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| DESCRIPTION | |
| When it's lacking: - The "vision thing" is derided as a bunch of fluff that has little connection to the bottom line. - Most employees don't have a clue as to where the organization is strategically headed. - The stated vision is sharply different from the vision that seems to be guiding top management. |
When it's thriving: + A compelling vision of the future draws people in a common direction. + Goals and objectives serve as a down-to-earth, day-to-day complement to the vision. + Employees understand and are personally enrolled in the vision, goals, and objectives. + The organization's direction is periodically revisited, reassessed -- and refocused if necessary. |
| EXAMPLES |
| There's no question about it, Brett likes his job. As the director of information
systems for a fast-growing insurance company, he uses a facilitative style in managing
a team of 10 smart programmers and network experts. Days are filled with interesting
activities and exciting development work. Yet there's a difference between liking
a job and being crazy in love with it, and Brett can easily explain what would it
would take to achieve the latter: a clear strategic direction. Right now, it appears
that the company is making fast progress to...somewhere. Where, exactly, no one can
say. "There's nothing wrong with feeling like you own a company within a company,"
Brett says, "but it would be even better to have that and to have a clear
sense of where we're headed as a collective organization." Don't let Wanda hear the word "plan." She pulls no punches: "Every time I hear it, my stomach turns." That may be because Wanda has "been planned to death." As an assistant administrator for a government agency, she has been a frequent participant in sessions to develop mission statements, vision statements, goals, and objectives. The first effort focused on the agency as a whole. Then the same process was used to look at her division...and then the work unit. By her count, the 1,200-person agency has 50 plans, only some of which point in a common direction. "The makers of oak frames have been our biggest supplier," she says. "That's where we put all our mission and vision statements." Does she really feel that planning offers little or no value? "No, a planning process -- visioning, mission development, call it what you will -- can be useful," she says. "For us, though, we seem to be cranking out plans as if the on-paper plan is the end in itself. What we really should be doing is establishing a direction and then using that direction to guide us on a daily basis." |
| ACTION IDEAS |
| Get together and talk about direction -- not to craft a lyrical paragraph, but to
understand people's perspectives on where the organization (team, work unit, division,
region, functional area, etc.) is heading. As this dialogue unfolds, visions will
begin to merge. Keep in mind that one conversation is never enough; plan on a series.
Ideally, make these get-togethers a part of the workplace routine. Involve all employees in these conversations. Think in terms of co-creation. If we want everyone to be strategically headed in the same direction, doesn't it make sense for everyone to help set that direction? If your organization (and/or team, work unit, division, region, functional area, etc.) has a written vision statement, mission statement, set of goals/objectives, or anything similar, pull them from the oak frame and put them under the hot lights of critical, collective examination. "Are we living up to our promises?" "Does this still make sense?" "What new/different things do we need to do?" "Where do we go from here?" Foster future-thinking throughout the organization. What will be happening in your industry five years down the road...ten...twenty? What will be happening in the rest of the business world? How will the workplace look and feel twenty years from now? What will people expect? Answers -- more accurately, guesses -- to these questions will get you thinking about direction. And they'll inform the direction that's set for your organization. |
| Copyright 1998-2002 by Tom Terez and Tom Terez Workplace Solutions, Inc. P.O. Box 21444, Columbus, Ohio USA 43221-0444. Tel. 614-571-9529..mail@BetterWorkplaceNow.com HOME | 10-Minute Briefing | Free Online Tools | Insight and Inspiration | Laugh and Learn | Buzzword Bingo | Kits, Books, and Tools | Keynotes and Services | Meet Tom Terez | Tell a Friend | Bronze Access |
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