High Performing Organisations Or Teams! Sometimes Or Always?
In business, the distinction between high and low performance is clear: you either are performing highly or you are not. There are no maybes.
This business concept needs to be crystal clear if you are in a leadership role.
Even if you are evolving as a team and working towards high performance, the person leading the team or organisation needs to be very clear about what high performance is and what it is not.
Let me shake your paradigm. High performance is NOT only about achieving goals set and being profitable.
It is NOT about completing all tasks and striving towards attaining the next goal.
Of course all of this is critical, but if you are doing so at the expense of your people, who may be demoralised and unhappy, yours is not a highly performing team or Organisation.
(The research states that it is unlikely a team or Organisation will achieve its goals and be highly performing if people are unhappy anyway.)
Two Critical Factors in High Performance
Historically the focus has been on achieving tasks – that if a team reaches its goals (tasks) then it is highly performing.
This thinking has changed significantly over the past decade where research has indicated that high performance is a combination of reaching goals by completing tasks well and the close working, collaborative relationships that exist between team members.
- Tasks: The jobs or activities that need to be completed in order to meet goals and fulfill the descriptions of the position
- Relationships: The way the team bond, the harmony or conflict that exists, how team members work together in a collaborative and supportive way (or not)
Consider these two factors and decide whether your team or Organisation is strong on both Tasks and Relationships.
If not, unless you as a leader do something differently, nothing will change.
Conclusion
High performance is not a ‘nice to have.’ It is the essence of every successful business around the world, but it comes from having energy and dedication as a leader, who treats their people well and leads with conviction.
Having read this article and completed the High Performance Quizz, if you realise that your team or Organisation is not as highly performing as it should be, what are you going to do about it?
Caryn Walsh is an International Business Consultant, Executive Coach, Keynote Speaker. She is in Fiji four times a year. Do you have a question about your team or business. If you or your Organisation would like to work with her, please email her at info@puremagicbusiness.com.au to arrange a time to discuss your needs.
