December 8, 2003
Copyright © 2003 by Bill Dueease
One of the most common complaints organizations make is that it is hard
to find and keep employees who perform exceptionally well without needing
constant management. Certainly, there are far more people who want to
perform well, without needing constant management than there are people
who prefer to coast on the job and seek continuous micromanagement interference.
So why are many organizations having such difficulty finding high performing
employees? Maybe it’s because these organizations generate working
conditions that discourage employee performance and that eventually
drive result-oriented people away.
Companies can virtually guarantee exceptional performance from their
employees by creating working conditions that will encourage partial
entrepreneurs to thrive. In essence, companies will want to create the
Partial Entrepreneurship game. It is my personal estimation that the
vast majority of people want to operate within the rules of The Partial
Entrepreneurship game. As a reminder, here are the rules for players
in the Partial Entrepreneurship game:
A. They take responsibility for work performed and the results achieved
in their specialized fields of work, but not for the total business,
even though they frequently work within the umbrella of a larger organization.
B. They focus their energies on performing in their chosen fields and
much less on the personal wishes of any possible superiors, or on extracting
favors from subordinates.
C. They are compensated based upon the quality and quantity of the results
they produce within their chosen areas of responsibility.
D. They have more control over what their jobs will be and they have
much more job security.
When employees work under the rules of the Partial Entrepreneurship
game, they thrive and so does the organization.
We will address this from the perspective of what a manager or director
of a group of employees in an organization can do. Determine what RESULTS
you want from each position in the business, department, section, or
group that you are responsible for. Clearly record these results, and
develop a process (as automatic as possible) to measure the quality
of the results so both you and the performers will be given this feedback.
Determine the value to your business or organization of the results
for each position. Determine the minimum duties required for each position,
and I mean minimum. Refrain from dictating how the results will be produced,
unless the performance of the process is more important than the results
to be achieved. Establish rewards and pay scales based upon the quality,
quantity and value of the results your team members produce.
Find people who want to be partial entrepreneurs first. Then those who
have a strong desire and capability to perform in the positions you
have to create the results you described. You will want their credentials,
pedigree, and connections to be secondary to their desire to work as
partial entrepreneurs performing in the unique positions you have. In
essence, you are creating a best-fit scenario. You will want to fit
partial entrepreneurs into positions where they will shine by doing
what they really like to do.
.
Clearly describe the results you want from the people filling each position,
and how their accomplishments of the results will affect their compensation
and other rewards. Allow the partial entrepreneurs to take responsibility
for their performance and permit them the personal freedom and control
to achieve the best results. This way you manage results and avoid micromanagement.
Micromanagement occurs when a person dictates and controls what and
how others perform a task.
Then get out of their way to let them enjoy themselves, and watch the
results roll in. They will reap considerable personal and monetary rewards
by producing the results you want achieved. They will require little
management and or motivational input, because they will be too busy
enjoying themselves.
One of your other leadership/management functions will be to protect
your Partial Entrepreneurship team from outside interference (including
sources within your same organization). You want to prevent corporate
power games, or politics from disrupting the ability of your team to
work under Partial Entrepreneurship rules. In other words, protect your
team from having bureaucratic rules imposed on them.
The Dallas Cowboys were an extremely successful professional football
team, and won two championships, because Jimmy Johnson, the coach, created
a very effective Partial Entrepreneurship. He produced the best fits
possible, among his players, staff and assistant coaches. When Jimmy
Johnson was fired, the Cowboys (a Partial Entrepreneurship) continued
its success by winning one more championship the next year, because
the same players, staff and assistant coaches remained. But, during
the following years, the Partial Entrepreneurship conditions were replaced
by bureaucratic rules to suit the personal ego and needs of the owner,
Jerry Jones. Stroking Jones became more important than winning, and
the new coaches could not protect the team from Jones. The team went
on a serious losing streak that was marred by constant turmoil. The
losing has only been recently reversed because Jones finally allowed
a new coach (Bill Parcells) to create another Partial Entrepreneurship.
Yet, even Parcells has not been able to return the Cowboys to reasonable
successes.
.
By creating a Partial Entrepreneurship you will be able to tap into
the vast number of people in the work force who want to produce excellent
results. You will be able to select from many excellent employees to
find the best people who will create the best fits. You will be able
to enjoy very high quality performance among your team and you will
have to exert little management energy to reap team successes. This
is a Win-Win-Win program. Your employees win, your organization wins,
and you win.
We welcome your opinions and comments.
Bill Dueease
Editor
______________________________________
Sharing this Newsletter: We invite you to share this e-mail newsletter
with others. The material is copyrighted by The Coach Connection LLC
so please forward the whole newsletter and not just a portion of it.
Subscribing or Unsubscribing to this newsletter: Connecting For
Results is a free, biweekly, subscription-based, e-mail publication
from The Coach Connection, LLC. If you would like to subscribe to this
newsletter put: "subscribe to newsletter" in the subject of
an e-mail sent to: connecting@findyourcoach.com. If you want to stop
receiving this newsletter send an e-mail to: connecting@findyourcoach.com,
putting "Unsubscribe" in the subject line.
Using The Coach Connection
(TCC) is the easiest, most efficient, least costly, and most enjoyable
way to find your ideal life coach.
Calling TCC puts you in touch with a highly trained and personable advocate
who can save you time, money and energy by finding your ideal coach
for you to connect with. Start having the life you really want.
1. Call us for your Free, No Obligation, Confidential Consultation
to learn more and decide about coaching for yourself at: 800-887-7214
(toll free in the US and Canada) or 239-415-1777. (We answer
the phone by the fourth ring.)
2. Request that we call you for your
Free
Consultation,
3. Contact
us by e-mail
4. Attend a teleclass entitled:Is
Engaging a Life Coach Right for Me?
or Is Becoming
a Life Coach Right for Me?
In addition, what goes on between your
TCC Member Coach and you is so confidential and private that the only
way anyone will know about it is if you tell them. In fact, your TCC Member
Coach cannot even reveal to TCC what transpires between you two with the
exception of scheduling and coaching fee matters, which we have to know
about, because that is our job.
