DEFINING SUPERIOR PERFORMANCE

"Having" vs. "Doing"
Too many hiring managers create job descriptions that are really laundry lists of candidate "requirements." When these lists drive the interview process, hiring results suffer. The selection process becomes focused on what candidates must "have" to get the job, instead of what candidates must "do" once they’re on the job. It’s difficult to hire superior performers in these scenarios because there’s no definition of what superior performance is.

The Critical First Step to Hiring the Best
Why is defining superior performance so important? You can spend your candidate interview time discussing past accomplishments that are related to the performance you’re seeking. The entire interviewing process becomes a much saner, more enjoyable, and much more productive experience on both sides of the table. And you’ll find it’s much easier to recognize superior candidates when you’ve painted a clear picture of "superior performance."

Getting Started with Major Objectives
So how do you get started? Begin by revising standard job descriptions, using language that defines superior performance. Here’s how:

1. Make a list of the top 5-8 things a person must do to be successful in the job. These are performance objectives. Focus only on Major Objectives and the interim steps necessary to achieve these objectives. These could include problems to solve, changes to make, team/management objectives, and technical objectives.
2. Take a look at your current job description in light of the list you’ve created, and convert each "having" requirement into an action-oriented "doing" task.
3. Put these deliverables into priority order. Tasks are much easier to prioritize than arbitrary lists of skills and experience.

Add Supporting Objectives
Once you set up the Major Objectives for each job, you'll also want to touch on some Supporting Objectives (such as the key steps needed to meet major objectives). You could include some of the following:
Management or organizational issues

• Changes and improvements you'd like to see implemented
• Problems that might arise (or problems that already exist)
• Technical issues
• Team and people issues
• Projects and deliverables

Get S.M.A.R.T.

Once your job description is defined in terms of the tasks you want the employee to do, you’ll need to take each task and turn it into a S.M.A.R.T. objective.

S.M.A.R.T. objectives are:
Specific
Measurable
Action-oriented
Results-focused
TTime-based

There are three approaches to developing and using SMART objectives. You can use these approaches separately or--even better--all together to prepare a complete performance profile for each position to be filled.

• The Macro Approach works best for jobs with lots of projects. This is also known as "The Big Picture" approach, one that has as its subtext the question "What will the incumbent need to do to be successful?" Write measurable objectives for each major job factor, and be sure that supporting objectives are covered.

• The Micro Approach works well for technical positions, where there’s often a gap between the "having" and the "doing." Convert each job requirement or skill listed on a traditional job description into a SMART objective by asking what the candidate has done with that particular job requirement or skill.

• The Benchmarking Approach works for positions that depend more on process/transaction than on task/project. Examine your best performers in the position you’re trying to fill. Determine what these high-performance employees do that makes them effective, and then make these actions the criteria for your SMART objectives. By drawing only on those who already do the job exceptionally well, you avoid defining performance based on the habits of under-performers who hold the same job title.

Finding the language to articulate your SMART objectives takes some effort and practice--but it pays off in better hiring decisions. You should express performance goals with these elements in mind:

• An action verb.

Examples: Increase, change, improve

• A specific, measurable goal.

This is where you address desired results and a timeframe.

Example: 10% improvement in 90 days

Sometimes you won't have all the information necessary to complete each performance objective, but it’s worth the effort to get as close as you can. Complete SMART objectives are the most effective because they make expectations clear to everyone involved.