It’s hard to get clear. When you think of all the exchanges with calls, meetings, emails and overall communications we have each day–we do those things to create meaning and drive clarity.
Clarity is high value. Because when we are clear, we can execute without inhibition. It creates alignment for ourselves on what we should do.
The work is even harder with a team to drive such alignment. Getting everyone on the same page is hard work. It is the work of leadership that requires vigilance making the rounds with team members to see the same thing in their minds’ eyes.
If you want to triangulate quickly, then force yourself to work on defining the three metrics that matter. Metrics force clarity on whether you are winning or losing. Getting concrete and quantitative takes the ambiguity off the table. Here are some metrics that matter to teams:
How fast is our support response time for the last 30 days?
What is the number of deals in our pipeline? What is the minimum for healthy cash flow?
On a scale of 1-5, how do our current client relationships score?
You have to ask the question and then quantify it. Then you need to track the data and look at it regularly, if not daily.
Centering your team on the conversation around the defined numbers you’ve agreed upon allows you to focus without emotion, conjecture or guessing.
Ultimately, you are defining success. And you need to know on a daily basis if you are ahead, behind or on par.
It’s hard work to gain clarity and alignment. It means you have to get uncomfortable and name what matters in your world.
So, what are the key metrics for your team? If you had a set of gauges, what numbers do you need to see so that you can determine progress and success?