From the President
Happy New Year!
This month, we wrap up our three-part discussion of strategic planning with an article on how to design and execute a detailed action plan for each of your 2006 goals.
Our next newsletter will be published in March and will feature a discussion of the "Building Trust in a Wired World" survey. For more information click here.
Sincerely, Pam Pound
In this issue
"We are squeezing out of business that inefficient, no-ROI thing called humanity . . . Just because we're at work doesn't mean tht we're not human; sometimes we need someone to touch us, to make us smile, to feel better about ourselves." Tim Sanders
making dreams real: BUILDING A framework for success
We had left the Bordeaux region of France heading north by car towards Paris. As we pulled through the town of Tours on a two-lane highway, we came to a fork in the road.
There were two arrows pointing in opposite directions. The arrow pointing left said "Paris," and the arrow pointing right also said "Paris."
Fortunately, there were no other cars in sight. As we pulled out the Michelin map for clarification, we pondered the implication of having to choose between two entirely different routes to our ultimate destination. The route to the right was a clear shot on a major highway through Orleans to Paris. The route to the left went west through small towns heading indirectly to Paris via Normandy.
In travel and in business, there is almost always more than one way to get where we want to go. Finding the optimal route - and making necessary course corrections along the way - is at the heart of strategic planning. Without an effective plan, the most compelling vision and most aggressive goals are no more than pipe dreams.
The devil is in the details
At the fork in the road, my husband and I decided to meander lazily towards Normandy on the "scenic" route. It was a great way to relax and have an adventure, but it's no way to run a business. In business, you need a plan.
For goals involving revenue, the plan is often called a "marketing" or "sales" plan. Having a plan for non-financial goals is equally important. Every plan should answer the following questions:
Who "owns" the goal?
What specific action steps will we take to achieve the goal
(i.e., to generate $$ in new sales, we need to make ## in new sales. We will generate these sales from sources A, B, and C. With source A, we will do the following action steps...)
What are the underlying business assumptions driving the action plan and are they realistic?
Who is accountable for executing each step of the action plan?
What resources do we need?
When and how will we acquire any missing resources?
When should each step in the plan occur--both the order of execution and milestone dates?
How will we measure progress?
When, exactly, will we periodically evaluate our progress?
Two common breakdowns in the planning process are unrealistic assumptions and poor resource planning.
Ground Your Assumptions in Reality
Your goal should "stretch" beyond what you know you can accomplish. But in planning to get there, make sure your assumptions are firmly grounded in reality. For projections involving factors like close ratio, turnover, client retention, and account size, use historical data as a guide.
Let's say that your average account size has been $10,000 for the past three years. Don't increase that figure without having a detailed plan backing up the higher value.
If you don't have historical data, do research to find out what's typical or average. Then come up with a conservative projection based on that validated data. The same principle applies with forward-looking assumptions like interest rates and commodity pricing trends. Check with credible sources to see what they project for the future.
"Reality checks" around time are especially important. Make sure your plan addresses both the time it will take to complete each action step and the reality of how many hours per day your team is willing and able to work.
Money Talks
Time and again, companies indicate that they are committed to a program or project and then won't provide adequate money, time, manpower, or expertise. This "disconnect" between words and action sends a loud and clear message that the goal is not worth an investment of resources.
As this realization sinks in, people stop trying. They lose respect for their leaders. Lack of accountability and inattention to goals become part of the corporate culture.
A proper resource assessment can help you avoid this problem. In your strategic planning process, figure out exactly what it will take to achieve your goal and be creative in looking for ways to acquire missing resources.
Then, if you decide that you'll still come up short, table the goal or scale it back to be attainable with the resources you have.
Reality vs. Perception
When you have a detailed plan of action, you are well positioned to identify and pro-actively address obstacles. The critical challenge is sorting out perceived obstacles from those that are real.
When Zebulon Pike declared that "no one will ever reach the summit" of what's now known at Pike's Peak, he was factually incorrect in his belief that terrain and weather precluded a successful climb. And this belief kept him from achieving a stated goal.
Make a list of all the obstacles that could prevent you from achieving your goal. Then, sort out facts from beliefs. This may not be as easy as it sounds. For many of us, negative beliefs are so well entrenched that we confuse them with facts. Good coaching from a friend, colleague, or professional will help you identify and overcome negative beliefs that hold you back.
Measure, Reflect, Respond
Your detailed goal plan needs scheduled "check-in" dates to keep you focused. These check-in's also provide the opportunity to proactively process new information - good and bad - that affects your ability to achieve the goal. They allow for mid-course corrections and adjustments.
At each check-in date, ask everyone involved in the project to answer the following questions:
(1) What did we expect to achieve by this point?
(2) What have we actually achieved?
(3) What's working in this process that we can leverage going forward?
(4) What is not working that we need to change or eliminate?
(5) Have our assumptions proved valid, or do we need to revisit them?
(6) What have we learned (or are still learning) that affects our ability to continue moving forward?
Whether you are nailing the goal or lagging behind, it's critical to understand what's behind the results. This "reflection" process provides the opportunity to identify and build on strengths that you may not recognize in the thick of battle. And it forces you to face and address challenges that have cropped up.
Regular check-ins also publicly reinforce your commitment to the goal, so that the team recognizes that it is still a top priority.
Acknowledge and thank
High performers often take their accomplishments in stride, not taking time to acknowledge themselves and others for what they've achieved. Remember that there is no management tool more powerful than recognizing stellar performance and thanking people for their contribution and effort.
Pinnacle Success Partners, Inc. facilitates executives and teams in designing and executing strategic plans that move organizations powerfully forward. Call 708-651-2483 to request a complimentary consultation or send us a message.
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Building Trust in a Wired (or Wireless) World
Within the past couple of years, I have purchased countless products and services from people whom I've never met. A woman in Pennsylvania designed my logo and stationary. My web designer lives in Florida, and my newsletter designer in Houston took a short break to evacuate due to hurricane.
My husband and I hired an architect that we've never personally met to design a major addition to a house that he's seen only in digital photos.
Before video-conferencing became "hot," I used emails and faxes to organize more than 60 people in 40+ countries to create a coordinated global insurance program. And it worked.
I've never met most of my "remote" providers, and yet we've somehow been able to work incredibly well together. It's not difficult to imagine that, like me, each of you has had amazing successes and perhaps suffered a breakdown or two in the virtual business world.
Would you be willing to take 5-10 minutes to share your perspective? If so, click here to take the survey. We'll review and comment on the results in our March newsletter.
likeable vs. valuable: investing for powerful results
A recent USA Today article talks at length about how important it is to be "liked" at the office. They site a Harvard Business Review study concluding that personal feelings toward an employee can be more important than how competent an employee is seen to be. "Being proficient at job tasks is of little comfort to the organization if an employee alienates clients or other staff."
Here's our take on the topic. Learning how not to alienate people is a relatively low-level aspiration. It may relieve some tension in the office, but it doesn't enhance the ability to actually deliver greater value to clients and colleagues.
We provide our clients with a much greater return on their investment in self-development. We go beyond creating a better work environment towards creating measurably better business results.
It's not rocket science, but it does take practice. We provide that through public and corporate workshops that teach the principles of Building High Value Relationships(TM). We also offer one-on-one and small group coaching on the process.
Click here to learn more about our upcoming public program in Chicago.
As a New Year's gift for our subscribers, we are offering a complimentary assessment tool to help you better understand how you "show up" in your interactions with others. This includes an electronic assessment, immediate feedback, and a 30-minute debrief by phone. This offer applies until March 1. Email us at info@pinnaclesuccesspartners.com to request your assessment. | 
