6 ways to ensure your organization has the edge

The only thing certain right now is the uncertainty plaguing employment for the foreseeable future. Goals have shifted. Strategic plans have changed. Leadership teams are struggling to formulate a stable plan for success.

Here are six dependable approaches you can use to give your organization the advantage:

1. Put the pedal to the metal. No more playing the waiting game. It’s invigorating to push the gas a bit harder; let your workforce feel the wind in their hair. That will help clear away the dust and guide them as suitable goals are formed to get them to the finish line. 

2. Make it loud and clear. Creating strategic initiatives is only the first step. Cascading them down throughout the company is the vital part. Each team will have a crucial role to play in executing the overall vision. As the managers coach their direct reports toward that, they must empower each employee to take responsibility for accomplishing their own part. Each piece of the machine must be in their correct spot or the whole thing stops working.

3. Take it one bite at a time. After an overwhelming couple of years, you don’t want to further overwhelm your employees. They have to eat the elephant one bite at a time. Clearly carve out which parts of the elephant each team should take on, then empower your managers to slice it up among their people.

4. Get ready to celebrate. A simple thank-you and a socially distanced air-high-five can go a long way. Track the progress as everyone works through those goals. When they hit a milestone, give them a shout out. It not only tells the individuals you see and appreciate their efforts, but it motivates others to up their game. Ask your managers who on their team has been checking off their progress updates. Incentivize it with small rewards. 

5. Put baby in the corner. There will always be problem children. There will always be those folks that won’t get on board with new direction or develop the new skills you need from them. Rely on your performance management to reveal those problem children through tracking of input from them, their managers, and their goal attainment. Don’t be nervous to put them on notice and in the corner. “This is what we need from you for everyone to be successful. If that’s not something you’re interested in/ able to achieve, then let’s amicably start planning your exit.”

6. Rally the troops. You can’t do this alone. Any company leaders, from the senior executives to floor managers, have so much on their plates already. You need a guide that has been specially trained to tackle those tricky performance management situations and provide clarity to employees that are struggling with seeing how they fit into the company.

Gary Markle, chief catalyst of Catalytic Coaching Inc, is a speaker, consultant, author, and a business partner of Energage, a Philadelphia-based employee survey firm. Energage is The Washington Post’s survey partner for Top Workplaces.