Business Advice Daily

Reprint and Repost Policy

by Dottie DeHart

Lewis Carroll’s Cheshire cat said it best: When you don’t know where you’re going, any road will get you there. Do your employees know where they are going? It’s a good question to ponder as the next quarter approaches. You may assume your people are working toward goals that advance your corporate vision. But blind assumptions are rarely correct. Joanne G. Sujansky, CEO of KEYGroup, says if goal-setting is not a priority, your employees will likely view your company as “wonderland”—as in “Wonder what we should be doing next?”

This is not a mere suspicion on Sujansky’s part. A recent survey commissioned by KEYGroup found that almost half of the respondents aren’t working toward clear-cut goals. And it’s not that they don’t want to—it’s that leaders aren’t asking them to.

“Too many companies are dropping the ball in regard to helping their employees set and work toward well-defined goals,” she notes. “And when employees don’t have crystal clear goals to work toward, they’re going to waste time and resources. They’re going to be inefficient. Becoming goal-oriented is one of the best things you can do for your company. It shows up in your financials and in your overall culture—and, of course, the two are inextricably linked.”

So if you suspect your employees would agree with the aforementioned survey respondents, what can you do about it? How can you set up “goal posts” in your own company? Sujansky offers the following tips:

Share the “big picture” with employees. You must run a completely transparent operation. Sujansky—who constantly urges clients to evolve into what she calls a Vibrant Entrepreneurial Organization, or VEO—cannot stress this point enough. “In a VEO, employees have a sense of ownership,” she says. “They know beyond the shadow of a doubt what your company stands for and where it’s going. I mean, if they don’t know the big picture, how can they own it? Besides, when employees have a clear picture of your mission and vision, the goals you help them set will make sense to them. They’ll be more likely to buy into and achieve those goals.”

Work with employees to set challenging, yet attainable goals. That’s right, work with them. Don’t impose goals on your employees. Remember, you’re looking for buy-in. “Sit down with employees and hammer out goals together,” Sujansky suggests. “Make it a priority. I think this is one of those areas in which employers think their people somehow ‘know’ what they’re supposed to be doing, perhaps by osmosis. Never assume that. Clear and frequent communication with their leaders is as vital to your employees’ performance as, say, a phone and a computer.”

Give them a real voice in the company’s future. Don’t just let employees set their own goals. Let them have real input into the company’s future. “No matter how often you tell your employees ‘this is your company, too,’ if they have no real say-so, it’s clearly just lip service,” says Sujansky. “Collaborate with them. Solicit their ideas and contributions. More to the point, actually take their advice and run with it. If you don’t trust your employees enough to help shape your company’s future, why did you hire them in the first place?”

Make sure their work is meaningful. No one likes busywork or routine, mind-numbing tasks. Give your employees challenging assignments and goals that stimulate their minds and that have a real impact on your organization. “If you sense that an employee is just going through the motions, take him to lunch and ask, ‘What would challenge you?’” suggests Sujansky. “Ask him to come up with a new product or service or process for your company and then let him be in charge of the project. It’s amazing how few leaders really do this—but it’s a tremendously empowering and inspiring gesture.”

Tell your employees it’s okay to take risks—in fact, it’s expected. A big part of having a VEO involves the R-word: Risk. Without it there can be no significant gain. This is the real reason you need to keep the “big picture” in front of employees at all times—it helps them take calculated risks aimed at advancing not only their own goals but also your corporate vision. “When people are free to take risks, they are likely to explore multiple possibilities and find unexpected solutions,” says Sujansky. “They will own these solutions and hold themselves accountable. To inspire risk-taking in your employees, take risks yourself. In this way you model the creative spirit you want them to embrace.”

Put systems in place for measuring productivity. In the business world the bottom line is, of course, the bottom line. The whole point of goal-setting is to help employees become more productive. That’s why you must be sure not to confuse activity with progress. Put systems in place for measuring productivity and live by them. “Remember this mantra: what gets measured, gets done,” advises Sujansky. “Create policies that ensure that the ‘urgent’ doesn’t take precedence over the ‘important,’ and do everything you can to eliminate redundancies and busywork.”

Give feedback, both formal and “real time.” Establish ongoing evaluative processes so people can get feedback on how well they’re meeting their goals. But don’t limit feedback to formal evaluations. Give it on the spot. Yes, you should tell people in “real time” what they’re doing wrong so they can correct it, but it’s even more important to tell them what they’re doing right. “That’s spontaneous coaching and it’s one of the most critical elements of an entrepreneurial culture,” Sujansky says. “It’s the pathway to productivity. This kind of feedback refines the processes by which they meet their goals today, and paves the way for them to meet ever-more-ambitious goals in the future.”

If this list seems daunting, well, that’s understandable. Creating a goal-oriented workplace is tantamount to transforming your corporate culture. Very few companies can go it alone.

“Your best thinking got you to where you are now,” says Sujansky. “Sometimes bringing in an outside source to raise your level of self-awareness is the solution. Boosting productivity and changing your culture will take some effort. It will shake up the status quo. But while change is challenging, it’s also inspiring and energizing. It’s often the best thing that can happen to your employees and your entire organization.”

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