I've seen a lot of company mission statements in my life
either because I want to understand the "heart beat" of my
client or of a company I am researching. When I read these
statements I wonder how often the executive team not only
looks at them, but measures how well the company is
executing on these stated values.
For most companies it is a bit of a process to come up with
a mission statement that encompasses the core values around
products, customers and employees. Many executives I have
talked with have told me they spent days to get it just
right so it reflects the soul of the company's values. Some
even took their executive team "off campus" so they were in
a setting where they could focus on just this topic without
the normal day-to-day interruptions.
I think that's terrific. But what happens after that?
Well, you will probably find the mission statement engraved
on a very nice plaque in the lobby of the company's
headquarter, on the wall in the top officer's office, and
on the company's web site.
My question is "What is the company doing to make sure
these ideals are actually put into action and measured on
an on-going basis?" I mean, what good is it just put this
into writing without follow-through?
One of the best ways to do this is to base part of each
employee's annual appraisal on these core values. To do
this right, you need to:
1. determine the competencies related to these core values
2. describe the expected results or behaviors
3. assign appropriate weighting to each competency
4. make it part of every employee's appraisal!
Now you have a way to measure alignment between your
mission statement and actual results. Without measuring,
how do you know if your company is living up to it's core
values? Oh, you might say that your financial results give
you that feedback. My response back to you would be, "how
do you know it couldn't be even better?"
If you are measuring actual performance at the individual
level against your expected results, you may find there is
room for improvement. You can then help your employees to
improve their performance in areas related to the mission
statement where they are currently under-performing. The
result…you are likely to see an even greater improvement on
your bottom line and on your top line.
Bottom line--make sure you include performance measures on
your appraisal forms that directly relate to those values
contained in your mission statement. Now you will be able
to track, measure, and improve alignment between your
actual versus expected results.
----------------------------------------------------
Mike is an internationally recognized expert at helping
employers meet their business objectives by teaching them
how to get the right people into the right seat on their
bus. Most employers face continuing challenges in hiring,
developing and retaining their best employees. Mike guides
his clients through this maze. To experience how this is
done, sign up for a free job analysis survey for one of
your open positions at http://www.eSessments.com
No comments:
Post a Comment