"I want my contributions to truly make a difference to the success of my employer! Knowing the vision and mission has given me the ability to set and re-set my priorities, efforts, and development to achieve professional success in our changing environment."

Part III of TPO’s IV Part series on Succession Planning!

It doesn’t matter how great a company’s product or service is if the customer delivery isn’t right. It requires the right people to make an organization successful. Surveys by consulting organizations like Towers Perrin have shown consistently over the past five years the number one reason employees leave organizations is likely to be they don’t feel the work they do is worthwhile or contributing to the organization’s success.

Through similar surveys, we know that the reason people are unhappy in one job and happy in another has more to do with organizational culture fit than with the specific tasks they perform. Executives and front line workers alike want to fit into the culture and know that their job is important in meeting the vision.

Developing and Communicating a Vision

During the time that Total Quality Management was in its heyday, organizations frequently worked very hard to develop a Vision and Mission Statement and, possibly, even a set of Corporate Values. Each of these was included in the company employee handbook and a copy provided to employees when they were hired.

Unfortunately, these were not always updated to meet changing circumstances and not used as the guideposts they were intended to be. Providing a living set of documents that employees can use as a yardstick to measure success is important. Framed copies of vague and unclear creative writing pieces do not provide that opportunity. Each employee should be able to look at the Vision when making decisions and ask, "Will what I am doing move us closer to this?"

Organizations that have not revisited their guiding documents should do so with such an outcome in mind. Ken Blanchard recommends organizations have a list of values in hierarchical order. This allows employees to make decisions among competing claims on time and other resources.

Identifying the Needed Skills and Competencies

Once the organization’s leadership is clear on the direction of the organization and the priorities to make it happen, it is possible to identify competencies required to be successful. There are systems available from HR professionals to integrate competencies from recruitment through career development to create a consistency in the organization and improve performance towards the goals identified.

As we have previously discussed, cultural competencies are the most important part of keeping employees engaged and satisfied. Each position in the organization will have slightly different individual competencies even though there are shared organizational competencies. For example, an employee who started with an organization that had a vision about cutting edge technology would need a competency in ability to work in a changing environment. If the employee started out as a customer service representative, he/she would also need strong communication skills. As the employee moved into a leadership role, it would be important to develop a competency in directing employee behavior.

A system should be implemented by organizations to identify the appropriate corporate competencies as well as any that would be specific to the position.

Providing the Right Experiences

The question comes up, "How on earth do we help develop competencies?"

There are three ways to develop competencies for employees to allow them to move into other roles in the organization:

1. Formal Training – Leadership training in content such as clear communication, style recognition and flex, time management and other important "soft skills" can provide an excellent basis with a body of knowledge and set of tools to use. This can be provided in house or from an external source. Having consistency among the leadership so that a common language is used helps build clarity of direction.

2. Mentoring/Coaching – When employees are exercising the tools and information learned in the formal training opportunities, it is important for them to get quick and appropriate feedback. If there are employees who are already highly skilled in these areas, they can act as mentors for employees who need that feedback. Institutionalizing this system sends a message that it is OK to ask for assistance. This overcomes the fear that the employee will be seen as deficient if he/she asks for assistance.

3. Cross-training/Experiential Learning – With organizations requiring more and more that employees be flexible and understand all areas of the organization, this is a very important part of the program. Employees must not only be given opportunities to "try out" different areas of the organization, but encouraged to do so. Good examples of this method are organizations that bring in "trainees" and allow them to experience each area of the organization before identifying where they are a best fit.

Recognizing Employee Success

As Dr. Stephen Covey reminds us, it is important to "Start with the End in Mind." The reason organizations provide these opportunities and tools is to make it possible to meet the Vision of the organization. Employees must see that taking advantage of all of these opportunities and practicing the skills will pay off.

It is important that the employee know his/her contribution is making a real difference in how the organization is meeting goals. The recognition should be institutionalized and consistent. It is critical to remember that what is rewarded is what you get.

Developing employee recognition programs can be difficult, but a very important outcome. It is true that employees get a very large "reward" for feeling like they are making a difference in how well the organization does. Reinforcing that feeling through tangible actions helps to maintain the behavior.

Conclusion

It is difficult, as shown in the previous article, to identify and recruit the right people. It is critical to do so as the first article in this series pointed out. No organization can afford to lose the good people it has worked hard to get. Integrated Career Development is the answer to the question about how to retain the best in the organization.