I spent a full day with a client yesterday running a strategic planning day, a big investment to take close to 20 people out of the business for a full day but wow, the response.
I spent some time this morning reflecting on why it was so successful. The first point to make is that we expect a lot from our teams and often it can feel like they aren’t supporting us as much as we would like. I often hear, “they just don’t get it” “why won’t they just do this” “surely it’s obvious” etc.
The problem is ASSUMPTION
We assume they know what we are trying to achieve, we assume they know how they can impact it, we assume they know why we are doing what we do and why we are headed where we are headed.
That word again ASSUMPTION
Yesterday was all about alignment, communicating the next couple of years plan, why we want to go there, what it means to them as a team, the opportunities it brings, and why we needed their support to get there. The directors didn’t have all the answers and so we asked the team for how they could support it.
We covered current restrictions, then strategies and solutions to overcome them and finished with 90 day plans to start the process of implementation.
The team left with a renewed enthusiasm for the business, total clarity and direction about where they are headed and why, what they can do, feeling part of the process and with ownership of projects to deliver.
The directors left with a motivated team, reassurance that the business it totally aligned and team involvement rather than a reliance on the directors to do everything.
Alignment is a critical success factor in every great business, so are you aligned?
