Suapon Oil & Gas Institute - SOGI, Ghana

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NINE KEY ELEMENTS OF A PERFORMANCE CULTURE

Continued...

5. Goal Orientation

In a high performance culture each person is working not only to a very specific outcome outlined through the organization’s vision but to person and departmental goals as well.

Setting effective goals is vital and requires that each goal is SMART, in other words it is:

Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Realistic
Time bound

At the same time goals should be stretching so that each person and the whole organization is encouraged to be the best they can be.

Individuals will be accountable for their personal goals and their team's goals and their rewards will, at least in part, be based on their success or otherwise.

In the high performance organization, goals are not imposed on people but are jointly developed by themselves and their managers and become a motivation towards achieving the performance levels that we seek.

To be continued...

NINE KEY ELEMENTS OF A PERFORMANCE CULTURE

Continued..

4. Shared Values

Values can be described as the criteria that we use to make decisions. The decisions that we make lead to behaving in a particular way. For example, if "openness" is one of the organization’s values then the decision to disclose information, however bad, as opposed to hiding information, would be the appropriate choice.

The critical responsibility of the leaders in a high performance culture is to act as role models for the rest of the organization. They must at all times be seen to be acting in accord with the organization’s values. Any failure to do so will be quickly spotted, unwanted behaviors copied and trust eroded.

The values of an organization are rarely about what is written on the wall in reception - they are derived from peoples' beliefs. Our beliefs come from our experience of the world, so common values come from common experience engendered in part by the way our organization and its leaders treat us through the medium of processes and procedures, rewards and recognition.

Individuals will come to share beliefs and therefore hold common values if the behaviors engendered by those beliefs are appropriately recognized and rewarded and if they appear to move the individual and the organization towards its (compelling) vision.

To Be Continued...

NINE KEY ELEMENTS OF A PERFORMANCE CULTURE

Continued...

3. Compelling Vision

A key leadership skill is the ability to create a vision for the organization and every person within it. A compelling vision acts like a magnet, pulling everyone towards it. People are motivated by it to work to achieve it and the benefits it brings not only to the organization but most especially to themselves.

The creation of such a vision is not necessarily something that the CEO has to do alone - the more opportunities for people to become involved, the better. This builds ownership amongst the whole workforce.

So what makes a vision compelling? Firstly, it is going to have to appeal to each and every individual in the organization - everyone: employees, customers, suppliers, shareholders etc., must find it compelling. The vision must go beyond just facts and figures about how the organization will be - it must have an emotional pull for everyone. One good way to achieve this is through the medium of story-telling.

The Vision can be expressed as a story that tells everyone what the organization will look like, how it will feel to be a part of that organization, how people will behave when they are part of that organization and the organization deals with all of its stakeholders. Of course, a vital part of the vision is the extent to which the organization has been successful and how everyone shares in and is affected by that success.

To be continued...

Quote for the day:

Attitude and determination is what stands between success and failure.

We wish you all a very productive week.