Category Archives: Organizations

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A Simple Formula to Improve Team Performance

A Simple Formula to Improve Team Performance

“The true measure of the value of any business leader and manager is performance.” — Brian Tracy  

Have you ever wondered why one team is more productive than another or have you been part of a team that always seemed to outperform others? That very curiosity has been the root of my passion to better understand High Performance Organizations and the pursuit of Excellence.

As leaders we are always looking for opportunities to improve the performance of our teams. It turns out that there is a relatively simple formula common to all high performing teams that we call The High Performance Organization Formula™ that can help.

The formula is relatively simple and straightforward and the use of any aspect of the formula will most likely improve the performance of any team. The basic conditions and principles when leveraged through the formula provide the fundamental structure needed to allow a team to achieve more than just the sum of the individuals.

While the basics are simple, a High Performance Organization is very challenging to develop and maintain.  Achieving true high performance requires more than just following the principles of the formula. It requires understanding what drives each aspect of each principle, developing resources and providing the proper culture and environment. Through the development of this topic, we will provide the resources and training necessary to have a working knowledge of High Performing Organizations.

Secondly, the results will match the commitment. If we are not serious about developing a High Performance Organization, then the results will not deliver the true potential. People are quick to see through a lack of commitment by their leader. Conversely, most organizations are desperate to perform for leadership that believes in them and lets each person do what they do best to the best of their capability. The results are up to us.

So let’s make this simple, here is The High Performance Organization Formula™

The High Performance Organization Formula™

  • Know What Your Customer Needs
  • Have a Clear Vision of How to Meet that Need
  • Assemble a Well-rounded Team Based on Individual Strengths
  • Treat Each Person as an Individual
  • Hold Each Person Accountable and Then Get Out of the Way
  • Maintain Alignment with the Direction of the Business

There it is, a simple formula to a very complex subject. There is an enormous amount of understanding to unpack contained within each principle. Unpacking each principle and expanding our understanding along with practical approaches will be the core content of an upcoming book.

Here is a question to our community, how would you like to see this developed? Are you interested in following periodic blogs that discuss each principle? Let me know in the comments below so that I can blend it into the publication plan for this Blog for 2019.

Thanks,

Skip Gilbert

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Performance Reviews are Counterproductive (pt 4)

What we can do (pt 4)

What we can do (pt 4)

“Appreciate everything your associates do for the business. Nothing else can quite substitute for a few well-chosen, well-timed, sincere words of praise. They’re absolutely free and worth a fortune.” – Sam Walton

In the past several blog postings we have explored the failings and impact of the current approach to performance management through the performance review and compensation management practices in place at many companies large and small. We found that many businesses are stuck in the past using an approach that is over 35 years old and repeatedly failing to produce the results that the business needs.

We have cited study after study from leading authorities on performance management such as Harvard Business Review, Deloitte, McKinsey, Gallup and well-known thought leaders including Dr. W. Edwards Deming, Marcus Buckingham and others to clearly conclude that the current approach is not effective. After reviewing all of the evidence we presented and much more that is available through other sources, we can safely conclude that the current process is a waste of time, expensive and counterproductive.

So given that the current system is broken and we have a pretty good idea of how it should work, what do we do? In reality there are basically two approaches, confront the issue head-on and openly push for change or to live within the present system and adopt tactics to minimize the damage.

Head-on Approach

Let’s start with the head-on approach and openly push for change. First of all, let’s be prudent and recognize the current environment and risks. For many reasons it is difficult to challenge the current system while being subject to the impacts of the system. Many business leaders have thrived under this system. If they have usually been on the top end of the curve, they may not really understand the true impact that the system is having on the success of their business. If they have been part of an enterprise that was perceived as successful and the annual review and “stack and rank” process was part of that culture, they my not be inclined to change the “formula for success”.

There may be a perceived risk in changing the status quo; after all business has been doing it this way for years with little blowback and significant litigation (until recently). The current approach is packaged and sold as being fair, identifying high performers as well as those who need to find other opportunities, and staying within a budget. If we change, will that be admitting that the past practices were flawed and open to criticism and litigation? There will be all kinds of reasons that try to defend that the current practice is the best practice. The review process has been this way for over 35 years and it will not change easily.

It is important that we are smart about proposing this change. If we focus on the flaws in the current system those currently in-charge may be concerned that it reflects poorly on their leadership. In a twisted sort of way, if we are not careful it may get turned back on us as a performance issue if we are not careful about proposing a change. Exposing issues around systems and policies that impact compensation, retention, and advancement opportunities needs to be done thoughtfully.

The best way to avoid this dilemma is to take the high road. When discussing the need to change current policies and practices in this area, focus on the future state. After all the future state is a better place to be. Focus on the benefits of the new approach and explain how it will better serve the needs of the business (reduced waste, better feedback, higher engagement, true meritocracy).

When needing to point out the shortcomings of the current position, try not to pin those shortcomings on those currently in charge, but refer them to the work of experts in this area. Point them to the blog post on SkipGilbert.com and other authorities referenced in the previous posts. Let those authorities speak for you. We should help others stay focused on the positive. Remember the Change Formula, a strong vision and practical first steps. It will work well for you in this situation.

Also consider timing in proposing the change. A point in time that may have significant leverage will be just after completing the current review and compensation cycle. It will be fresh in everybody’s mind just how bad the current process is and how unfair their rating was, not to mention how they felt selling the results to their direct reports. At that point most people will agree that something needs to change and there is time to get something new in place before they have to do this again.

Another great time to introduce the subject of change is after the annual engagement survey results are received. Typically, as part of the survey follow-up process teams are asked to review their results and propose solutions to overcome the areas of concern. This is a great opportunity to raise the issue at the grass roots level. If this shows up in enough of the responses, it may prompt a greater awareness of the need to change.

Working Within the System

Most of us are not in a position to change the performance review and compensation management systems, policies and practices. But that does not mean that we are helpless victims of the shortcomings of the current process.

There are things we can do to minimize the damage to the performance of our teams.

Here are four things you can do right now to move in the right direction:

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Beat the System

4 Tips to Beat the System

Beat the System

“A bad system will beat a good person every time” – W. Edwards Deming

Have you ever observed an organization that recruits sharp, highly energetic and motivated talent and grinds them into submission to produce mediocre results without improving the bottom line of the organization? Have you seen high potential talent join an organization with the expectation of turning the business around only to go from a reputation of success to failure? I know I have.

When we join an organization, we become a part of the overall system that produces results. The system has a structure and a culture that defines how things gets done. The culture either enables or constrains the organization’s ability to evolve and meet the needs of the business. The success of the individual is measured by the individual’s ability to operate within the culture and adapt to the norms and expectations of the organization. The organization sets the rules and evaluates the outcomes. Anyone who does not conform to the norms is considered sub-par and is expected to either improve (conform) or leave the organization. The organization sets the standard. What happens if that standard is mediocrity?

An organization is driven by the many systems or components that all interact with each other. In this systems model, components such as strategy, structure, processes, rewards and people all interact with each other to produce an organizational result. In total an organization is a big system that is perfectly designed to get the results it gets.

Dr. Deming is often cited as being the father of the quality revolution and systems-thinking in organizational design. At a time when the U.S. auto industry was suffering huge losses due to a changing economy and consumer demands, it became clear there was a need to increase quality and profitability to survive. As a result, there was a movement to adopt the principles that Dr. Deming applied in Japan, where quality and systems-thinking became the focal point of management philosophy and practices.

Dr. Deming observed that most of the troubles and possibilities for improvement add up to something like this: 94% belongs to the system and 6% to other causes. In other words, change the system to change the results; the individual has little impact.

Organizations have sophisticated defense mechanisms and the bigger the organization, the greater the ability to resist change. Overall the organization will work very hard to constrain, minimize or discredit the results of the change. Whether through lack of management support or indirectly through minimization of the impact or results, the organization will try to move back to the comfort of the status quo. Most anyone involved with driving organization change will tell us that it is rare that a new idea achieves its full potential.

So, as leaders trapped in a system, what are we to do? First and foremost, understand our situation and then focus our efforts on changing the system. Understanding our situation is critical to being able to achieve the type of success we desire. As part of the system we will be expected to operate within the norms and guidelines of the current culture. So while we have a greater vision of the possible, we will have to operate within the current system to affect change.

The good news is that changing the system has a lot of levers, not the least being the culture. Culture can be defined at a very high level as being the unwritten rules of how we do things here. Since culture is part of the system, a change to the culture will yield changes to the outcomes. Of course, change to any of the other aspects of the system including strategy, structure, processes, rewards and people will yield a net change as well. However, culture is the center of the people system that makes the organization function. Change to any portion of the system without consideration of culture will yield limited results.

To affect change in our portion of the organization our strongest play is to change the culture in our environment and then protect that culture change. The culture as we have defined it consists of the unwritten norms on how we do things here. When we start by changing the norm of expected behavior we open the door to doing things differently. For example, if we decide that building stronger teamwork will improve performance, then we would want to start by articulating and reinforcing behaviors that elevate the team above the individual.

Once the door is open for change, we can adjust the other elements of the system to support the change we are pursuing. A well-executed change supported by an enabling culture can produce significant results. A big change without the supporting culture change will inevitably invoke a reflex reaction with the system working hard to return to the status quo.

The next step is to protect the culture and elevate the results. Once we have established a new culture in our portion of the organization the challenge will be to protect it against the instinctive tendency of the larger organization to return it to its prior state. Again, being a smart leader we know that we are most effective and gain the greatest latitude when our results exceed expectations. The key is to elevate the results of our organization and continue to deliver exceptional performance as defined and recognized by the larger organization.

In the end, the performance of our organization and our performance as a leader are within our control, even in a less than optimal environment. Recognizing that we operate inside an organization that is defined by systems and cultures will help us better plan and adjust to the frustrations of organizational change.

As a final thought, consider this from Dr. Deming:

“…anytime the majority of the people behave a particular way the majority of the time, the people are not the problem. The problem is inherent in the system.”

Here are 4 tips for beating the system: