Scenario One
During a recent presentation, a business owner was given the following challenge. If 10 of his 100 employees were asked to name the top 3 organizational goals for the current year as they perceived them to be, would he receive the same 3 goals from everyone or would he receive 5, 10 or even 25 different goals? The business owner shook his head and thoughtfully responded, “No, I am sure that I would receive more than 3 goals.” He was then asked to consider what these misdirected actions from his employees were costing him in terms of missed opportunities.
Scenario Two
At another presentation, a small business owner was asked if she set goals? She responded quite enthusiastically, “Of course, I set goals.” She was asked a follow-up question: “Can you state with 100% conviction that your employees know how to consistently achieve both their personal and professional goals?” After a few moments, she replied “No.” She was then asked how this lack of knowledge potentially affected her bottom line?
Scenario Three
A president of a company was asked: “Have you ever seen behavior inconsistent with your strategic plan?” He quickly answered “Yes!” A second question was asked, “What did you do about it?” “Well, we sent them to training and within 6 months we had to send them back again?” A final question was then posed to the President. “Are these performance failures a result of a lack of knowledge or skills or due to poor attitudes and habits?” The president immediately said “Why bad attitudes and poor habits.” Again, the facilitator asked another question: “What are all these re-do’s costing your company?”
Scenario Four
During the annual meeting, the CEO of a manufacturing company informed her executive team that she wanted to achieve a 10% growth during the next 12 months. The VP of Operations made plans to purchase new manufacturing equipment for some new products while the VP of Marketing & Sales began to implement a plan selling existing products. The CFO decided to cut budgets to capital improvements and marketing. All three executive team members believed that their actions would help achieve the 10% growth.
These scenarios shared four critical success factors (CSF’s) that impede small businesses from achieving consistent results: communication, goal setting and goal achievement skills, attitudes and alignment.
Critical Factor #1: Communication is the key to unlocking the potential within businesses as well as individuals. When the goals are in alignment with the vision and consistently communicated from top down, then performance excellence is much more likely to happen. Inconsistent communication contributes to missed targets and lowers the performance for the entire organization.
Critical Factor #2: Goal setting and goal achievement are learned skills. Unfortunately, many presume that these skills are acquired during the K-12 educational experiences through the “Osmosis Process.” Also, these skills are not actively taught in the corporate setting. Yet, consistent goal achievement or the results are what every organization seeks.
Critical Factor #3: Attitudes drive behaviors that result in change. Many companies focus on trying to change negative behaviors because they are experiencing negative change. However, when the negative attitudes are replaced with positive attitudes, those attitudes will drive positive behaviors creating positive change. By failing to address negative attitudes, new trends, changes or initiatives, the result is wasted resources creating a negative drain on the “KASH Box.”
Critical Factor #4: Alignment is necessary to ensure that the desired results are achieved. Performance excellence happens when the strategies, systems and people are working together to build loyal internal customers that drive loyal external customers. The much heard adage about “Getting everyone to row in the same direction” is true, but probably should be amended to include the following “by using the same paddles.”
When these four CSF’s work together, results happen quicker and create a culture of working “smarter and not harder.” As a small business coach, I ask all of my clients the following questions. Hopefully, they may help you to achieve the consistent results that you desire.
1. Do I know with 100% accuracy that every employee can clearly articulate the top 3 goals for the organizations?
2. Does every person within the organization consistently sets and achieves all of his or her personal and professional goals?
3. Does everyone within the organization at ALL times consistently demonstrate positive attitudes?
4. Are the strategies, systems and people in alignment to build loyal internal customers?
The Four Critical Success Factors to Help Small Businesses Reach Success - To learn more about this author, visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
 |
Related Articles |
|
 Critical Success Factors
|
| |
If you don't know the few, really important things you need to carry out to achieve your mission - how can your staff. Identify them - and communicate them. Then everyone knows where to focus their efforts.
|
|
Sales Assessment
|
| |
The 10 Critical Success Factors:
|
|
Entrepreneurship/Business Environment
|
| |
The key factors you need to remember about entrepreneurship are opportunities, innovation, and growth. An entrepreneur sees opportunities in environmental trends and changes that nobody has seen before and pursues t...
|
|
Setting Goals For an HR Recruiting Business
|
| |
Article on how to set goals for an HR recruiting business at home.
|
|
Amendments to Small Business Protections under the Trade Practices Act
|
| |
Section 51AC of the Trade Practices Act (TPA) protects small business by prohibiting a corporation from engaging in unconscionable conduct when dealing in supply or acquisition of goods or services with any person o...
|
 |
Related Businesses - Evan Elite Authors |
|
Leanne Hoagland Smith
Are your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales success or one of the many who have failed to change? So what are you doing to change those results? Let’s be honest, with companies moving globally and at lightening speeds, the traditional business solutions are outdated and dead. My approach moves your business out of its comfort zone and secures your competitive advantage now. If you are seeking to increase sales, build customer loyalty, create a culture of great attitudes or just achieve some sleep filled nights, then we should talk because my clients have experienced exactly those types of results. Learn more about customer loyalty at http://www.processspecialist.com/customer-loyalty.htm Give me a call at 219.759.5601 for a free strategy session. P.S. If you are seeking a motivational speaker, sales trainer or small business expert that will leave your audience smiling and remembering, please feel free to contact me at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland Smith's Website |
The Evan Elite Authors program is currently in beta phase. For details please contact us.
|
|
|
Leanne Hoagland-Smith
(Visit Leanne's Website)
Are your sales where you want them to be?
Will you be one of the few who achieves
sales success or one of the many who have
failed to change? So what are you doing to
change those results? Let’s be honest,
with companies moving globally and at
lightening speeds, the traditional
business solutions are outdated and dead.
My approach moves your business out of its
comfort zone and secures your competitive
advantage now. If you are seeking to
increase sales, build customer loyalty,
create a culture of great attitudes or
just achieve some sleep filled nights,
then we should talk because my clients
have experienced exactly those types of
results. Learn more about customer loyalty
at www.processspecialist.
com/customer-loyalty.htm Give me a
call at 219.759.5601 for a free strategy
session. P.S. If you are seeking a
motivational speaker, sales trainer or
small business expert that will leave your
audience smiling and remembering, please
feel free to contact me at 219.759.5601.
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
![[Get Copyright Permissions]](http://license.icopyright.net/images/icopy-w.gif){kind=small}
