I’ve always approached business the way a classical musician reads a sheet of music. What counts is how well and how passionately you execute the notes as written, not how you improvise them. Whether you play the violin in a symphony or lead a for-profit or nonprofit organization, great execution requires discipline and focus. You cannot achieve flawless execution without a painstaking devotion to the details. It is not easy to keep track of all the things necessary to achieve such flawless execution.
That’s why every manager I work with has a factbook. It’s a three-ring binder that breaks down a manager’s tasks into small, manageable steps. Such a factbook keeps you on top of the details and assures that there are no misunderstandings between managers and their subordinates.
At its simplest level, the factbook is a tool that keeps you focused and disciplined about your work. It contains the minutes of meetings with your boss, all assignments, your progress against these assignments, and a 12-month schedule of future meetings. If it’s put together carefully, the factbook is the place to go where your work life is both organized and crystal clear.
So when I work with a colleague in regular planning sessions, typically once a month, my three-ring binder has the same tabs as he has in his. The tabs quickly get you to the minutes of the last meeting, a person’s prioritized assignments, and an update on what he’s accomplished since our last session. Each task stays on that assignment list until complete. Nothing is forgotten. That makes it easy to focus on the important things and never lose your place. Every assignment is there in black and white, staring at the person who is responsible for getting it done. He can’t forget about it. Just as important, the boss can’t forget about it, either. Too often, that’s exactly what happens.
All of us can get overwhelmed with things to do at work and in our lives. We’re often racing from one meeting to the next, from one city or country to another. Every business is a fairly complicated system. If you’re leading an organization and seeking flawless execution in the pursuit of excellence, the best way to stay on top of all the details is to have a clear accounting of them. The system reminds you of what’s important. It also imposes accountability on the boss and the subordinate to get things done.
A factbook can take away excuses. Using this process, it’s unlikely that people will not have enough work to keep them busy. And if a subordinate feels unhappy about something, the regular sit-down meetings with her boss gives her an opportunity to address these feelings. Mostly, the factbook can be the place where the details of your work are made the focus of how you do your work.
To an outsider, a factbook looks deceivingly simple. To me, the three-ring binder that every key employee has is not merely a notebook. It is a process. Every month, almost every key manager in our company has a factbook meeting with his or her boss. Typically, it’s a one-to-two-hour opportunity to have a thoughtful and candid conversation. Together, the manager and her boss review the progress the manager’s made against her written assignments, and her boss can help reprioritize them, given the always changing needs of the business.