Performance Targets
Performance Targets answer the following key questions:
- What must be accomplished?
- Why must it be accomplished?
- How do we accomplish it?
To define our Performance Targets it is imperative to analyze them from two perspectives: the business perspective and the employee perspective. The purpose for considering each perspective independently is to ensure: 1) the business truly knows what it needs; and 2) the candidate is both capable and highly motivated to deliver it.
Aligning Perspectives
From the business perspective: Performance Targets identify the business Problem; the business Results needed; and the Barriers which must be overcome to achieve those results. Uncovering this information establishes the business case for hiring.
From the employee perspective: Performance Targets identify the Challenges, Goals, and Activities that characterize the role. Uncovering this information reveals the substance of the role and why it’s one worth having.
Problems/Challenges
Every business Problem poses Challenges to the employee in the role. These Challenges must inspire the employee to perform at a high level. Business Problems and role Challenges are a high-level representation of Barriers and Activities.
Results/Goals
The business Results needed are always the polar opposite of the business Problems hiring is intended to solve. So the business Results needed and the employee’s performance Goals are always identical. Therefore, individual competency and career aspirations must be consistent with the Goals of the role to be considered a candidate.
Barriers/Activities
To achieve the business Results needed the employee must remove Barriers by performing specific countermeasures called Activities. These Activities represent the substance of the employee’s day-to-day work. So they must be consistent with work the employee has done successfully in the past and is motivated to continue doing.
Success Benchmarks
Success Benchmarks mark the goal line. They are the measurable and quantifiable state of the business Results needed and employee Goals. They must be SMART (i.e., specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound) and agreed on by both the organization and the employee to be valid. The best Success Benchmarks accelerate business performance while simultaneously representing career growth for the employee.
Defining Targets
We define our Performance Targets by working in collaboration with the hiring manager to answer four primary questions from both the business and employee perspective:
From the business perspective:
- What business Problem is hiring intended to solve?
- What business Results are needed to justify the cost of hiring?
- What Barriers impede achieving the business Results needed?
- What Success Benchmarks will validate achievement of the business Results needed?
The answers to these questions enable us to evaluate candidates based on the business results they are expected to deliver; not the skills and experience they have gained over the years.
From the employee perspective:
- What Challenges does the role offer?
- What Goals must be set to overcome these Challenges?
- What Activities must be taken to achieve these Goals?
- What Success Benchmarks will validate achievement of these Goals?
The answers to these questions enable us to present a compelling opportunity as well as establish the performance objectives that guide talent calibration and gauge new hire performance. Moreover, these answers provide the foundation for the Job Value Proposition.
