The Power of BHAGs and Quarterly Rocks
For years our team has set “BHAGs” (Big, Hairy, Audacious Goals) in order to push ourselves to achieve our vision. BHAGs were outlined by Jim Collins in his work, "Built to Last." These BHAGs also help align our team around the work.
As you can imagine, BHAGs are big and it is daunting to have a huge goal without knowing how to reach it. It is important to have a team that trusts your leadership and each other in order to try reaching these big goals.
Enter the concept of "Rocks." By chipping away at a giant boulder, we break down our BHAGs into smaller rocks—specific, achievable objectives that help us reach the greater goal.
Once a quarter in staff meeting, we come together to set our Quarterly Rocks, aligning them with our BHAGs for the year. Our team is involved in the brainstorming and in creating the plans for these rocks. We set owners and deadlines coming out of this process, as well.
We then update our team on a monthly basis on how we’re tracking toward our goals for that quarter. This ongoing assessment allows us to course-correct as needed, ensuring that we stay on track towards our goals.
So, do we regularly set goals for our business? Absolutely. And we encourage you to do the same!