Setting staff Performance Targets that will get achieved

Author: Paul Ritchie

Author: Paul Ritchie

Who are the stakeholders in the result? The people that have something at stake will normally drive the result of a business. These people the stakeholders will normally determine the success or failure of the goals that a business has. One question to ask when setting performance targets is. Will all the stakeholders in the business have something to gain or loose when the result is finalised? Some times in a business there are external stakeholders to consider along with the obvious internal ones. People that will play a role in your business succeeding and or failing do not forget to write down their names when doing this exercise. For example in the finance business that I am involved in external stakeholders will include people like estate agents,brokers,and business development managers from the lenders we deal with each day. Obviously, the above-mentioned will have performance targets set by the organisations they work for, but you should still try and measure what they are achieving for you. In addition, the smartest organisations I know reward these people with things ranging from lunches to holidays. If the external person is a rainmaker fro your organisation and makes you profit why not reward them. Service levels received from External Stake Holders are often ignored when developing Performance Targets. The best organisations that I have worked in will get all the internal stakeholders together and discuss what the key expectations are from them. This conversation can often be revealing, as some stakeholders will have unrealistic ideas about the individual returns they expect from the business. Although these meetings can be a communication challenge, they are crucial in setting realistic goals and rewards for each person that has a stake. Many businesses only focus on what the rewards for success will be, but the clever companies also set boundaries around poor performance also. (M.A.P) is Minimal Acceptable Performance Many businesses are great at delivering the good news around performance targets but the really good businesses take performance targets as a chance to lay out the minimum acceptable performance by stakeholders. This can be as simple as requiring your company receptionist to answer the phone within three rings, or as complexed as setting a time line for the financial controller with regards monthly reporting. I remember reading Jack Welchs book about the company he ran for many years, General Electric. Jack explained that GE had an extremely generous financial and reward package in place for their best people. However, Mr Walsh also explained that the lowest three percent of sales achievers each year left the business. This example may seem extreme, but when a company grows to the size of General Electric managing stakeholder performance really does come down to not just making budget but then exceeding it. When your stakeholder meeting concludes all the people involved should have a very clear understanding of the part they need to play. If they are clear about the rewards they will gain personally from the businesses success, conversely they need to know the consequences that accompany failure. Most Businesses that thrive have a number of smaller parts that make up the whole all working in synergy. When stakeholders really understand the part, they are playing in the total business they tend to be so accountable it looks like they are running many mini businesses. Obviously, the leadership of an organisation needs to make clear the companies combined goals but individual accountability from each department head and team mean the organisation thrives. A good example of businesses that use performance targets fantastically are the large global accountancy firms. Many of these huge global operations have such target driven accountability for the partners, that they not only have a financial stake whilst working but also a continuing trail commission in retirement. The flip side that highlights the commitment highly paid senior partner make is the fact that they are legally liable when something in their area of control goes wrongAt this income level, most partners would have personal assets well protected from legal actions that can take place against them, but it does highlight my point about targets and performance. Always have stake holders sign off on Performance Targets. When people read something, they are more likely to believe it then when they hear it.However, when an individual writes his or her personal target down and signs off on it they really believe it. Get the stakeholders in your business to be part of the goal setting process and you will find when they create the data that the business goals are based on they will own the goals.About the Author:

Paul Ingersole is an Australian based business person who enjoys writing.Paul discovered a great system that makes small continuous recurring profits using the internet.You can see Google Sniper at Paul's website

http://www.guruswipe.com

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