Page 177 - Build a Culture of Employee Engagement with the Principles

148 Carrots and Sticks Don’t Work

6-10: Employees are somewhat engaged and connected to their
goals. Your modest skills in collaboratively setting clear
expectations and holding employees accountable will result
in acceptable but not superior levels of performance. By fol-
lowing the suggestions in this chapter you will significantly
move the needle on your employees’ success in meeting
their goals as well as their level of engagement.
11-15: Your supervisory style sets your employees up for success
in meeting their goals and leads them to a sense of accom-
plishment and pride. Continue to engage employees and
work toward them taking full responsibility for setting their
own goals. Encourage team members to hold one another
accountable for reaching their goals. Consider serving as a
mentor to supervisors in your organization who may have
difficulty in this area.

Benefits of Setting Clear
Expectations and Goals

The most obvious and important benefit of setting clear goals
and expectations is that you are more likely to get the outcome
you desire. If my wife tells me, “Bring something home for din-
ner” and I show up with a pizza and she’s disappointed, she
doesn’t have much room to complain. The more specific one is
in making a request, the more likely that request is to be met.
Successful accomplishment of the goal leads to a feeling of
achievement and an increased sense of pride and satisfaction. In
addition, “getting it right” leads to quality and efficiency. When
goals and objectives are clear, we don’t have to worry about
timely and expensive rework or producing work that is not quite