Let’s talk about common goals. Does your team have them and are they clear?
For a team, a common goal acts like a self-referencing system. That means all the activity within the team references to that goal and to achieving it. If the team goals are not clear, then you risk people pulling in different directions, thinking they’re on track but not really knowing.
We can also extend this to having a common purpose – that means your team knows why it exists – or even better – they know they are contributing to something bigger than themselves – a key factor of Intrinsic Motivation – we’ll talk more about that in a future article.
I’ve worked with numerous teams where their purpose is not well defined and, within their business or organisation, no one really knows what they’re there to do – how confusing!
So, ensure your team knows its goals and rocks its purpose!
Insights & Actions
- Review your team goals – are they clear or are they ambiguous?
- Is everyone in your team clear on the goals?
- If we extend this principle to vision, mission and your teams purpose, would your team articulate these things in the same way, or would you get different versions?
- Finally, consider setting benchmark goals too – these are not strategic goals, but goals that define your operating standard. (The standard of your customer service, delivery and capability for example). From my experience, helping teams set these type of goals, lifts the quality bar!
I hope you’ve found this article useful. As always, stay in touch and let me know if you have a question.
Take risks,
David Savage
Photo by Pascal Swier on Unsplash