If You’re “SMART” You’ll “FORM” Your Expectations

In the business world, we live in an acronym-rich environment, creating shorthand references to often-used concepts (i.e., TQM for Total Quality Control, B2B for business to business, FTE for Full Time Equivalent, etc). One popular acronym, “SMART” (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-Framed), is widely used when it comes to setting goals. In our work with accountability and expectations, we have been asked occasionally why we use the acronym “FORM” instead.

While we appreciate the value of “SMART” and similar acronyms or mnemonics, FORM is a better guide when it comes to establishing key expectations (where not delivering is not an option) that we will hold others accountable to fulfill because, in our experience, it provides you with a more complete, effective, and targeted implementation tool. First, lets review the FORM Checklist, which includes the four elements that we consider essential and fundamental to forming effective expectations, making them: Frameable, Obtain­able, Repeatable, and Measurable.

F—Frameable: Consistent with the current vision, strategy, and business priorities?

O—Obtainable: Achievable in terms of current resource and capacity constraints all along the Expectations Chain?

R—Repeatable: Portable and easily communicated throughout the Expectations Chain?

M—Measurable: Easily tracked and measured in terms of progress toward ultimate fulfillment?

Forming expectations is the first step of the Accountability Sequence Model, which then progresses to Communicating, Aligning and Inspecting your expectations.  These four elements—FORM, Communicate, Align and Inspect—present a complete model for how you hold others accountable in a positive, principled way.

You’ll notice that FORM addresses the elements of Frameable and Repeatable that other models do not, two vital characteristics of well-developed key expectations.  First, ensuring that your expectations are framed in terms of the current vision, strategy and organizational priorities will help you set people off in a direction that is consistent with the deployment of existing resources and talent.  It will also help ensure that whatever your asking people to do will have an impact on desired organizational results. Of course, if the expectation is not consistent with the current direction, and it needs to be done, you will be in a position to take the extra steps that will be required to ensure the right conversations occur early on regarding resource utilization and prioritization of daily work, clearing up any confusion that may slow everything down.

Second, Making the expectations Repeatable so that everyone can remember and repeat it is essential.  Here, we introduce the idea of the Expectations Chain, which is also distinctively unique to FORM that other models do not contemplate.  The Expectations Chain are all those people who share in achieving the expectation that we rely upon to get the job done—both upline and downline—including, your boss, other leaders of the business, shareholders, people on your team, cross-functional peers, vendors and suppliers outside of the organization.  Forming expectations that everyone throughout the entire expectations chain will relate to and remember is key.  While there is not time in this blog to go into the details, you can learn more about how to do this in our book, How Did That Happen?  Holding People Accountable for Results the Positive, Principled Way available at www.partnersinleadership.com.

If you’re SMART, you will apply FORM to the key expectations you create for others.  When you do, you will greatly increase your ability and your organization’s capacity to achieve the desired results.