STRUCTURE - STRATEGIES
STRUCTURE – STRATEGIES
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Structure - Strategies Structure, is the quantitative characteristics of the organisation. Its focus is on four different areas: 1. The categories we can impact and influence 2. The infrastructure we can access 3. The strategies we could and should be applying 4. The benchmarks for all actions
Whilst this is a little simplistic, it’s a great starting point for this discussion. The structure is the content we can impact. It’s the things we have access to. The infrastructure. IT INCLUDES (AND IS NOT LIMITED TO): The divisions of the business The departments within a business The infrastructure The physical environment The equipment The systems The operations manuals The checklists The templates The procedures The policies The plans The best practices The benchmarks we are striving to achieve The Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s)
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The Four Categories The categories we can impact and influence
The divisions of the business
The departments within a business
The areas of impact within a department
The areas of impact within an operations manual
The infrastructure we can access
The infrastructure
The physical environment
The equipment
The systems
The strategies we could and should be applying
The operations manuals
The checklists
The templates
The procedures
The policies
The plans
The benchmarks for all actions
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The best practices
The benchmarks we are striving to achieve
The Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s)
Strategies The strategies we could and should be applying The operations manuals The checklists The templates The procedures The policies The plans The strategies are the things we should be and could be doing to achieve our desired outcomes. They’re the documented processes that show us the way. Our categories give us the areas to concentrate on. Our infrastructure are the tools to allow us to focus on these categories. And our strategies are the steps that make the categories work. Each category, sub category and sub category (and so on) should have a document for best practice attached to it At the highest level, have an Induction Pack which welcomes new team members into their team.
It could include: The company vision The company mission The company’s values A little about the company The purpose of the team The categories within the team (different functions and activities by category) A list of processes or operations manuals which shows someone how to succeed at each of the functions
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Another essential procedure is the training of the new team member. This can be done with a training portal online, with different categories of training, all the way from Introduction to the Company, through to How to Become a Leader, and anything in between you want your team trained in. The procedures are the roadmaps for what has to happen, which when applied will lead to the desired outcome being achieved. When we get to benchmarks, you’ll see that every category has a benchmark of excellence – the ideal outcome to achieve that’s expected. Let’s tie this together with strategies. Each step of the strategy should be written as the ideal way to approach it. It should include the desired outcome for the step. So don’t just have an outcome for the whole process. Have outcomes for each part of the process, so people have evidence that they’re progressing the way they need to, to succeed. Here’s an example of how you may approach putting together the strategy needed for someone to succeed.
CATEGORY
DESIRED OUTCOME
SUMMARY DOCUMENT OF PURPOSE OF THE OPERATION
STEP INVOLVED
DESIRED OUTCOME FOR THAT STEP (EVIDENCE BASED AND MEASURABLE)
STEP INVOLVED
DESIRED OUTCOME FOR THAT STEP (EVIDENCE BASED AND MEASURABLE)
STEP INVOLVED
DESIRED OUTCOME FOR THAT STEP (EVIDENCE BASED AND MEASURABLE)
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How to Think in Strategies 1. Always think in terms of best practice. If that means looking outside of your team or the business, then do so until you’re clear on what is the very best strategy to apply to achieve the desired outcome. 2. Sometimes you don’t even know what the best outcome possible could be. Then you will definitely need to go outside the business, do research, or figure it out until you get some results. These results become the ‘control’ results until they’re exceeded, and then the new results become the benchmark, and so on, until consistent results that are sustainable are achieved. 3. Whenever you are not clear on the strategy (the steps or which order to put the steps), then have people do the task, record the steps, and see which gets the best results, until a benchmark is achieved 4. When a strategy achieves best practice, reassess the benchmark to see if it’s too low (more on benchmarking in the section on this) 5. Always be asking; ‘How come?’ and ‘Tell me how you did that…’ so you can (1) get clear on the steps; (2) assess if someone is using the steps; (3) assess if the steps can be improved; (4) assess if the person understands why what they do matters; (5) confirm their understanding and mastery, and so an opportunity for acknowledgement
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THE COACHING INSTITUTE Suite 40, 37-39 Albert Road, Melbourne, VIC 3004, Australia. Phone: +61 3 9645 9945 Fax: +61 3 9645 7002 Email: wow@thecoachinginstitute.com.au Website: www.thecoachinginstitute.com.au SHARON PEARSON Disruptive Leadership Module 2 | Structure - Strategies Edition 1 | Version 5 | December 16 Published by The Coaching Institute Copyright 2016 Š The Coaching Institute All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, mechanical or electronic, including photocopying and recording, or by information storage and retrieval system without permission in writing from the publisher. In some instances, people or companies portrayed in this book are illustrative examples based on the author’s experiences, but they are not intended to represent a particular person or organisation.
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