Performance Reset: Key Insights from Leaders on how to Raise the Bar
Unlock your teams high performance through effective management and a reframe of your leaders.
Hello! It’s been a week! Here’s what is going on behind the scenes this week at OverTime Leader.
As I reflected what we’ve been up to, there is a resounding theme. This week has been all about PERFORMANCE!
As part of our leadership program for a scaling AI-robotics company, we had a deep dive on “Performance Management”. Imagine 20 senior leaders and influencers reflecting and resetting their approach to performance in their teams. LOTs of insights I’ll be sharing here.
Ran a session as part on an ongoing series to upscale leaders across a large financial firm that lost their way a bit. The brief is to get their leaders to raise the bar through more effective and bolder approach to performance management.
As par of an ongoing org design project we implemented a new management structure to get more engagement out of their senior leadership team, we ran a retro on how the new process is going to catch cracks before they became craters!
Anything here you’d like me to write about or unpack? Let me know.
Meanwhile, at OverTime Leader we are working on a redesign of our proposition. Most people that know of us, don’t actually know what we do. Some clients say “we are the best kept secret” but that’s not a great business strategy.
Will share where we are at with the revised proposition next week and would love your feedback!
Since I’ve spent the week getting others to raise the bar on performance, I thought it would make sense to play back some of the insights that have come through the sessions.
Here’s the top five takeaways from leaders this week:
1. Don’t ignore your high-performers.
Does 80% of your attention go to the 20% loudest voices or problems? We can often take our high performers for granted, and forget to acknowledge what you appreciate about them and, most importantly, help them see their blindspots and stretch them out of their comfort zone. Balance your attention across the team.
2. Give Feedback Early and Often
Think more like a coach on the sidelines. I wrote about this before. You’re responsibility is to give your team members feedback so they don’t repeat behaviours that hold them and the team back. Waiting for the check-ins, or the “right moment” can ultimately cost you the game.
3. Put structure into your 1:1s
It can be so easy to turn 1:1s into chat about the work and not about their performance. Put some structure in place to keep things on track and get in the habit of having them capture the takeaways (it can be bullets) so you have a recording of what’s been discussed and ensure you leave with the same expectations.
4. One message at a time.
When we don’t give feedback early and often, we can end up pilling it up. When you give too many messages at once, the receiver will leave with one (maybe two) and that doesn’t mean it will be the one you really needed to here. Keep it specific, clear and ensure they heard it.
5. Performance management is THE priority.
I don’t think I work with anyone that isn’t busy, that isn’t in back to back meetings, that isn’t always struggling to catch up (not sure what that says about work environments in general but we can explore that another day). Most leaders do not prioritise performance meaning:
Remember to take the time to acknowledge the good behaviours your team is displaying.
Creating a development strategy and roadmap for their team members.
Performance managing out the ones that are no longer a fit for the org.
Taking time to prepare for the more challenging conversations.
The big Ah-Ha moment for leaders in these sessions this week was a reset in how they prioritise their work and ensuring they build in time for all of the above.
If you don’t raise the bar, you’re team will drop to the lowest common denominator.
Start to audit where you can start shifting out and start empowering a team member in. Be diligent with every meeting you attend. Do you REALLY need to be there or could someone take your place and keep you in the loop?
The more time you take back the better your team will be.
You got this.
As an expert in ‘organizational chaos’ I specialise in team alignment, change management, org design, culture+strategy and leadership team performance.
Reach out to explore working together 💪