objective answers the “what,” while the KRs address the “how”) .
This goal-setting formula establishes a sense of measurement so that you can monitor the advancement of goals.
More significantly, goals that are written and communicated with the entire team have a higher chance of success than those that aren’t disclosed to anyone or made public. According to a study by Dominican University, written, shared goals are achieved 70% of the time, whereas just 35% of unshared goals are. By allowing everyone in the organization to recognize the most crucial organizational priorities, OKRs help everyone concentrate on what actually matters.
3. Set a series of distinct, measurable goals
After establishing the overall company goals, cascade them down to the departmental, team, and individual levels. This makes sure that everyone’s contributions advance business goals.
Set goals together with managers and their direct reports. In order for teams and managers to track progress utilizing a data-driven goals management strategy, make sure the KRs are measurable.
Each target should in some manner support the corporate priorities. Effective leaders, however, also collaborate with their people to develop objectives that accentuate capabilities. Strengths-based goals motivate employees to be more productive. Additionally, managers that focus on building strengths rather than “fixing” shortcomings encourage higher retention rates. When employers use their employees’ strengths to accomplish goals, turnover is reduced. According to another research, managers that use goals to build on their teams’ strengths can increase employee engagement by 61%.
While successful goal-setting is a crucial step in ensuring that employees are in line with corporate objectives, it is just one. To track progress, re-explain expectations, and impose accountability, managers must also check in with their staff.
4. Implement one-on-one check-ins
One-on-one check-ins are regarded as the best management technique ever. Managers have weekly meetings with each of their direct reports to discuss how to achieve them.
The check-ins offer a chance to talk about updates on goals. Employees are commended for weekly successes or given guidance as necessary. To re-explain expectations and guarantee that teams are constantly laser-focused on goals, managers also talk about the priorities for the following week.
By reviewing progress every week, you can avoid discovering that development was inadequate at the end of the quarter. Instead, managers intervene and immediately alter course. They give teams useful feedback that they can immediately use to improve performance. They also regularly review expectations so that teams are aware of their exact responsibilities.
One-on-one check-ins accomplish many results to enhance engagement and retention tactics also ensuring target achievement, enabling managers to:
increase trust with teams by demonstrating a dedication to their achievement;
talk about employee development plans, including individual career aspirations; and
consistently conveying the company’s strategy in a way that the staff can grasp it.
Finally, because you constantly discuss expectations and progress updates, one-on-one sessions can save a lot of time. As a result, you will spend less time putting out fires and locating teams for updates.
5. Keep the feedback loop open
Performance management in the modern day is a continuous process. To make sure teams stay focused on organizational goals, managers must carry out many routine tasks.
Employees have this desire to be acknowledged, and they depend on feedback to keep them inspired to keep working toward their goals. More than any other generation, millennials—who are currently the largest age group in the workforce—need feedback. However, according to Gallup research, only 19% of Millennial employees get regular feedback, and only 17% of those surveyed said the input they do get is valuable.
To keep teams aligned with and focused on goals, managers must provide timely, actionable feedback on a regular basis. Provide a team member with constructive criticism that focuses on their behavior and what they can do differently for the next.
Most essential, keep applying each of these best practices consistently. As a result, you’ll develop a culture that is motivated by goals, with excellent performance acting as a natural outcome.
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So, what's next?
If you want to learn more about how you can align your key employees with your growth and succession goals, you can click here to join an interactive learning experience that can make a difference for years to come:
