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Part 1 .- 2 .- .3 .- . 4 .- .5 |
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By John Spence
(Following is a five-part series of short articles that John wrote for
Gainesville Today Magazine on what it takes to build a successful organization)
During
the course of the past five years I have had the opportunity to serve as a
management consultant and corporate trainer to more than 180 companies worldwide.
Working with these organizations in the areas of strategic planning, marketing,
sales and leadership development I have been afforded a unique perspective
of how companies in thirty different industries operate. What I have found
is that regardless of the size of the organization, from small 2-3 person
entrepreneurial enterprises, to 100,000 employee multi-national corporations,
there are specific characteristics that clearly differentiate “Great”
companies.
The first, and most important factor in successful companies is the existence
of a clear, vivid, and compelling vision of exactly where the organization
is headed. A vision that tells employees throughout the operation why they
are coming to work, what they are working towards, and how it will look and
feel once they achieve the vision. A vision that gets everyone excited about
coming to work and contributing to the success of the organization and also
shows the personal benefits of attaining corporate excellence.
What I am not talking about is some sterile “Vision Statement”
handed down from the top. We have all seen the impressive looking engraved
plaques that read: “The ABC Company will be the world leader in blah,
blah, blah…” These are usually hung in every office in the company,
yet completely invisible to all the employees. A real vision is built from
the ground up by the people who will do the actual work to make it happen.
Through
team meetings, surveys, and discussions over beers after work, the vision
takes shape. The leader listens, watches and asks questions. Then the leader
does something important, he or she takes the necessary time to sit down and
think deeply about the vision and direction of the company, taking in all
the input they have gathered to create a living vision that reflects the hopes
and aspirations of the team and the realities of the marketplace.
After the vision has been developed there are still two critical tasks. Step
one is to support the vision with SMART Goals: Specific, Measurable, Agreed
Upon, Realistic, and Time Bound goals that are written down. These sort of
detailed goals are absolutely essential to letting everyone in the organization
know exactly what they should be doing on a daily basis to make the vision
a reality.
The last step for ensuring the vision is effective, constant and consistent
communication of the vision throughout the organization. Formally through
memos, e-mail, and newsletters; informally through meeting and face-to-face
communications, until the entire company is infused with a clear, vivid and
exciting vision to their future success.
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Part 1 .- .2 .- .3 .- . 4 .- .5 |
The
Five Keys to Building |
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© 2008 John Spence - Designed by Flycaster
& Company