A core element of organizational excellence is focus. Clarity of success. Purposeful work to achieve that success. A prioritized performance management system to determine if the work is, in fact, working to achieve success. And a culture of ownership that is emotionally invested in the results. The reality is, however, each of those steps – all of which are critically important and enjoy intersectionality – require focus. Everything isn’t important. Everything can’t be done. It all requires choices.
One of our favorite elements of our Quarterly Performance Management conversations with senior management teams – after we have presented and had debate and dialogue surrounding their performance results for the previous quarter, after we have had a running dialogue of what we need to adjust in our work program to achieve success for the year – is aligning around the three most important things that the team MUST deliver in the coming quarter. Not what they’re doing to do. What they are committed to delivering.
And they only get to pick three. And they must prioritize them. Here’s how we prioritize, as a team.
Usually at this point in the meeting there are 15-20 topics up on the board of what the management team wants to adjust, based upon their performance results. The reality is, there are only 13 weeks in the quarter. And we’re normally presenting the previous quarter’s results 3 weeks into the quarter. Which means there are only 10 weeks left. Three most important things to deliver, to achieve success for the year.
We laughingly refer to this exercise as “picking your favorite child”. And we, in our own business, do this every single quarter too. It is typically a 60-minute rough and tumble debate as we seek to focus our attention and energy, and members of TransPro lobby for what they want their colleagues to select and focus on. And then we vote. Everyone gets a vote. And you only get three.
The result of this exercise is clarity of focus on what the team must deliver in the quarter we’re now in – to achieve success for the year. And then we talk about those three topics in our weekly meetings. We talk about those three topics in our daily huddles. “Let’s remind ourselves of the 3 most important things we must deliver this quarter. They are ….”
We love all our children. But we can only focus on and have to deliver for three of them in the coming 10 weeks.
