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People

Business People Problem

Roster full of B or C players

Have you ever seen a team win the national championship with B and C players? Doesn’t happen. Sure, in the movie Moneyball they didn’t pick the most expensive players but they did select the best – for them. As far as they were concerned they had an A team.

So how do we build an A team in our business? Simply by paying attention. It’s that easy. There are standard practices in hiring, onboarding, coaching, developing, and rewarding that ensure your company builds a winning team full of A (and B+) players. Identify the practices and do them. We can help you with that.. It’s not glamorous but it works.

Business People Problem

CEO doing work of others

This is a common problem especially in emerging companies going from small to big. Any time a CEO is overly busy working IN the business you know they’re doing delegatable work. Remember that the CEOs job is to face outward and guide the ship. That means meeting with customers, looking at the changing economic landscape, leading strategy and of course, continuously reinforcing the company’s culture, purpose, vision/destination and strategy with every single employee.

To do this a CEO has to be able to extricate themselves from other jobs on the org chart. This process can take some time when the company can’t yet afford to hire the people it needs. And sometimes the CEO is still the best at a certain function. But sometimes the CEO is just reluctant to let go, either because they love the work or they don’t trust anyone else to do it. That’s a problem.

In spite of these obstacles every CEO can make it a priority to gradually move out of roles lower down in the org chart so they can get out of the engine room and focus on being captain of the ship.

Business People Problem

Lack of accountability

When employees are doing what they’re supposed to do of their own free will they’re effectively holding themselves accountable. But not all of us are always good at that. Sometimes it helps us to be held accountable by others.

One good way to increase accountability is to measure what matters. Quantify the expected outcomes or set a calendar when certain actions are to be completed and results delivered. Then post the results in the “open” for people to see.

Routine on-time performance and measurable outcomes are typically tracked in personal performance plans, departmental scorecards, weekly KPI (key performance indicator) reports and in budgets. It’s a matter of defining expectations and measuring against them. And making the results visible to others is a gentle way of using peer pressure to motivate people to step up. No one wants to sit in a meeting and show how they’re not meeting expectations.

Business People Problem

Roles unclear and overlapping

Most companies have job descriptions that they use for hiring and sometimes for performance reviews. But job descriptions are typically too general to properly define a position’s scope of authority and responsibilities. The result is dropped balls, sloppy handoffs and stepped-on toes.

Companies that map and document processes in detail are a lot more prepared to define what a position is responsible for and how it interfaces with other positions. When we break a process down into its component parts we can see clearly who should be doing what and how they interface with others. That information belongs in a job description or position description and by doing this across the company we give people clarity and avoid unnecessary problems and ruffled feathers.

The Big Six Cure

Happy, skilled, and motivated people

Happy, skilled, and motivated people in the right roles will perform miracles. A company’s top priority is to build a high-performing “A” team.  Achieving this requires hiring properly, defining roles and responsibilities, coaching and developing employees continuously, while providing appropriate recognition and rewards, financial or otherwise.

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