In Business
How to Achieve More with Less!
By Kenneth Buchholtz, M.B.S. HRM, Chartered FCIPD, Campbell International
Dec 22, 2009 - 3:19:05 PM

How to Achieve More with Less!

This is essentially the message for 2010 how to achieve more in your company with less. We are all in the same boat and we have less, yet we have to achieve a lot more to survive. To achieve the leadership to change your organisation into achieving more with less you need to demonstrate that you as leader will show performance improvements consistently, that you can explain where you want to bring your organisation and what improvements you expect in the next couple of months. You need to create an organisational culture which values consistent improvements, that all employees take ownership of performance improvements and not just management.

However, there is a way out as a number of high performance companies have dealt with above described problem. They have created clear links between performance and execution and raising the standards of both of them. There are five rules to follow as an organisation: -

1. Keep it simple, make it concrete – Ensure that all staff members know the strategy and how it affects their day to day performance. Make certain that all employees know what they have to have delivered at the end of the year.
2. Use a rigorous framework, speak a common language – The specific framework a company uses to ground its strategic plans isn’t that important. What is critical is that the framework establishes a common language for dialogue between the management and employees one that strategy, marketing, finance and operations all understand and use!
3. Clearly identify priorities – To deliver any strategy successfully managers must make thousands of tactical decisions and put them into action. Companies should agree on priorities, communicate relentlessly and hold managers accountable for executing against their commitments.
4. Continuously monitor performance – Continuous monitoring of performance is particularly important. Putting the Key Performance Indicators on the agenda of every management meeting should ensure that all keep the eye on the ball.
5. Reward and develop execution capabilities – No list can be complete without a reminder that companies have to motivate and develop their staff, as at the end of the day no process can be any better than the people who have to make it work. This also includes development of staff members who have made it work.

You need to understand that increased performance is about behaviour which we demonstrate on a daily basis. To improve performance we need to change our behaviour! We need to start doing things differently to what we have been doing before. If we keep doing the same things nothing will change and no improvements will be achieved.

To really improve your employees you need as a manager to take the following issues to heart: -

·         Focus on the behaviour of your employees – look at what people do, not who or what they are. Make sure people start changing their daily behaviour

·         Focus on asking people instead of telling them. Involve people in your new approach and ask them for their opinion as most employees have a good knowledge of what their daily work is. Keep challenging them to improve their output by finding new ways to work.

·         Base feedback and evaluation on things that are observable and measurable. Give constant constructive feedback and measure what has been done and the result of actions taken.

·         Recognise the actions that accelerate performance and ask to do more of them.

·         Learn to identify performance blocking behaviour and stop it!

People change their behaviour either when they see the light or feel the (economic) heat. Change is continuous but mostly in little steps. As the demands of jobs change (recession, technology, competition, objectives, resources, responsibility, skills, knowledge etc.) all our behaviour must change to meet those demands.

If you need to discuss how to make performance improvements in your organisation give me a call at 065 7071933.

Kenneth Buchholtz

M.B.S. HRM

Chartered FCIPD

Campbell International,

Human Resource Consultants,

Cloncoul House,

Ennistymon,

Co. Clare.

Tel: 065 7071933

E-mail: info@campbellinternational.net

Website: www.campbellinternational.net