One corner of my Performance Triangle is Process. These are what – and how – things happen within your organization. They include things that are formal, informal, in writing, unwritten, etc. Some of the more obvious include:
• Organizational structure
• Policies and procedures
• Existing culture, and maintenance of that culture
• The decision-making process
• The process for employment decisions and performance management
What you say you’re going to do, through mission statements, vision statements, verbal or written promises, or whatever, matters little if your processes can’t support that talk.
Your processes must support your talk.
In other words, to say that you intend to hire only the best – the top of the food chain, so to speak – yet your process for sourcing, recruitment and hiring is petty and insignificant, and managed entirely by someone outside the general management chain, creates a conflict.
You are saying one thing, but your words – your promise – are conflicted by your process. In other words, you don’t realy want that; you just like to say you want that. Sort of like the tired phrase, “People are our most important asset.” What people (employees and others) really hear is, “Blah, blah, layoffs, blah, blah, costly benefits, blah, blah…”
You get the picture.
Make sure your talk – the organizational promises you make – match your processes.
