Lay outlines for goals
Before you can empower employees to reach a target, you need to meticulously define each goal.
Shah’s goal for MSI never really changes. He always wants to outdo — or at least contend with — the biggest competitors in any given realm. And by defining that realm, he clarifies the overarching aim.
“We like to have the goals be something we can measure in a small geographic area or small product line,” Shah says. “Twenty years ago, we said our region was California and our business was monuments. When we become a little bigger, we find out that now, not California, but we want to be national in monuments. Then you say national in granite. Then you can say national in slate.”
“So our goals, our definable measure, kept expanding,” he says. “But in each case, we had a very clear goal that we should be the No. 1, 2 or 3 player within that goal, within that region or territory, or that product line.”
Because competitors don’t just hand over their information — and conducting your own research can be unreliable — Shah also uses easily accessible national data, like import statistics, to broadly set his goals. He relies on industry standards, such as average revenue generated per employee and average sales per square foot of material, to estimate competitors’ financials.
By giving employees the role of gathering this data, you automatically involve them in the goal-setting process. Using the data they gather, helps them set the end goal by defining specifics, like the timeline.
“The definable goal should be achievable within six months to three years,” Shah says. “The company doesn’t change in less than six months. If you say, ‘Next month I want to double your sales,’ it’s just not going to happen. It’s better to set goals which are measurable but achievable.”
In addition to the timeline, Shah defines goals in a range. For example, import goals are set between the third-place importer’s numbers and at least half of the top competitor’s imports.
“It’s always a range. We don’t set up fixed criteria,” he says. “We say we should, in the first three months, import five to 10 truckloads. Then we bring up what is the best another importer is doing.”
But breaking those broad goals down into steps — that’s up to the employees.
