Supporting Staff Effectiveness: Part 1

Translating Goals into Action Plans and Work Plans

Goal: The right activities, done the right way, thatwill lead to the right results

Step 1: With your DVOP Specialist and LVER, develop a “logic model” to map out how you expect to reach your goals

1. Identify the desiredoutcomes or ultimategoals you seek.

A universal / generic example: More our job-seeking veteranswill get and keep well-paying jobs.

2. Ask “What will enable this to happen?” These become your intermediate goals.

In the case of the DVOP (or other AJC staff working with veterans) / In the case of the LVER (or Business Service Reps)
Hiring decision makers in business or public sector organizations must believe that:
  1. The veteran is a superior candidate for a posted or advertised vacancy, compared to everyone else who applied for the position
or
  1. The value of the contributions the veteran can make to the business will exceed the cost of employing him or her (in the a case of a ” talent hire”)
So…
The veterans must be able to
a)Develop and present a compelling case for hiring them, via cover letters, résumés, job interviews, and/or while having networking conversations
and
b)Identify and neutralize the obstacles that reduce their ability to contribute to a business, and the obstacles that reduce their ability to conduct a successful job search,
and
c)Identify, enhance, and leverage their strengths and assets that enable them to add value on the job and conduct and effective job search
So…
The DVOP Specialist needs to
a)Conduct assessments in ways that enable veterans to recognize both obstacles and strengths and assets
b)Guide the creation of individual development plans that enable the veteran to neutralize the obstacles and leverage strengths and assets
c)Connect veterans with the resources, service providers and advice inside and outside of the AJC that permit them to carry out their plans
d)Follow up with veterans to verify that the plans are working, and help them revise them if they are not
Note: If the DVOP Specialist has free time after doing the above, he or she should conduct outreach to recruit additional veterans with significant barriers to employment.. / Hiring decision makers in business or public sector organizations must believe that:
a)A veterans is likely to have the knowledge, skills and traits that enable him or her to add considerable value to their business
and
b)The LVER/ BSR is a trusted and reliable source of high-quality referrals
So…
The LVER/BSR needs to:
  1. Engage in Level 1 Outreachactivities that reach a large number of hiring decision makers and successfully increase their awareness, and appreciation of the contributions veterans can make, thanks to their skills, experience and traits.
  1. Engage in Level II Outreach:
  • Conduct Exploration Conversations to identify the needs of a specific business
  • Conduct Sharing Conversations with AJC colleagues to match veterans’ capabilities with business needs
  • Conduct Connecting Conversations to persuade hiring decision makers to invest time to meet with a veteran who fits their needs.
  1. Identify the businesses or organizations that are most likely to hire over the next six to 12 months and focus the majority of their efforts working with them.
(Note: The LVER should also engage in Capacity Building to enhance the ability of other AJC staff to serve veterans.)

Step 2: Identify activities and indicators

With your DVOP Specialist and LVER, identify:

  1. Specific activitiesrelated to successful assessment, and development, implementation, and monitoring of their clients’ individual development or action plans (in the case of the DVOP) or effective employer outreach (in the case of the LVER)
  2. Indicators that will provide both them and you with useful feedback. By useful feedback, we mean feedback that is timely, reveals what is and isn’t working, and helps staff revise less successful efforts and reinforce successful ones.
  3. Realistic timeframesfor completing activities and moving the dial on the indicators
  4. Resources or support they’ll need to successfully complete the activities

Step 3: Plug these elements – activities, indicators, timeframes and necessary resources – into a work plan, and track it.

Create SMART (Specific Measurable Aligned Realistic and Timebound) goals / steps.

Work plans should provide staff with answers to several questions:

  • What is expected of me?
  • What does success look like (standards, target dates, etc.)
  • How am I expected to do it?
  • How well am I doing?
  • What assistance can I draw upon?
  • What obstacles might I run into, and how might I overcome them?

The work plan should be a living document (sometimes priorities, or even objectives, may change).

It should serve as the basis of Before – During –After conversations

  • Before: Identify ultimate and intermediate goals, action steps and indicators, etc. Plug them into the work plan template.
  • During: Periodic progress checks, to identify successes to capitalize on, setbacks or obstacles to address, and points of confusion; these are opportunities to realign/ adjust work if necessary.
  • After: Review progress and achievement of objectives, identify lessons learned, and prepare for next work plan.

All concerned should be open to receiving and giving feedback.

Rank / Goal / Sub tasks / Action Steps / Progress Indicators / Assistance / resources I may need / Potential Obstacles / Counter-measures / Target Date(s) / Date Achieved
Rank / Goal / Sub tasks / Action Steps / Progress Indicators / Assistance / resources I may need / Potential Obstacles / Counter-measures / Target Date(s) / Date Achieved