This is the fourth and final episode of the series I'm doing on the book Traction. In Episode 1 we discussed setting the company's core values and communicating them to the entire team. We followed that with Episode 2, where we talked about defining the company's core focus and setting the company's 10-year goal. Since the 10-year goal is ideally a BHAG (Big, Hairy, Audacious Goal), we'd need to break it down into a more achievable 3-year goal, which is the topic for Episode 3. We close everything by further breaking down the 3-year goal to a 1-year plan and defining quarterly rocks, which is what we'll talk about in this episode.
Obviously, your one-year plan needs to be in harmony with your bigger goals. For example, one of your 3-year goals is to develop a total of 100 new products and in order for us to achieve that, we set to develop 50 new products as one of our 1-year goals. We know how hard it is to constantly develop new products, so developing 50 this year will give us a running start for the following years.
In order to make sure every person in the team is working towards the company's goals, you need to set quarterly "rocks". Your quarterly rocks determine what each employee's priorities are and govern where they spend their time and effort on. These are specific action items for each of your employees to make sure they all work towards the company's goals.
This episode also covers the following:
To end this series on Traction, it's important to point out the ultimate purpose of the steps lined out here and in the previous episodes. In many companies only C-level employees know what "the plan" is, leaving all the other employees unaware of where to actually focus on, apart from what's currently on their plate. Letting them know exactly where the company is heading and the role they have to play to get the company there makes them accountable, proactive, and empowered to do their part.
Resources mentioned:
Traction: Get a Grip on Your Business (Amazon afiliate link)
E138: Traction Part 1 – Company Core Values
E140: Traction Part 2 – Company Core Focus and 10 Year Goal
E143: Traction Part 3 – Marketing Strategy and 3-Year Plan
E147: Amazon PPC Strategy – Step by Step Guide on Saving Thousands of Dollars
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Thanks for listening! Leave a comment down below if you have any questions about this episode. Until the next one, happy selling!