In every sector or industry there are those organisations that thrive and prosper and those that continually deliver great results.
When we see this happening it is easy, especially if we are in one of the less successful organisations, to say that they are lucky or have some unique advantage that others don’t have.
Such a reaction is not that surprising. However, in my experience organisations and individuals within them who are successful do some key things that those who are less successful don’t.
So what are the keys to great results?
Clarity of Purpose
Unless you have clarity about what you are aiming to achieve you just drift. Being clear about your purpose speeds up decision-making and helps you to make strategic choices.
A Great Team
Forget all of the myths that one person creates all of the success in an organisation. Yes there may be someone who is inspirational like Richard Branson, Alan Sugar or Duncan Bannatyne, but the reality is that they have teams of great people making things happen. The truth is there no such thing as the lone ranger.
All Heading In The Same Direction
Of course we all have our personal aspirations. On the other hand if personal agendas rule then you never get people moving in the same direction.
A Have A Go Attitude
Anyone can talk a good game. The best do more than talk they take decisions, get into action and keep adjusting until they get the result they want. In other words they persevere despite there being setbacks and obstacles.
Strong Customer or Service User Focus
All organisations whether small one’s like Goals and Achievements or major global organisations exist to address or meet a particular customer need. While there will be other stakeholders in big organisations, the reality is that it customers or service users who generate the revenues and help create or destroy the reputation of the organisation.
Focus on Both Short and Long Term
It is easy to get locked into the here and now, after all people expect instant results. On the other hand you can balance delivering the short term targets with laying the foundations for the future, you really set up yourself and the organisation for long term success.
Invest In People As Well As Assets
For the vast majority of organisations, the payroll is the single biggest day to day expense. You obviously want to get the best from the investment you make and how you do this is to invest in helping them to perform at their peak. If you had a machine that was operating below potential you would not ignore it. So why would you do this when it comes to your biggest area of expenditure.
Create The Right Environment
You might without even being aware of it be creating an environment that actually prevents great results. Perhaps you are failing to build trust, discouraging people from working together in a spirit of collaboration or not supporting people to take a chance.
Act Learn Adjust
We rarely in anything get it perfect first time around. Chances are we will do some things that work and some which don’t work. Having a bias to act, learn from our actions and then adjust moves us forward towards success.
Keep Going
There is a theory that people often give up when they are on the verge of success. Sometimes it is just a case of keeping going that makes the difference. If you read about highly successful people you will learn one common thing and that is that it often took a long period of time before they achieved the big breakthrough
The Bottom Line: Leadership does not come with a warranty or guarantee but often some simple changes in mindset and approach can yield big results and successes.