Need To Fix the Genesis of Performance Challenges

Last month, the Government presented the budget estimates of the current financial year. Notably, it is easy to determine the financial needs and wants. However, the headache is how the budget will be financed. Obviously, that will lead to raiding of our wallets as we spend our incomes. Yet, they will have been subjected to taxation from source, especially for those maintained in one form of payroll or the other.

Alongside, many organizations tie their budgetary considerations to the same financial year, just as that of the government. The small and medium enterprises (SMES) too, have their annual budgetary provisions with regard to expenditure and income. However, it is common to find organizations that are constantly unable to meet their budgetary needs. They are said to be experiencing budgetary constraints, which are also referred to as budgetary pains. That leaves them into situations whereby they are unable to reach their full performance potential. Why?

Before attempting to interrogate this matter, it is important to realize that no matter the extent to which we embrace or implement technology in organizations, the results will still depend on the input and competences of the human resource. In fact, it is possible to acquire and maintain the state of the art technology, but still underachieve on performance.

Consider computerized accounting operations for example, which are managed by an accountant, who is endowed with challenged attitudes and technical skills. Another example is computer aided operations such as digital printing.  The final result is largely determined by the human effort. The same will substantially depend on the prevailing technical expertise as well soft skills. Of great concern however, is that it’s well documented that soft skills are attributable to 85% of performance, whereas only 15 % of the efforts are associated with technical abilities.

More still, the human capital is in terms of strategy, expected to efficiently and effectively manipulate all the other organizational resources. Investments on these other resources therefore, need to be accompanied by the continued empowerment of the human capital. The ideal is achieving full performance potential, thus balancing the budget of all the needs and wants, once the teams are continually empowered.  But, is that always the case?

In the recent past, we have all been made aware of scenarios whereby, employers are continually complaining of ‘half baked’ graduates being released into the economy. This leaves potential employers, particularly the SME sector grappling with a major concern. How are they likely to continually meet their growth and innovation needs and wants?

These concerns were recently expressed when taking delegates through one of our courses titled “Purposefully Working SMART.” The delegates were so anxious to get the answers, and could hardly await the step by step revelations of what needs to be done to unleash people’s performance potential.

Nonetheless, it becomes easy to solve entrenched challenges only when we grasp their genesis.  Therefore, clear understanding of performance challenges takes us far back into the growth process that encompasses early childhood. That is when constraints of unleashing full performance potentials become manifested. Eventually, this leads to career choices that form the genesis of the said performance challenges, especially in a highly competitive business world.  There are at least 5 main stages concerned with career alignment or misalignment.

As children grow up, they continue discovering the world around them. Some are reserved, whereas others are hyper.  The latter demonstrate clear signs of creativity and innovation. Unfortunately, parents and teachers fail to notice these attributes and associate them with mischief and other undesirables. The children are then taught how to or forced to conform to known behaviors. It’s easy to agree with Professor Ken Robinson, a British educationist, who associates parents and teachers’ reactions, to killing of creativity and imagination in children.

The next stage falls in the second year in secondary school. Here, students are expected to drop some areas of study based on their personalized interests. Alternatively, they acquire new subjects again considering their personalized orientations.  Any mistakes made at this stage end up consolidating those that may have been made in the initial one.

Thirdly, when students complete secondary education, they venture into another crucial phase of career alignment or misalignment. There is no distinction between those who acquire superior or whatever other grades. A huge majority is either attracted to traditionally known lucrative careers or envisaged financial rewards, in total disregard of their personalized abilities. In other words, they pursue university education with the financial re-wards as the main attraction.

The fourth stage in career alignment and misalignment happens during the second year at university. This is especially common for commerce students, who have numerous combinations of areas of study to choose from. Some do it right, especially if guided by their personalized abilities. Those that continue being guided by external influences will rarely make the right decisions.

Continued research has indicated obvious need of empowering students, teachers and parents with this unique knowledge on careers, without exempting any party. All the three are in any case crucial stakeholders in career alignment.  This is so because, when the potential national human capital are endowed with challenged choices, as they build their careers, perpetuation of the now scaring 51% of the unemployed and unemployable graduates, will have no doubt been completed.

The fifth stage of career misalignment, thus completely hindering the process of unleashing the human performance potential, happens after completing undergraduate studies. The majority of graduates take up any jobs that come their way. All that matters is being in gainful employment, the personal alignment, orientations and passion being relegated to the sidelines.

A question arises at this stage. Can people who take up any jobs that come their way end up unleashing their full performance potential? Chances are high that they can’t. They largely join the rat race, whereby work becomes an end to a means of meeting the basics of life. Passion for work and life becomes progressively pitiful. Keep in mind that 90% of the population anywhere does or experiences like everybody else. What therefore needs to be done to holistically correct this terrible scenario?

Luckily, it doesn’t matter the severity of the situation. This column has continually challenged me to consistently think critically as well as research on solutions for our trending challenges. Consequently, combinations of our training solution themed “Purposefully Working SMART,” as well as the book titled   “Career Dynamics in the 21st Century,” provide great insights on how people can unleash their full performance potential, at both personal and organizational perspectives.

Thankfully, the book is already finding comfortable space in the libraries of organizations, Secondary Schools, Colleges and Universities as well. Never mind that it’s not an authorized school text as yet. Hopefully though, the two solutions explained will continually contribute to easing the tribulations associated with balancing of the income or revenue side of the various budgets.

Meanwhile,

• At what stage of the performance cycle is your business organization operating?
• If you wanted to holistically and strategically transform the fortunes of your organization, where would you start?
• Did you ever know that we can help your organization to completely transform direction for the better in only 2 – 3 days?
• Did you also know that we extend PERSONALIZED and MONEY BACK GUARANTEES on the respective solutions?
• How about starting with a non committal, one on one discussion on how the transformation can be achieved?

We are only a phone call or email away

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