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6 Steps to Setting Clear Expectations

Kevin Eikenberry 5 Comments

chandelier-1187743The most important thing you can do as a leader is to establish expectations for your employees. After all, if you don’t show your employees what success looks like, they may never figure out what it takes to succeed within your organization and team.

Follow these six steps to set crystal-clear expectations for your staff:

  1. Make them clear for yourself. It is impossible to build mutually clear expectations with others if you haven’t defined your expectations. If you can’t clearly articulate them verbally or on paper, you aren’t ready to share them with employees. “I’ll know it when I see it” isn’t a clear expectation.
  2. Decide where you need to set expectations. Think about where the gaps exist on your team. Is the work output less than ideal? Do you communicate effectively? What are the expectations imposed by the organizational culture? Figure out where you are falling short, and define exactly what needs to change.
  3. Understand why. Providing others with the context and justification for expectations will increase employees’ accountability for meeting those expectations. Help people understand the bigger picture and you will gain their support.
  4. Meet with employees to discuss the new standards. Sit down with employees, either individually or as a group given the circumstances, to discuss your expectations. Remember, completing the first three steps is critical before you meet with employees. If you fail to follow the process, you likely won’t be able to express your expectations clearly and thoroughly. To encourage a productive two-way conversation, provide employees with an agenda and list of goals for the meeting, and ask them to come prepared to offer their own feedback.
  5. Write your expectations down. We aren’t talking a legal document here. However, when you write down your goals and expectations, you gain more clarity and document your plan of action. That way there will be no confusion later about the terms to which you and the employees agreed.
  6. Gain agreement and commitment. Once you have documented your expectations, both you and employees should read them, ensure that you are on the same page and commit to the new expectations. We recommend that you and employees sign off on the document should you need to revisit the issue later.

The lack of clearly understood expectations is the source of much strife in relationships, the cause of most conflicts, and the beginning of poor organizational performance. As leaders, we must strive to build clear expectations throughout our organizations, and it must start with us.

Want more? Watch this video “Getting Clear Expectations” with Kevin Eikenberry!

Photo Credit: http://www.freeimages.com/photo/chandelier-1187743

Filed Under: Management, Productivity Tagged With: communicating with employees, communication, delegation

About Kevin Eikenberry

Kevin is a bestselling author, speaker, trainer, consultant and the Chief Potential Officer of the Kevin Eikenberry Group. Inc.com named him one of the top 100 Leadership and Management Thinkers in the World, and Top Sales World calls him one of the Top 50 Influencers on Sales and Marketing. Want to work on your leadership skills? Enroll in our 13 Days to Remarkable Leadership Video series with Kevin’s compliments!

Trackbacks

  1. The Tips To Help You Get A Productive Workforce - Alain Guillot says:
    June 5, 2019 at 7:07 am

    […] goals can enable your team to know exactly what they are working towards. Keeping this in mind with clear communication and also regular chats and team updates can also help you to identify issues and combat them much […]

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  2. ferrann.com says:
    July 30, 2019 at 3:15 am

    ferrann.com

    6 Steps to Setting Clear Expectations

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  3. Ghosting? New Term Old Behavior! | MoonlightGig.com says:
    August 22, 2019 at 9:13 pm

    […] humans easily over complicate things due to poor communication.  Here’s a very well written post from Bud to Boss about setting and managing expectations.  It’s written for the workplace […]

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  4. enarm resultados 2018 says:
    October 24, 2019 at 6:37 am

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    6 Steps to Setting Clear Expectations

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  5. Assemble a Remote Team | Suncoast Business Consultants - Business Brokers says:
    February 24, 2020 at 6:57 pm

    […] Maintaining clear expectations for your workers will help ensure their success in your business. From the moment you hire them, your employees should understand exactly what you expect in terms of behavior, performance, and teamwork. Write down these expectations and keep them straightforward. Expecting your employees to “do a good job” is not clear enough. Again, it’s important to let your employees in on the big picture so they understand the justifications behind your expectations. […]

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  6. Here Are 10 Ways to Be A Good Boss - The Savvy Scot says:
    January 14, 2021 at 12:44 pm

    […] be a good boss and manager, you need to set clear performance expectations for your employees. If you want your employees to be loyal, responsive, and competent, then it’s […]

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