In a company sense, what is the first thing that comes to
mind when you hear this question? Often
times within certain organizations it can be a “gap creator”. What I mean by that is, having a “line of
sight” often means I’m looking towards a specific direction with a goal in mind. In the case of a business or an organization
we frequently call that – True North. I
find throughout my travels that not every place I visit has a clearly defined
one. What could be the repercussions if
we don’t have one?
With my roots being from Toyota I often reflect on the true
north statement that was always there as our company’s guiding beacon; no
matter what an individual did or what level they reached in the organization
you could tie your daily work into that statement. For example, a true north statement could
look similar to this:
We will always put the
Customer first, while making the highest quality product, at the lowest cost,
in the shortest lead time, in the safest manner, all while respecting our
people.
As you look at this statement you can visualize the key
performance indicators such as quality, cost, productivity, safety, and human
resources. These indicators are what drive
the company to improve their processes which in turn assist those results we
all tend to focus on heavily. This type
of true north is evolutionary, meaning if you reach the lowest cost then raise
the bar on yourself and continue to improve it (continuous improvement). I’ve seen true north statements say
something like – “To be #1 in the market.”
Although I feel that is misleading at times, but the more important part
of that is the customer- is that the first thing on their minds? We often have to be careful with such a
result oriented direction. It’s more so
about the processes / thinking that get us there.
With the above as our true north, it allowed us to look at
our own work as the business goals cascaded downward from the 50,000 foot level
of the organization to the 1000 foot level.
It’s essential that everyone articulates what they are doing to
contribute and measure. If they fall
short of that then we could ask the question- “How value-added are we”? Let’s take a look at how a sequence of
questions can align us to that true north and ensure we are adding value.
During my sessions I embed the time to ask specific
questions in regard to the line of sight. It normally is a real eye-opener to some as
they realize what they are doing (sometimes reacting-i.e. firefighting) isn’t
always contributing towards the company goals in the best way they could be.
The first question I ask them is – What is your role in the organization? This makes them think
about their role or scope of work. This
may seem like a simple task to many, but it’s “deceptively” simple as we
continue to ask more questions. Believe it
or not, some struggle with articulating their specific role. It’s often not always defined by our leaders
from day one.
The second question is – What
is my work responsibility? This
allows you to think about what you are truly responsible for in your daily work
in regard to your role. What is all
involved with my responsibilities?
Sometimes I ask “why did the company hire you?” What is your true responsibility in regard to
the business goals?
The third question I ask is – What is your job’s purpose? This particular question begins the thinking
process, most come back and say – “what do you mean what is my purpose, my
purpose is to do what I’m told?” I
chuckle inside as they continue the exercise, because it continues to challenge
them further and gaps begin to surface.
It’s hard to take sometimes but we all should drive our purpose towards
specific standards which contribute to the business need. Otherwise are we spinning our wheels? Just as we all have seen the “Got Milk” ads
in the past – I ask, “Got Purpose?”
The fourth question I ask is – What are the goals that guide your job’s purpose? Am I making this more difficult or what? I
normally start see people staring to the left to the right depending upon what
side of the brain they are pulling information from. It’s an interesting process to witness
because some have never thought of it in the context I’m making them think of
before. Some say, “What do you mean the
goals that guide me? - I meet the results!”
This is where I give them a hint towards their key performance
indicators. Everyone’s job has to be aligned with
those key performance indicators we discussed before. If not how do you really know if you are
creating value? How are you measuring
your own work back to the company’s goals?
This is why true north and cascading goals are essential in a culture focused
on people, purpose, process and problem solving! See a previous column on called the 4P’s. http://thetoyotagal.blogspot.com/2012/02/what-do-4ps-have-to-do-with-lean.html
The last question I ask is –What are the company goals?
This empowers them to align themselves with true north and how they
contribute. As I stated before, how do
you go from the 50,000 goal to the 1000 foot level. It’s
an upward cascade regarding your work that parallels with the downward cascade
of the strategy deployment of the business plan. Once I finish the series of questions I tell
them to write “My own Ideal Situation”, to the side. What I have created in essence is that very
thing. If we know our role, purpose,
the goals that guide us, and the company goals then we should be able to
articulate with our daily actions where we are against that standard at any
time. When you lower the river to see
the rocks it’s your own personal development towards the company’s goal which
in turn proves your contribution to long term sustainability and growth due to
your actions aligning. When they don’t
align you can always ask why and understand what is keeping you from those
goals. (Almost like a background A3
running in regard to your own performance- imagine that)
Let me show you a very simple example that I often use in my
sessions that I did for my own
line of sight as a problem solving instructor. Yes I practice what I teach.
My role –
Problem Solving Instructor
My work
responsibility – is to learn, understand and practice the problem solving
process /thinking (PDCA) and also how the company values/principles are
intertwined with that thinking to deliver training sessions to various
organizations.
My job’s purpose
– to effectively deliver the problem solving process to any level /role
within the organization that ignites a culture of ongoing thinkers who are able
to see gaps against a standard. (*Note I
underlined effectively in the sentence above, I measure my effectiveness as an
instructor during and after a class to see if I’m meeting their expectations).
What are the goals
that guide my job’s purpose – for my participants to learn, understand,
practice, and develop their people in problem solving in order to fulfill
the company’s values and true north vision.
(*Note I underlined develop in the sentence above, it is part of the
goals that guide me that I teach at a rigorous level so participants can not
only learn themselves but also eventually develop others)
What are my company
goals – to fulfill the customers’ expectations by providing, high
quality training, which enables them to do business differently by changing how
their people think and do business.
So this is my personal line of sight, which I consider my
ideal situation. It’s evolutionary and
constantly makes me improve how I teach based on the customers’ response. In essence it’s a gap creator for me that I
always look at as my standard and where I am at against it.
In closing, I hope this column gives some insights toward
your personal line of sight within your company and your role, but further more
do you understand the importance of everyone having one that leads upward to
the company true north. This makes it
much easier to cascade your business plan down through the organization. If people don’t understand it, they tend to
be reactive; reactive isn’t something you want to develop has a habit. Now let’s get to aligning ourselves!
Until next time@tracey_san
Tracey Richardson
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