How does your business achieve excellence? The answer lies in clarifying the expectations and the metrics by which we measure the results.
These elements contribute to the development of excellence:
Define precisely the elements that are the measures of excellence in your organization
Ask yourself questions to help define the measures. For instance, what would you like to be different, and what is not currently working for you? What will it look like when you have achieved those results?
Select the correct metrics to achieve excellence
Metrics provide the information required to determine success. So, measuring the wrong metrics can be detrimental.
Clearly communicate the expectations and get agreement
Once you have set the expectations for excellence, communicate them clearly. Then, ensure that you have the agreement from those who are responsible for producing the desired results.
Develop action plans
Knowing what the goal is and how to measure excellence is the antecedent that kick starts the process, but there is often a big disconnect between knowing what to do and doing it. Developing a strong plan of action is critical.
Negotiate personal goals
The organizational goals should cascade down to personal goals for each individual in the organization.
Track results
Too often organizations set goals, develop action plans and implement them, but fail to track the results effectively. Because they assume – and we all know that assuming anything can be disastrous – that once the train has started down the track everything will run smoothly. They forget that on any track there are all sorts of obstacles that can, and often do, get in the way. So, when we challenge people to look at the goals they set three months earlier, they have often forgotten at least one goal. Too many goals can be a problem.
Goals should be kept alive and relevant
A goal worth setting is one that should be reviewed regularly to ensure it is still the right goal, and to ensure that it is still being worked on.
Behaviour change is often required to achieve excellence
It is easy to forget that striving for excellence usually means that people need to change their behaviour, and changing behaviour entails sustained effort. So, creating the environment to achieve excellence requires leaders who provide strong support.
“If you believe you can change – if you make it a habit – the change becomes real.” Charles Duhigg, author of the Power of Habit.