employee guide: becoming an enterprise contributor february 2013 ceb corporate leadership council

Employee Guide: Becoming an Enterprise Contributor

February 2013

CEB Corporate Leadership Council

CEB Corporate Leadership Council© 2013 The Corporate Executive Board Company. All Rights Reserved.

Becoming an Enterprise Contributor

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How to use this guidebook:

Audience:This guide helps employees understand CEB Corporate Leadership Council’s model for top performance: enterprise contribution.

How to Use:This guidebook was written to be beneficial to employees at all levels and jobs functions. It explains the changing nature of how they need to evaluate their own performance in the new work environment.

CEB Corporate Leadership Council© 2013 The Corporate Executive Board Company. All Rights Reserved. 3

The Changing Work

Environment

Understanding Enterprise

Contribution


EMPLOYEE GUIDE: BECOMING AN ENTERPISE CONTRIBUTOR


THE WORK ENVIRONMENT HAS BECOME MORE COMPLEX

Widespread changes in the organizational environment fundamentally change the way you perform your work.

■ You and your colleagues increasingly work across multiple time zones, cultures, and customer segments.

■ You are having to report to an increasing number of managers, complicating your work flow.

■ An abundance of information can improve your performance, but also

complicates decision making and distracts from work priorities.

Your Colleagues are More DispersedChange in Amount of Work with Coworkers in Another Location in the Past Three Years, by Percentage of Employees

More Stakeholders are Involved in Your WorkChange in Number of Individuals Involved in Decisions in the Past Three Years, by Percentage of Employees

57% Increased

38% Stayed the Same

5% Decreased

50% Increased

43% Stay the Same

7% Decreased

You Have Access to a Higher Volume of Information Change in Time Spent Finding and Reviewing Data and Information in the Past Three Years, by Percentage of Employees

76% Increased

18% Stayed the Same

6% Decreased

Source: CEB, CEB Corporate Leadership Council High Performance Survey, 2012.


WORK IS MORE INTERCONNECTED THAN EVER

Greater complexity at work means your performance is more dependent on collaboration with others.

Your Work Requires More Collaboration with OthersChange in Amount of Work That Requires Collaboration with Others in the Past Three Years, by Percentage of Employees

3% Decreased

67% Increased

30% Stayed the Same

You Work With More People on a Day-to-Day BasisNumber of People Involved in Day-to-Day Work, by Percentage of Employees

30% 20 or More

40% 0–9

30% 10–19



Those outside your company that can impact your performance include:

■Vendors■Customers■Suppliers■Professional associations■Alumni networks

COLLEGUES BEYOND YOUR MANAGER AND TEAM INCREASINGLY INFLUENCE YOUR PERFORMANCE

Manager Immediate Team

Coworkers Outside Your Team External Partners

Colleagues outside of your team, and even your company, impact your performance to a greater extent than ever.

•For example: Your performance may depend on a supplier in another country shipping needed goods or documents in a timely manner.

•For example: A colleague on another team might be working with you on a joint project.

•For example: Your company may be partnering with another to gain a lucrative contract.

•For example: Your company recently opened a new office in another country and you are asked to educate the new team on company culture and procedures.

Those outside your team that can impact your performance include:

■Different Teams■Different Job Levels■Different Locations



Contribution



The Changing Work

Environment


Given today’s more interdependent workplace, your performance is no longer based on individual tasks alone, but also on your network performance.

+ =

Individual Task Performance

An employee’s effectiveness at achieving his or her individual tasks and assignments

Network Performance

An employee’s effectiveness at improving others’ performance and using others’ contributions to improve his or her own performance

Enterprise Contribution

An employee’s effectiveness at his or her individual tasks, contribution to others’ performance, and use of others’ contributions to improve his or her own performance

TOP PERFORMANCE LOOKS DIFFERENT TODAY THAN IN THE PAST

■ Taken together, these two performance types are known as ‘enterprise contribution.’

CEB Corporate Leadership Council’s Model of High Performance


BENEFITS OF BECOMING AN ENTERPRISE CONTRIBUTOR

Increased recognition from management for investing effort into bettering the company overall, not just in your own role.

Learning different people’s expertise and task ownership will help make your work easier since you will be able to identify whom to seek assistance from right away.

A willingness to help others in their jobs will make them more willing to help you when you need it from them.

You will be able to better manage your work if you are able to work better with your colleagues spread across geographies and departments.

You will gain from introducing more efficient and improved working processes and tools.

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Why should you seek to become an enterprise contributor?

There are many benefits to becoming an enterprise contributor.


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Enterprise contributors succeed in both individual tasks and activities based on collaboration and contribution to others’ work.

Introduction of improved processes

Implementation of new product or service ideas

Improved working methods, processes, tools

Transfer of great ideas from other parts of the organization

Transfer of skills and knowledge

+ =Enterprise

Contribution

■ Some activities represented in network performance are conducted informally, rather than through official lines of communication, including improved working methods and transferring skills and knowledge.

HIGH PERFORMANCE TODAY INVOLVES BOTH FORMAL AND INFORMAL ACTIVITIES

High output per hour worked

On-time task completion

Error-free work

High-quality work

Network PerformanceConsists of outcomes such as…

Individual Task Performance Consists of outcomes such as…

Indications of High Performance in the New Work Environment


PERFORMANCE WORKSHEETOnly 17% of employees today are enterprise contributors. Are you one of them?

+ =Enterprise

Contribution

Tasks I do which count towards Individual Task Performance include:

CEB Corporate Leadership Council’s Model of High Performance

In the worksheet below fill out tasks and activities you complete as part of your regular duties, whether part of your formal job description or not, to assist you in thinking about the two types of performance which make up enterprise contribution.

Tasks I do which count towards Network Performance include:



Contribution



The Changing Work

Environment


BECOMING AN ENTERPRISE CONTRIBUTOR DOES NOT ONLY MEAN COLLABORATING MORE WITH OTHERS

Interacting more with others will not improve your network contribution and make you an enterprise contributor.

■ To achieve high enterprise contribution, you must balance your time between your individual task performance and network performance.

■ Most importantly, to become an enterprise contributor, you must focus on four key competencies:

Enterprise contributors do not spend much more time working with others than the average employee. Rather, the difference between enterprise contributors and average employees is found in the way they perform four key competencies:oPrioritization - Prioritizes activities based on organizational goals and self-directs workoTeamwork - Coordinates one’s work and performance with that of others to achieve mutual outcomesoOrganizational Awareness - Understands the informal structures and decision-making processes of the organizationoProblem Solving - Identifies problems and opportunities for changes and implements solutions when appropriate

Enterprise Contributors Average Employee

Distribution of Time Spent on Individual and Group Tasks

45% Individual Tasks

52% Working

With Others

55% Working

With Others

48% Individual Tasks

o Prioritizationo Teamworko Organizational

Awarenesso Problem Solving



Understands Peers’ MotivationsCoordinates one’s work and performance with that of others to achieve mutual outcomes

Builds ConnectionsIncreases the number of, and maintains strong, personal relationships

FOCUS ON FOUR KEY SHIFTS TO BECOMEAN ENTERPRISE CONTRIBUTOR

Prioritizes ContributionsPrioritizes activities based on organizational goals and self-directs work

Prioritizes TasksPrioritizes activities to fulfill job description and manager directs work

Understands Organizational ContextUnderstands the informal structures and decision-making processes of the organization

Knows Formal OrganizationUnderstands business basics and the formal structure and mechanics of the organization

Initiates ChangeIdentifies problems and opportunities for changes and implements solutions when appropriate

Receptive to ChangeDisplays openness and willingness to change behavior in response to new situations

Conventional Approach: Enterprise Contributor:

To become an enterprise contributor, you should shift your approach to fulfilling four key competencies.

■ Prioritize work by the contribution it can make to the organization, not just what their job description says.

■ Understand peers’ workflow, objectives, and challenges, rather than only getting to know them personally.

■ Understand the context that surrounds organizational decisions and operations, not just formal structures.

■ Identify problems and initiate necessary changes, not only express willingness to change based on others’ recommendations.

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Prioritization

Teamwork

Organizational Awareness

Problem Solving


Speak with your manager(s) to better understand organizational priorities and how your role relates to those goals

Shadow colleagues outside of your direct team to gain better perspective of their accountabilities

Proactively serve as a resource for new hires rather than having them approach you with questions first

Meet periodically with peers in other functions to discuss common challenges and share best practices

Include at least one proposed solution when escalating a problem or challenge

EMPLOYEE ENTERPRISE CONTRIBUTION CHECKLISTUse this guide to identify areas where you can concentrate your efforts to become an enterprise contributor

Use your extended network including alumni networks, vendors, etc., to advance other teams in your company, rather than only using them to benefit your team

Speak with colleagues to understand the key talents and responsibilities in your division in order to identify the best person to ask for assistance or bring concerns in certain instances

Use your informal interactions with colleagues to get a better understanding of the challenges your division or organization is facing and consider how you can help

Prioritize activities based on their contribution to the organization, rather than completing tasks based only on fulfilling job description.

Coordinate your work with that of others to achieve mutual outcomes, rather than just maintaining personal relationships with colleagues.

Understand the informal decision-making processes of your organization, rather than just the formal reporting structures.

Proactively identify problems and opportunities for change and initiate solutions, rather than only responding to changes made by others.

Seek out ways to make broader impact outside of your formal role, for example by organizing skill workshops or assisting other teams with your experience and knowledge

Ask your manager(s) to explain the reasoning behind organizational decisions, not just the decisions themselves

Identify strengths and weaknesses, as well as additional skills of team members when considering division of labor on team projects

Avoid becoming complacent with existing practices by periodically reviewing procedures to identify alternative methods that may prove more efficient

Prioritization

Teamwork

Organizational Awareness

Problem Solving

employee guide: becoming an enterprise contributor february 2013 ceb corporate leadership council

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