By: Thomas Schlick
Company Rocks? Department Rocks? Individual Rocks? My guess is they don’t make you feel like “you rock”!
If you are using the E.O.S. (Entrepreneurial Operating System) of Traction, these “Rocks” are the priorities you and your company need to tackle and accomplish in the next 90 days. There are typically 3 to 7 of them every 90 days. But where do these Rocks come from? And how do you really know that these are the most important items that you and your company need to face head-on?
There is no doubt that a simple straight-forward process like E.O.S./Traction has great appeal to entrepreneurial CEOs of many small to mid-size organizations. I mean – who doesn’t like things simple? This question, however, is a bit deceptive. From my experience, what CEOs really want is “simplicity” vs. just “simple”. And the Six Key Components of Traction – Vision, People, Data, Issues, Process, and Traction – don’t drive the simplicity that is really needed in most companies.
My experience shows that simplicity comes from clarity and organizational alignment around a company’s values (culture) and top objectives and strategies. These three critical areas are just not “front & center” in the E.O.S. model. Further, I believe that the best “issues” and “processes” for you to address and improve are derived from the S.M.A.R.T.E.R actions that are created from your company’s key objectives and strategies. (S.M.A.R.T.E.R means Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-Bound, Evaluate, Readjust.)
At CO2 Partners, we are experts in helping companies develop great strategic plans. Our Strategy-to-Action planning process is a powerful method that delivers concrete results. And while we may not bring you a bunch of Rocks, the S.M.A.R.T.E.R actions that we help you define and execute are the right ones to enable you to achieve your goals and objectives. Your company will enjoy cross-functional team alignment because everyone understands and lives the values, vision, and mission of the company. And instead of trying to tackle almost 30 Rocks a year, we help you focus your precious resources on the “critical few” vs. the “trivial many”.
And that is how “simplicity” is best defined!
By: Thomas Schlick
