I divided my 2009 goals into 3 buckets: LIFE, FRIENDS, CAREER/PRODUCTIVITY.
Here is how I did:
LIFE: 6 for 8
FRIENDS: 4 for 6
CAREER/PRODUCTIVITY: 5 for 8 (2 of the 8 shouldn’t have been goals–more like whims)
I’d call 15 of the 22 solid wins. 2 of the 22 I didn’t accomplish and weren’t important so I get a pass on those. That leaves 5 outstanding to stay on my 2010 list in some form or another. 22 goals is too many and my list will be much shorter in 2010.
Additionally, I am toying with making my goals S.M.A.R.T. as well. SMART goals are a work thing. Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Realistic, Time-Bound. Apparently there are several possible words for every letter of the word SMART as Wikipedia lays out here. I find myself somewhat resistant as it is a lot easier to let things slide and “just be flexible” when you haven’t made specific commitments. I feel like I’ve got a lot going on and don’t want to sign myself up for too much. At the same time, I know that the goals I am most reluctant to set specifics around are the same ones I didn’t achieve in 2009. A little external processing going on right there, but it sounds like I will be making my 2010 goals SMART. I encourage you to do the same.
Internet trivia of the day: Apparently that line about Harvard MBAs with written goals earning great fortunes vs. their peers without written goals is an urban legend. See here for details. Another study was done that demonstrated written goals do help people accomplish more, but huge sums of money may or may not follow.
I’m sixth months into my first full-time role at P&G. It is the proverbial drinking from a firehose that I was promised, hence no posting. During my transition into the company I’ve been asking various folks around the company what success looks like for a finance manager at P&G. The most compelling response I received is reproduced in the graphic below:
Innovative models, sophisticated analyses, and leading large-scale change. These are the top of the pyramid elements that we typically associate with high caliber finance professionals. However, without a firm foundation, the most sophisticated pieces of analysis will go nowhere. Finance people without integrity aren’t worth much, hence the internal controls piece. You also can’t make meaningful assumptions if you can’t trust your organization and the people in it. Owning sound internal controls is the key to ensuring the numbers you work with can be counted on and will be taken seriously by others. Delivering the business results is the other key piece of the foundation. Finance managers at P&G are true business partners. They aren’t just accountants and they don’t just “run the numbers” on ideas that get passed down the chain. Finance folks are typically present early on and have significant input at all stages of the planning process. As a result, finance managers own the business results right along with the sales force, the marketers, and general management. Once the foundation of sound internal controls and consistent business results is in place, then feel free to trot out your latest greatest data visualization techniques or sophisticated model. Ignore at your own peril.
June 21, 2009
Comments Off on New P&G CEO on Values-Based Leadership
Bob McDonald, P&G’s new CEO, speaking on Values-Based Leadership. If you already know who he is, and that he is “kind of a big deal,” then just skip forward to five minutes in and hear what he has to say.
PVP, GBU, MDO, CBD, and probably several thousand more. P&G has so many acronyms they actually have a central acronym databse. Since the English language only gives us 26 letters to work with and three letter combos seem to be how it is done, many entries in the databse even have multiple possible meanings depending on your context. Today though, I want to talk about the most important acronym, “the PVP.” This is the Purpose, Values, and Principles. P&Gers live by the PVP, and if you don’t, you won’t be at P&G for long, or at least so I hear. The shared PVP creates a trust between P&Gers and is a big part of how such a big and diverse company’s employees can effectively cooperate globally. I have my onboarding session for my first day as a full-time employee coming up in a week and I’m sure I’ll get to hear even more about the PVP then.
So why am I thinking about the PVP now? This morning I was reading Fred Wilson’s blog, A VC, and came across this post on building successful long term relationships. Apparently, today is Fred’s 22nd anniversary so he thought he’d write a post about business relationships. How romantic right? Actually he does say some nice things about his wife as well, but the main takeaway was that the two most important factors in any relationship are tolerance and shared vision/values. P&G’s commitment to the PVP ensures that everyone in the organization has shared values. I guess this is why I keep meeting so many P&Gers that have been with the company 20 and 30 years. Anyways, I’m excited to work for a company whose purpose is to “improve the lives of the world’s consumers, now and for generations to come.” I never imagined during my seven years in the non-profit world that a for profit company might have a purpose statement like that. Apparently, it is possible, and I’m lucky enough to get to work for one of them. Check out the rest of Fred’s post, that I linked to above, if you are building a team, starting a business, or looking for a spouse and want to have long term success.
See the following post for a great video of P&G’s new CEO, Bob McDonald, talking about Values-Based Leadership.
…obviously you blow them off and continue enjoying the Mediterranean right? Wrong. Paul Tudor Jones, a famous Wall St trader, accepts and decides to speak on the topic of “failure.” Don’t be put off by the 13 pages, it reads in probably 5-10 minutes thanks to the size 25 font. Hit the “toggle fullscreen” in the upper right of the box below.
