4 minutes
As a leader, when you make it a goal to gain relentless feedback a new culture starts to develop, says Peter Myers, vice president of CUES Supplier member and strategic partner DDJ Myers, Ltd., Phoenix.
He suggests that strategic planning must be at the heart of employee performance reviews. “Not only should business goals shape the strategic planning process, but performance management and succession planning.”
Myers recommends engaging staff with questions like, “Where do you want to go?” This helps foster a speculative conversation, which is much more valuable than a tactical conversation, especially as it relates to performance management. “Speaking tactically has the drawback of being too narrow or more externally focused, which is a detriment to the employee’s chance to develop,” adds Myers. (Note: “tactical talk” can also center on specific topics, logistics, or create a conversation that is less free-flowing or be more deliberate in its intention. It may even seek a predetermined result.)
Myers adds that strategic learners, those who continually seek and integrate new concepts, crave regular feedback, which is self-motivating and assists in keeping goals in focus. Touchpoints should be used to evaluate employee skills, goal tracking, and leadership attributes. But it’s imperative to solicit feedback and have the employee contribute with a self-assessment. “When an employee grades themselves they are also forced to assess how they’re impacting the credit union in many domains,” continues Myers. For example, he or she may consider:
- How am I contributing to our strategic initiatives?
- How am I stimulating partnership across the organization?
- What was my contribution to the organization attaining its goals?
Co-Development of Staff
Incorporating strategic planning into the process also spreads the operational potential among a variety of team members, not just a select few. “Do we have the talent to deliver on our strategic directives?” is a question often left unasked during strategic planning. Senior executives typically have a differing view of the organization, and instead of relying on one executive’s viewpoint or a single channel for information, the scope for assessment becomes broader.
“This approach can virtually ‘unshackle’ senior management from assessing their own line of business, and provide feedback to other operational areas,” adds Myers. “The dynamics of evaluation and development become less territorial, creating the chance for more feedback, greater synergy and, more importantly, the ultimate clarity of team goals. It frees the manager from having the sole responsibility of judging or critiquing an employee’s performance.”
Myers rationalizes that if an organization is not soliciting feedback from an employee’s peers, it is a forgone opportunity. It’s beneficial to have a leader’s peers, both left and right in the hierarchy, provide feedback. It’s also wise for managers to understand how lateral leaders feel about an employee’s performance. Starting with the CEO, gaining lateral feedback leaves the conduit open for future discussion and creates cross-training and succession opportunities.
Relentless Feedback
Myers concludes: “You start to see and do things differently, and organizational buy-in from staff becomes more organic. It creates a give-and-take environment, where staff openly offer feedback, critique their performance, and focus on actionable items.
“This commitment to feedback promotes an external focus, reinforcing an employee’s commitment to the values of the organization. When employees know their development is top of mind, they welcome the challenges of the CU in a voluntary manner and are more likely to develop and grow as professionals.
“The tone, of course, is established at the top," concludes Myers. "If a CEO seeks an increased level of self-accountability in their staff, they have to not only embrace but seek out, the public opportunities to be held accountable and develop their own leadership presence.” Each CEO is different in the opportunities they choose. Some prefer the town hall format for open discussion, others like written documents published within the CU stating goals. Certain leaders rely on senior team meetings and other venues. The result is offering a more transparent course that staff can trust and embrace to promote accountability at all levels.}
With 25 years of marketing and communications experience, Stephanie Schwenn Sebring established and managed the marketing departments for three CUs. As owner of Fab Prose & Professional Writing, her focus is on assisting CUs and industry suppliers with their communications needs.
