Management Methodology of Technical Personnel (3) - Management Planning

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When it comes to management planning, most managers are no strangers, because managers need to do planning every six months or every quarter. Some companies call it formulating KPIs, some companies call sorting out team OKRs, and some companies call it quarterly planning or annual planning. In short, it is to agree with the superior what we will do next and how to evaluate whether we are doing well. For managers, this is the most important agreement to align with the superior.

To be precise, the setting of team KPIs and OKRs is only a part of management planning, because this only reflects the expectations of the superior to the team, and cannot fully cover all the planning of your management work as a team leader

Concept

  • Basic meaning

    Construct your own management ideals in the mind of managers

  • Presentation form

    Work agreement reached between managers and superiors to achieve good coordination between superiors and subordinates

  • Core content

    Management planning requires managers to answer a clear question: “How do you plan to lead this team?”

    • Answer the superior

      The usual angle is to answer from two perspectives: input and output

    • Answer yourself

      • Functions

        What is the purpose of the superior setting up this team?

      • Target

        What are the expectations of the superiors for the output of this team?

      • Team

        What expectations do the superiors have for the development of this team?

      • Path

        What resources need to be applied to superiors

Element 1: Functions

The so-called team function is to answer the question “what does the team do”
From the perspective of team responsibilities, the more language required, the less clear the responsibilities are

  • Three questions to help clarify team responsibilities

    These three questions first need to be answered clearly by managers, secondly, managers need to answer clearly in concise language, and finally every member of the team needs to be clear

    • Why did the company set up this team and what are the expectations for this team
    • What is the unique value of this team if it is to survive
    • How to measure the value of a team

  • The role of answering the three questions clearly

    • Enhance team cohesion

      Only when everyone knows what their team does can they understand why they are united

    • Effectively motivate employees

      Only when everyone knows the meaning and value of work can we have a sense of accomplishment in our work

    • Increase employee initiative

      If employees don’t know the responsibilities and scope of work of the team, and don’t know what is good or bad, they have no other choice but to wait and rely

  • Levels of team functions

    • Basic duties

      The lower limit of team functions. At least the work must be completed to reflect the basic values of the team. Generally speaking, the functions of the team are given by the superior. If you are not clear about this, you must first clarify the basic requirements and core functions of the team with the superior

    • Mission of sublimation

      Team function cap

  • Steps for setting team functions

    • Step 1: Collect information

      • Upward communication

        Listen to the expectations and requirements of the superior for the team, and what latitude you want to use to measure whether you are doing well or not

      • Communicate down

        Discuss everyone’s business views and understanding of the team, as well as expectations for future development

      • Look left, look right

        It depends on where the boundaries of functional positioning are. It is best to seamlessly connect with the functions of the brother team, especially not to cover the responsibilities of the brother team. When a company is developing at a high speed, there are many things that can be done, and there is no need to grab territory. Of course, if the company falls into a lag, look at it in detail.

      • Your own understanding

        Your understanding of the business, your understanding of the field, your expectations for the team, and your expectations for yourself

    • Step 2: Refinement and Sublimation

      • Refinement of duties

        Based on the collected information, use easy-to-understand language to shorten the responsibilities and stabilize them as long as possible, such as responsible for server-side development

      • Sublimation of mission

        Look for the team’s unique value to the department and company based on basic responsibilities, and be careful to use “results” -based descriptions rather than process-based descriptions

Element 2: Objectives

If the definition of function clarifies the value of the team, then the goal is to answer “what reflects the value of the team”

The Importance of Goal Setting

  • Expectation: the most basic and core, including the demands of oneself and superiors

  • Effective resource allocation: Clear goals drive resource allocation

  • Execution: When the goal is not clear enough or changes frequently, it will show that the execution is not enough

  • Cohesion: A clear team goal and vision is one of the important means to improve team cohesion

  • Motivation: Among the elements that enhance employee self-motivation, to make employees immersed in their work, there must be clear goals

  • Principles of Goal Setting

    • Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic/Relevant and Time Bound

      • Specific: clear
      • Measurable: measurable
      • Attainable
      • Relevant
      • Time-bound: time-bound

    • As few as possible, too many goals defeat the original purpose of setting goals: resource allocation

  • Dimensions of goal setting

    • Business objectives

      • Required, what standards should the team’s output meet next, such as KPI and OKR, are for this goal, which belong to external goals

    • Team building goals

      • How do you want the size and layers of the team to grow and develop in the future

    • Professional goals

      • Add what goals the team has achieved from a professional perspective, such as what level of stability has been achieved, etc

  • Form of goal setting

    KPI implies this O. Without O, KPI cannot be set.
    OKR implies KPI, and the KR in OKR contains quantifiable result KPI and non-quantifiable result KRA.

    OKRs are not a negation of KPIs, both can be used as a means of Management By Objectives
    OKR puts more emphasis on the consistency of goals and means, while KPI pays more attention to the evaluation of results, and each has its own emphasis

    • Description form

      • Quantifiable indicators

        We often say KPI, that is, to a certain point in time, what indicators to achieve what number

      • Non-quantifiable goals

        Measure with key results. For example, we often refer to KRA or OKR. The description form is roughly: at a certain point in time, what work has been completed, and what functions or effects have been achieved by the work

    • Compare

      OKR is more suitable for organizations with strong openness and pursuit of creativity. And KPI is more suitable for organizations with mature rules and pursuit

      • Basic logic of KPI

        In any case, to ensure the completion of KPIs, the pursuit of certainty is the achievement of results. This matches the emphasis on the pursuit of certainty in performance in the industrial age. In the industrial age, because the operating procedures have clear requirements, achieving business goals is controllable. In this context, KPIs are more appropriate

      • Basic logic of OKR

        Anything that is helpful to O can be done, focusing on the possibility of achieving the goal. This matches the pursuit of creativity in the era of knowledge economy. In this context, OKR is more appropriate

Possible challenges in goal setting

  • Make goals based on existing resources, rather than pushing forward based on distant goals

    A common saying is: Our team can only do this far, and it would be great if this project could be completed. A more reasonable approach is to consider from a higher-level perspective which important results your team needs to ensure, and then see how to adjust

    The solution is: starting from the end

  • The target is unclear

    Procedural description: Complete the architecture transformation by the end of October.
    This descriptive value emphasizes what to do, without explaining the effect after completion

    The solution is: result-oriented description

  • After the goal is set, do not convey it downward

    If it is not communicated downward, the team members do not have a clear sense of direction for the entire team, so the effect of the goals we mentioned earlier cannot be reflected

  • Distressed by frequent adjustments to goals

    When business goals change frequently, it is necessary to set technical goals for the team, also known as professional goals or internal goals

    There are two steps to establish:

    1. Select the key dimensions to be improved. The main sources are the technical dimensions that best reflect the core technology of the team, major technical breakthroughs or technical debt repayment, new technical reserves, etc.
    2. Set goals. It can be a quantitative KPI or a non-quantitative KRA. Just like everyone has their own values, each team has its own core evaluation dimension, which is determined by the team functions, such as the stability and performance of the server level team, the accuracy and security of the data team, the efficiency and quality of the functional team

Element 3: Team

  • Angle

    • From the perspective of team building goals

      The so-called team building goal is what you want to develop the team into

      The size of the team

      • Division of labor in the team
      • Team layer

    From a resource perspective

    Looking at a team from a resource perspective is one of the hallmarks of a mature manager.
    Since from the perspective of the company, each team is a resource and cost, so as a manager in the inventory of their current manpower and budget manpower, we must have a sense of cost

    • How to reasonably estimate the cost

      • Understanding of the business

        By understanding the business and the goals you want to achieve. The manpower and goals that need to be invested are closely related, and the choice of means is also closely related, and your various decisions can affect the estimate of resources

      • Refer to the industry resource allocation situation

    • Talent training perspective

      At the next stage, you need to focus on who you cultivate, what kind of platform and space you give them, and what kind of guidance and support you are able to provide them, and what roles you expect them to be competent for.

      • Team digestion ability

        The number of new bees that a team can absorb is limited. We call this limit “team digestion ability”. If the new bee is introduced too quickly, if it exceeds this limit, it will dilute the team state, and there is little difference between the new team

  • Presentation of team planning

Element 4: Path

  • Mainly answer two questions

    • There are several ways to go
    • What to prepare for each

  • Superiors are resource sensitive

    The higher the level, the more sensitive to resources, and everything pays attention to the input-output ratio. When reporting to superiors, these two questions are essential. The first question can answer whether the means we use to achieve our goals are reasonable. The second question can answer whether the resources we apply for are reasonable

  • Three directions to consider when increasing manpower

    • Richness of resource types

      • People

      • Money

      • Things

      • Time

      • Information

        If the work requires special data and information, you need to communicate with your superiors in advance

      • Permissions

    • Diversity of choice of means

    • The need for talent recruitment

  • Result Evaluation Three-factor Verification

    • Progress
    • Quality
    • Effect