Teamwork, in its purest form, is simply a group of people working together towards achieving a common goal. Like most things that sound simple, there’s a lot to unpack. This is particularly true when the team isn’t co-located. How do you help everyone understand and stay focused on the goal? It helps if you realize that there are two types of goals.
When we say “goals”, we usually talk about the big picture. “We’re going to double revenue in the next year,” is a goal. You can tweak it, define it, and make it SMART, but ultimately that’s the goal. These are referred to as RESULTS GOALS.
When everyone on the team is in the same place at the same time, a good leader will keep people engaged with that goal. It will be discussed often, used in coaching conversations, and information shared with everyone so the whole team is aware of how they’re doing in their quest for that result. Everyone knows what they should be doing.
When we work separately, though, it is a little easier to lose focus. Not everyone may receive the same information in the same way at the same time. Conversations may be less frequent or consistent. Remote and hybrid work allows for people to do their own work at their own pace and in their own style. But is that way of working consistent with hitting the team’s objectives?
The more frequently, clearly and consistently we ensure alignment, the better our odds of success. But we don’t want to micromanage people or take away their initiative and innovative ways of getting the results we seek. Here is where the second type of goals come in. We call those PROCESS GOALS.
Simply put, a Results Goal is “what needs to happen”. A Process goal is more of a look at “how it gets done". The success of a results goal is determined at the end of the term or project. Did we double sales or not?
There can be a long time (if it’s an annual goal, that’s 364 days where things can be done very right or very wrong) between setting the goal and declaring victory. By identifying the process goals along the way, you can help keep everyone focused on the big picture without getting overwhelmed or lost in the details.
On remote or hybrid teams, agreeing on process goals allows the leader and team to set milestones, check-ins, and a communication cadence that works for everyone. The leader can get information they need on an ongoing basis to see if things are moving as intended or not. They don’t need to wonder what’s going on, or feel like they are micromanaging, because the check-ins and measurements were agreed to early on. Knowing you have to give your boss a bi-weekly report is different than having her pop in your IMs unscheduled, wondering how things are going.
Process goals allow teams to monitor progress, check assumptions and identify problems early enough to fix them.
What are your teams’ goals? Have you settled not just on WHAT needs to happen, but how it will work? This will give employees the chance to use their drive and good judgement while receiving the coaching, feedback and assistance they need. Leaders have a clear picture of what’s going on even when the work isn’t happening under their noses. They can demonstrate trust, motivation and support to all team members, even those who aren’t in the same space.
