How do we handle dealing with people who fail to meet our expectations? (See previous blog on Clear Expectations) Obviously there would be a difference in how we treat failures or unmet expectations between an employee, a peer or a boss; and also between a customer and a supplier. But in all instances the principles are the same. For now let us examine clear consequences for employees who fail to meet clear expectations.

First we have to ask, “how much of the failure to meet expectations is really on us?” Amazingly I have found that a large number of employee failures are a result of my own problems with unclear expectations, poor communication or simply asking someone to do something they were either not capable of doing or did not know how to do. Before we can institute clear consequences for employee failure, we need to deal with our own failures or else we are making someone else, someone under our authority, pay for our own failures.

For the most part people want to succeed; they want to meet expectations. Employee motivations move toward pleasing people, not disappointing them. Given that, and given that I can often share in the blame, what are the consequences of failure? The first should never be to place blame but to agree on the extent of and cause of the failure in the first place.

A perfect recent example involves a sales employee whose behavior became increasingly disruptive and whose results fell well behind goal. The initial consequences were a reprimand and probation for the employee, and clearly communicating expectations for the future. He was given the opportunity to provide reasons for his behavior so we might remove them. Some of his were legitimate and some were excuses. We dealt with the legitimate ones.

The initial consequences were designed to help him avoid the ultimate corporate consequence for an employee, termination and to point out the seriousness of the problem. I was amazed when he told me no one had ever mentioned these things as a problem in the past yet everyone I talked with who had led him in the past was well aware of the issues.

Sadly, the disruptive behavior continued and the ultimate consequence of the failure to meet expectations was his termination. The key to the process was first to set consequences that could bring a positive resolution, to provide “clear expectations” by drawing a line in the sand, while removing the potential leaders problems that he could point to as reasons for his negative behavior. If the newly communicated expectations were met, then only good things would come from that. If they were not, then as a leader I could in good conscience implement clear consequences. As hard as it is to terminate an employee for any reason; it is much harder when they can legitimately claim, “this isn’t fair”. At the end of the day, the test of whether we have set clear expectations and followed through with clear consequences if they are not met is fairness. It may not bring you popularity but it will bring you in line with how GOD handles it when we fail to live up to HIS clear expectations.

Have you ever considered the amount of stress you add to your employees lives because of unclear expectations? If you have led for any amount of time, the answer likely, “A lot”.

Job descriptions and performance reviews are supposed to be about setting and evaluating clear expectations, yet all to often they only add to the confusion. Sales roles are the easiest and the hardest to clearly define because it is all about hitting the number right? Well to GOD, hitting the number is not as important as “how” the number is hit. He is more concerned about attitude, behavior and our thinking than he is the end result. Why? Because the right thinking, the right attitude and the right behaviors will lead to the best results, in the long-run.

So when we set expectations for employees, let’s make sure to help them understand more than just the goal or result, but to also understand the thought process, attitudes and behaviors that will bring those results about. When you combine expectation of behavior with expectations of results, you are left with the need to fill the gap, since for the most part people need to be coached to produce exceptional results…through exceptional behaviors.

What are they?

• Planning. Know what you are trying to accomplish
• Perseverance. Never, ever, ever…give up said Winston Churchill
• Priorities. From a sale perspective go after the important ones not the easy ones
• Preparation. Prepare yourself (Training, education and skills development). Prepare your customer. Sometimes it take re-educating the customer about who we are and what we offer. Prepare your time. Redeem the time. Every day is full of potential and yet we see too much of it wasted in unproductive and often destructive behaviors.
• Thankfulness. (What, you thought they would all start with P?). Without an attitude of thankfulness, everything we do or cause to be done is like blowing sand or chaff. Praising the people, not for hitting goal, but for hitting goal the right way. Praising GOD for all good things. Praising our peers for being fully engaged in helping us succeed. Praising our boss for helping us become better, for providing the resources we need to succeed and providing a GOD-clear vision of where we are going.

I had to do that just recently, fire someone and at the same time let him or her know that Jesus loved them. What made this so hard was the termination was not the result of a “firing” offense. It was a person in the wrong position, to committed to the goals of her team let alone the company, who was a good person. It was a MisFIT, (we’ll delve into that in the future) for both her and the company and she had become a blocker, not a builder.

While everyone who worked with her knew the problem, there was still a sense of tension after it was announced because it causes others to ask about their own position, a quick glance over the shoulder to see if this is going to become a pattern. Since there is never a perfect FIT, most people can see their own MisFIT in the job they are asked to do; and most do the job well anyway. There is no prefect match of person with position.

But, I digress. The real issue is the one that deals with the terminated employee and her perception of a kingdom leader (me) and a Kingdom Company, the organization I work for. If I thought she could be developed, this would never have happened. Sadly, she had the capability to be developed, but not the attitude that she needed it. The gap in her misalignment with our vision and strategy was too wide to ignore. Only after it came to the point of termination did she, in desperation to save her job, acknowledge the gap. She failed to see or acknowledge the impact her misalignment was having on the entire team.

I share all that to let you know that we tried. We tried to counsel, cajole and train; all to no avail. The gap was too wide. The problems were too large and the time too short. This was a pretty critical role and critical time for that role to perform. Thus, she was terminated and it was justified.

Now, here’s the rub. Did I do what Jesus would have wanted me to do, or did I take the easy way out? Should I have struggled through in the name of Jesus or let her go? It is hard to fire someone in the name of Jesus, right? He forgave and forgave and told us to forgive again, yet after only a couple of attempts the axe fell on this employee.

I have come to realize that for all the times I have not acted, thinking I was applying the grace principle, I was actually playing God, getting in His way as he dealt with the heart of the employee I was protecting. I am not GOD. I may be His ambassador, but when I become the arbiter of His will, then I will get in His way. It was after much prayer and anguish that I realized this had become a pattern in this employee’s life, a pattern of pride, of knowing better than others and an incongruence between where she was and where she thought she was.

If it was this pattern and incongruence that kept her from seeing her need for Him, for His grace and for the life He could live through her, then the only way for her to face is was to face it. It was in the spirit of and in the trust in Jesus, that I made the decision. While she may not see it, she did know that it was done in love and with a heart for her own growth. While I doubt she left the office feeling that way, I have prayed and will pray that GOD will use this as a “drawing” to His heart. After all isn’t that what we are called to do?

Let me know how you handle this kind of situation, how you handle firing an employee who fails to perform consistently or is a MisFIT within your team?

(Note: MisFIT occurs when the strengths, temperament, experience, abilities and attitudes of an employee do not align with the job we have asked them to perform. Training and development, counseling, coaching or mentoring can often close the gap, but ultimately we must decide if there is a FITness or if there remains a MIsFIT.)

I’ve often placed myself and those who work with and for me in the awkward tension of having to achieve a goal I set -or one they set to please me- without knowing if it was a “GOD goal” or a “Good goal”.

So what’s the difference? If it is a good goal isn’t it a GOD goal? Most of the time I have discovered that it is not. Maybe it is just me, and my desire to create something better, bigger or more unique at work. I think this is much bigger than me.

Churches set good goals and too often wander into areas where GOD is relegated to a back seat to good goals. Christian business owners and leaders often do the same.

Remember the “Prayer of Jabez” frenzy? “LORD, enlarge my borders; make my tents bigger; let me do great things for you.” If Jesus had though the prayer of an obscure Old Testament guy was that special then why, when asked, “LORD, teach us how to pray”, didn’t he say, “Good question boys, let’s go back to scroll 37 and read about a man who really knew how to pray”.

“Our Father, who is in heaven…”

Jesus starts the prayer acknowledging the GOD of heaven and earth. When we set goals we may start with Him and think we need something bigger and better, thus our goals, even good ones, may not be GOD ones. Think about it. If you set a goal and find it is not achievable, why is it so hard to change it? Why is it so hard to accept the fact that we may have gotten ahead of GOD in the process? There are probably hundreds of reasons but the two I have suffered from are that I would be seen as having failed (pride) by those who I am accountable to. And, and this is a big and, I may have set a stretching goal, knowing GOD wants me and those I lead to stretch and grow, but it wasn’t really a GOD goal.

Peter thought protecting Jesus in the garden was a good goal; and it was. The GOD goal was the cross. Learning to hear His goals for our companies and our people versus our goals will make all the difference when we set the goal, since that is often where we go astray.

Pride or getting ahead of GOD; these have been my most common problems with good goals and GOD goals. Sound familiar? I’d love to get some feedback on GOD goals versus good goals you have experienced. Is it just me, or is this a recurring problem within Kingdom Companies?

I have noticed that when good things happen, we give God the credit. When bad things happen we tend to find someone to blame; often ourselves and everyone involved. The more complex the “bad thing”; the more blame to go around. Blame is akin to condemnation, which has become the best tool of the enemy and in today’s business climate, the enemy is having a field day.

As a company owned by Christians succeeds, God often gets a few dollars, (maybe even 10%); we give him praise and glory when someone notices as a way of witnessing for Him and we generally bask in the blessings. After all, we have been promised that we would prosper. The economy is good and we have been wise decision makers along the way.

But let the economy tank and business begin to fail, possibly even go out of business, and far too often Christians attack one another, blame one another and in general find someone to blame. If God gets the credit, shouldn’t He get the blame? Let’s change the wording a little from credit and blame to “cause”. If God causes the good things to happen, or allows them, then He causes or allows the bad things, right? He is in complete control of everything and we can do nothing of any worth unless it is through Christ. Nothing!

I can rest in the reality that God either causes or allows everything, but is never surprised by anything. What then is my response? Abide in the midst of the tough times. Do not allow the enemy a foothold for finding fault in others; blaming mere men and women for divine intervention. Give Him praise and glory regardless of the result. Trust that He will never leave me or forsake me. Try to build up those around me who are as deeply impacted by a business failure; some having lost their livelihood and some blaming themselves for having played a part in the demise.

Praise God…things are tough!

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds,” James 1:2

Same old… Same old! Sometimes it appears that is what all of us are waiting for; things to return to normal, back to where things were predictable and to a large extent certain. God must detest that kind of certainty given the number of times His people lost focus during times of prosperity and certainty. This is God’s wake up call to us and it is a wakeup call to action, not fear and business as usual. If we do the same things the same way we will likely get the same poor results. This Great Disruption as it can be termed is nothing more than God getting my attention. I am listening. Now I must act.

Lest you think I am comfortable with the current state of politics, let me set the record straight; I vehemently disagree with most of everything congress and the president is doing. However, ours is not a political battle but a spiritual one and I can see no biblical precedence for solving spiritual battles through political means. Please don’t forward me any more emails “against” the current occupant of the White House. I am sick and tired of our negative, often dishonest and anti-anything approach to life. Let’s begin to uplift one another, to encourage one another and to refocus our own spiritual energies to where God would have us focus.

For me, that focus must be on business; the marketplace; the circle of influence He has given me and on the gifts, skills and experiences I woke up with on this brand new day. As a Kingdom Company member, is that where God is focusing you?

In times of great disruption, both economically and spiritually, there are also great opportunities if we will take the time to find them and to act on our only certainty; that if God is for us, who can be against us. And God is for us. Are we being tested? Yes! Are we facing trials of many kinds? Yes again! Are we defeated? Never! But how do we start looking for and taking advantage of positive opportunities when we are dealing with so much negative fall-out from lack of revenue, credit tightening and greater costs to stay in business? Consider three strategies for success and survival during times like this:

1. Be about His business first. What does it mean to “seek first the kingdom”? It means seeing every relationship opportunity as a divine appointment. Divine. Arranged by God. There are no coincidences in the kingdom of God. And every appointment is not necessarily arranged that you might “lead them to salvation” but that you would be a player in a much larger process. Try this. Act as if everyone you meet already knows God and act as if your walk with God is as natural and normal as anything else you do today. Let your life be your witness and if necessary speak. I believe it was St. Augustine who said that. Look for God in every contact. Slow down. Seek Him in the day to day interactions and watch what happens.
2. Preserve the core of your business. Most of us have spread ourselves too thin; financially and strategically. Re-examine your profit centers, clients, customers and suppliers. Who and what should be pared back. Focus, focus and focus some more on the products, services and activities that you know are your core. This may also be a time to cut back on personnel, so please don’t presume upon God that he will allow us to continue to be the enablers of poor performers and employees with less commitment to excellence that is needed during these tough times. Sound harsh? It is, only because we have allowed waste, excess and a lot of “just enough” and if this is God’s company, what right do I have to waste what He has given me to steward. Often, when we cut back, the upside potential becomes that much greater and more rapidly achieved.
3. Use the mind of Christ, the one you were given at conversion, to see tomorrow. This is the biggest hurdle we will have to overcome to avoid SO SO thinking. Christ was a man on the move and His Holy Spirit is not languishing in some cathedral in Rome. No, he is alive and on the move and willing to share what He sees with those committed to His work. It is Jesus who will add “all these things”; things like customers, clients, new product and service ideas, and a certainty that we are on the right track because we are on His track. He knows what we need. He can supply it.

I have been doing it on my own, with a form of Godliness but without the power thereof. Now I want the power of Christ to rule and reign through my role as a CEO and business owner. What glorious and exciting times, that the creator of the universe will allow us to be His representatives here and now. Let’s get on with it.

Alan