Know Your Target

Last week in our FastTrac course we did an exercise...we made paper airplanes. Then the facilitator told us to throw our paper airplanes. There were airplanes flying in all directions across the room.

Then the facilitator asked if we hit our targets. Of course, no one had a target, as we expected we were seeing if our plane was able to fly.

Then the teacher put up an actual target, and we were told to throw our plane at the target...success was greatly improved.

This was a simple exercise designed to relay a basic point. If you know what your goal is, then you are much more likely to achieve it.

Earlier last week, I attended the Athens Area Society for Human Resource Management's monthly meeting at which Kevin Hanville spoke about upgrading your workforce during the difficult economic times. Kevin's speech covered many areas, but for the purposes of this post, I want to focus on the idea that companies should only retain the most talented employees in order to achieve success.

While I feel that Kevin might disagree on some elements of this post, Kevin and I agree on the following responsibilities of an employer:

1. Use metrics to measure employee success

2. Base the metrics on factors that actually contribute to successful completion of the task to which the employee was assigned

3. Provide meaningful, real-time feedback to the employee regarding his or her performance

4. Terminate when the relationship is not working out

If Kevin reads this post, I hope I have not simplified things too much. I just want to illustrate a few points and feel this version provides the gist. I don't believe any disagreement we might have imply that Kevin is wrong in his assessment. He is an intelligent person, and there is no questioning that. My point is that knowing the target may impact a company's behavior.

The intent of this post is to illustrate two elements of knowing your target. The first is that a company must know its target, and the second is that an employees must know their targets.

Company's Target:

Regarding the list of employer responsibilities, where Kevin and I might disagree is number four. I like asking questions to set-up an explanation, so here goes. When is it clear that the relationship is not working out, necessitating termination?

I believe Kevin would define that line as being much earlier than I would, but in the end, it depends on your company's target.

If a company is looking to be the most profitable in the industry, then it needs to consider the value of having a top-notch workforce at all times. Kevin shared this article with me:

http://www.businessinsider.com/fire-everyone-who-is-a-six-out-of-ten-2011-2

The article explains that most companies will get rid of the employees who would be five-out-of-ten or lower, but it is specifically the six-out-of-ten's that differentiate the top performing companies from the rest of the pack. It is a solid argument. The article says the six-out-of-ten's are not bad...they are just not good.

It makes sense. After all, it is business, and if things are not working, then you have to make changes.

I have to admit here, I am in Human Resources. Rarely do people go in to the HR field without being a "people person," and I am no exception. Still, I have at least some business sense, and I believe in holding people accountable for their performance. However, I believe there are ways to operate a business that provide income and security for the business owner, gainful employment for workers, and quality products/services for the client which do not require a cold-blooded approach to conducting business.

In those types of businesses, I would say maybe those six-out-of-ten's are salvageable. Yes, hold employees accountable. Yes, let them know as soon as problems arise. Yes, if they are not meeting the standards of the job, then let them go. But, no, don't expect the employee to be perfect.

Alexander Pope penned "To err is human," and I agree. Mistakes are bound to be made, and I see peril in creating a culture that creates a fear of mistakes. We learn from mistakes. They can be valuable. In fact, they can be fruitful. Think saccharin, penicillin, the pacemaker, TEFLON, fingerprinting, X–Ray, and the microwave oven which were all inadvertent successes borne of failures.

I'll admit, the likelihood of discovering the equivalent of penicillin is low, but the point remains. When people are scared of making mistakes, their work behaviors are impacted. They become less creative and take less initiative.

In the end, it depends on what the company's target is. If the company wants financial success, then hire the best, fire the rest, and focus on the bottom line. If the company also wants ingenuity, then encourage experimentation. Know what your goals are and then draft your plan to match them.

Which brings me to part two.

Employee Targets:

As I outlined earlier, employers must create metrics to measure success in a position. For sales, success might mean a certain percent increase in sales from quarter to quarter or year over year. For production it might be a decrease in waste or defects, or perhaps an increase in total number of products produced.

More likely than not, it will be several factors that contribute to overall success in a position. Determine what factors contribute to the success of the company. Make sure they are aligned with the company's goals. Additionally, you should weight the factors accordingly to ensure that your performance evaluation program contributes to the overall success of the organization. Most importantly, convey these metrics to the employees BEFORE they are to be held accountable.

Let your employees know their targets. Otherwise, you will have a bunch of people throwing airplanes around the room hoping they fly. While you may get a few that hit the target, success will be much lower than it could be.

Beyond informing employees of the metrics on which they will be judged, it is important to monitor the performance and provide real-time feedback on the employee's performance. Let the employees know when they are aiming their airplanes in the wrong direction. Let the employees know when the airplanes are not achieving the appropriate distance. Let the blogger know when he has gone too deep with his analogy.

When employees know their targets, they are much more likely to hit them. When employees are aware that they are exhibiting behaviors which are impeding their ability to hit the target, then they are much more likely to make the necessary adjustments they need to make. Most importantly, when you have taken these steps and the employee still cannot hit the target, then you know it is time to terminate.

To Sum:

When a company knows its target, designs metrics to measure success in achieving goals, provides employees with the metrics on which their performance will be measured, and provides feedback on whether or not the employees are meeting standards, then the company will have a greater chance of hitting its target.