Execution Quotient (XQ): Your Most Valued Career Currency [Video]
Six components to help you achieve success.
In part five of this ongoing series Latin Biz Today advisory board member Chuck Garcia shares why…Success is a balance of being effective and execution. Parts one to four in the series can be found here: Part 1: Career Q’s: Redefine What It Means to Be Smart [Video] Part 2: 3 Traits of the Most Admired C-Suite Professionals [Video] Part 3: What’s Your Creativity Quotient? [Video] Part 4: Do You Know Why the Adaptability Quotient Is Critical to Success? [Video]
Think for a moment how success was measured in high school and college. Study, remember as much as possible for your test, and hope for an A. The individual with the highest grades was often considered “the smartest person in the room.” The student delivering the commencement address imparting advice to his classmates was the one with the highest GPA.
Now, take a pause and consider your professional life. Do you see success differently? As you ponder who climbs the career ladder fastest, it is usually the one or two individuals who “get the most done.” What a contrast! In college, the GPA is better aligned to intellect and work ethic; often indifferent to practical application. In the working world, knowledge is relevant, but doesn’t always correlate to success. What is the consequence then of being equipped with a strong knowledge base, but failing to fulfill a company’s goals and objectives?
FranklinCovey, the company behind the blockbuster book 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, has been taking a measure to this “Execution gap” since the late 1980s. They studied over 500,000 people from thousands of companies worldwide. The conclusions of these studies highlight a remarkable paradox. In multiple surveys, respondents report that their managers are hard workers, but are rated remarkably low on issues relating to execution.
Although managers are perceived as diligent and hardworking, their ability to achieve results continues to fall short of expectations. Given that results are a currency in any working environment, how then to ensure you carry the currency necessary to establish credibility, trust and respect among your peers?
FranklinCovey was so intrigued by the paradox that they worked for years to develop a measure that answers a critical question, “What makes organizations good at executing?” The answer applies equally to you. What makes you good at executing, and why does it matter for career growth?
Known as XQ, the Execution Quotient measures the alignment of your work to key goals articulated and measured by your company.
FranklinCovey distills key XQ principles into six components to help you achieve success:
1. Clarity: Do you know your organization’s critical objectives?
2. Commitment: Are you energized and committed to achieve those goals?
3. Action: Are you clear about how and what to act on to achieve them?
4. Enabling: Are you equipped to execute accordingly?
5. Synergy: Do you work well with others and unify efforts to execute effectively?
6. Accountability: Are you consistently held accountable to deliver up to and above expectations?
XQ consequently is one component of Career Q’s. While this LBT series described Emotional Intelligence EQ), Creativity Quotient (CQ), and Adaptability Quotient (AQ), many consider XQ the most important. To support this opinion, you may stay calm under pressure with a high EQ, are creative and adaptable, yet you “don’t get much done.” You may even have an intellect and knowledge base that is the envy of your peers. But, if you don’t achieve results, you jeopardize your future in an organization that holds employees accountable for their results.
Now, when you prepare a new resume, think about what companies value most. You may have the capacity to handle ten projects simultaneously. Is that what you should be communicating? I hope you will think differently from now on. Instead, I recommend describing the three most important goals you were tasked with, and how you stayed focused to manage each project to achieve above expectation results.
Ten projects that achieved mixed results, or 3 projects that had immense impact and provoked company change? As you contemplate your next career steps, give thought to what your company values.
If you want to learn how to increase your value in the marketplace, look to the Career Q’s. I recommend you start with Execution Quotient as a path to achieve extraordinary results.
Related content:
EQ Series Part 1 Career Q’s: Redefine What It Means to Be Smart [Video]
EQ Series Part 2 3 Traits of the Most Admired C-Suite Professionals [Video]
EQ Series Part 3 What’s Your Creativity Quotient? [Video]
EQ Series Part 4: Do You Know Why the Adaptability Quotient Is Critical to Success? [Video]
Fight or Flight: The Importance of Emotional Intelligence
Small Business Leadership and Emotional Intelligence in the Workplace
