I find a recurring theme as I work with business leaders is their lack of time to focus on what really matters such as strategic planning or staff development. Too much of their valuable day is spent on endless meetings, email communication and simply fighting fires. And so, what are some of the ways we work through this? I really start by asking some very simple questions – What are your priorities for the year and does your calendar reflect these priorities? Who are you high potential leaders and what is their development plan? How are you measuring success? What are the 3-5 top priorities to achieve success and what is the financial outcome?
What are your priorities for the year?
When I ask this question more often than not I get a laundry list of to dos that cannot possibly be achieved. And if I do get an answer to this question that is less than 10 big items, the executive’s calendar does not match the list. Most often there is an endless list of 30-minute meetings that have nothing to do with the strategic priorities of the executive. And the issue really isn’t too many meetings. The issue is typically the wrong kind of meetings with no clear purpose or tie back to what is important to the business.
Who are your high potential leader and what is their development plan?
Who are you developing now that can take some of your tasks and free up your time to work the strategic plan and move the business forward? If you have a staff of 10, who are the top 3 leaders you are developing to take your place and that can easily represent you under any circumstance? John Maxwell’s concept of the level 5 leader applies here. A clear plan that develops them over time and the coaching skills to get them there will start to free up your time for the more strategic elements on your schedule.
How are you measuring success?
What are the financial and process KPIs that you need to focus on and improve this year and over the strategic planning cycle? What is your scorecard. To quote Vince Lombardi – “If you are not keeping score it is just practice”. What are the targets and the goals for years 1, 2 and 3 and how will you track progress? And are your priorities in line with accomplishing your goals for the year? And as important, do you have the leadership team in place to accomplish these goals and are you developing your top tier leaders to create a multiplier effect?
And are your efforts resulting in financial impact?
This really is about 80/20. Said differently 80% of the financial outcome in your business will be decided by 20% of your activities. Even more importantly 50% of your financial outcomes will be decided by 1% of your activities. And so, do you have the right plans in place to focus on the critical few drivers in your business and is this resulting in financial progress in the areas of revenue, gross margin and operating margin? This really is the litmus test for whether you have the correct focus in your business and with your team.
Effective time management for a business executive is a function of delegating, developing and incentivizing. Make certain your calendar reflects clearly articulated goals for the year and you are seeing the results in your business financials. Put in place a leadership development plan that will create a force multiplier and keep your best talent in your business. And finally, develop the leader or leaders that will eventually succeed you in your business and watch as the results cascade across the organization.
P.S. If you are looking to make a transformation in your life or business, schedule a complimentary meeting with me and we can conduct a 30 minute discovery session to determine our fit as partners in your journey.
