Sports teams play hard to win, and so does your business. The desire to take a victory lap, however, isn’t the only similarity. Business owners and sports teams watch rivals closely, strategize at every turn and work together to reach the final goal, whether it’s the trophy, a customer win or the successful deployment of a long-running project.
In business, we often look at our competitors to better understand what we’re doing right and wrong. I believe there’s similar value in looking outside the business world for examples. As a basketball fan, I often look at teams and how they succeed or fail. Not surprisingly, the best teams engage in certain practices that make them winners. Apply these practices to your business and you can come out on top, too.
Basketball players who strive for home runs or touchdowns don’t get far. Their goal is to land the ball in the basket at either side of the court. Knowing what game you’re playing is the obvious first step to scoring more points than the other team and eventually winning the game.안전놀이터
Business Application: A surprising number of employees have no idea what game they’re playing and only a foggy notion of what it means to win. As they aim for home runs on the hardwood, their performance will be unsatisfactory, and their chance of success will be nil. As the coach of your business, discuss with every player/employee the game you’re in and define what success is. The big picture might be obvious to you, but it’s not necessarily clear to them.
A power forward knows he’s in the game to catch rebounds. A point guard knows he’s the team’s best handler and passer. A shooting guard knows his job is to get the ball in the hoop. Every basketball player knows his position and his role in both achieving success and preventing the opposing team from scoring.
Business Application: Make sure your employees understand their position and how they’re expected to contribute to the team’s overall success. Too often, employees are distracted by conflicting demands and confused by responsibilities that they don’t understand. In other words, they’re either not sure how their job fits into the big picture or what they’re supposed to be doing in the first place. As a business owner, you need to make their roles clear. Just like a sports coach, come up with a game plan. Then discuss with each employee how their responsibilities fit into the ultimate performance and success of the business.
The rules of basketball are known to all the players on the court and on the bench. They not only know how to play offense and defense but also the penalties for infractions. If a player violates a rule, the other team gets free throws. If there’s a serious violation, players may be expelled from the game or fined by the league. The rules are not a secret, and they’re applied across the board by impartial referees.
Business Application: Don’t keep your players in the dark. Establish and communicate ground rules for their jobs and your business. Employees shouldn’t be left to guess about what’s allowed and not allowed once they’re in the office. And don’t forget to lay out the consequences of not following the rules. Make sure your employee manual specifies the consequences of breaking certain rules, especially those that can trigger termination. Finally, be a fair referee. Apply the rules and the penalties fairly to all employees.
At any given moment of the game, players know the score. The scoreboard updates with every basket, and the clock ticks toward the end of the game. There’s no need to wait until the end of the game or the end of the season to figure out how the team is performing.
Business Application: Don’t keep your team guessing about whether their performance is sufficient. Update them frequently and regularly on the status of the business. Your communications should cheer not only progress but victory itself. Too often, business owners use management superiority and commercial sensitivity as excuses for not communicating with employees. Get over it. Just imagine a basketball team where players had no idea whether their team is winning or losing.
Everyone on the basketball court and sitting on the bench knows his status. Coaches (not to mention fans) provide feedback after every play. The flow of actionable advice is constant during the game. Even more feedback is given after each game and at the end of every season, regardless of the outcome. Everyone has an opportunity to learn, shift gears and improve performance before it is too late. Nothing is held back.
Business Application: Too often, employees get no feedback until there’s a problem. Don’t hold back and make sure your managers do the same. For the group, post department and team results so that everyone can see their progress. Build training and coaching that connects to desired performance and outcomes. On an individual level, you and your managers must meet regularly and frequently with every employee to discuss performance. Make sure the bulk of the feedback is in writing – just as a basketball player’s performance lands in the sport section of a newspaper.
A single player does not make a basketball team. Players can only win if they work together as a team. As a group, they have a shared goal. They have positions that interact and enable individuals and the team to achieve success. Finally, every player understands his role among the larger group. They know when to dribble the ball down the court or pass it to another player who can take the shot.
Business Application: For your business to be successful, employees must work as a team. All departments and employees must know how they are supposed to interact with each other to achieve common goals and overall success. As the business owner and head coach, you have to map out the interactions between departments and between employees. Hold meetings that involve multiple departments, focusing on cross-functional processes. Share results good and bad with everyone. And don’t forget to host social events that mix employees and departments from across your organization.