The start of a new year often signals a fresh beginning for many – possibly even your organization and your focus for the next 366 days (hello leap year). When you get a strong start to the year, your team gathers momentum to sustain and support your efforts for the next twelve months.
Whether your FI has engaged in a formal strategic planning process for the year ahead, or not, identifying your objectives and developing goals for the year provides a clearer path toward a successful 2020.
For a successful start to the new year, ask yourself these five questions to focus your efforts and maximize your opportunity:
1. What worked last year? (And equally important – what didn’t?)
What were your biggest areas of growth? Which provided your greatest challenge? Taking a look back can help map the clearest path forward. What does the data show? Reviewing your numbers can bring to light any missed opportunities or identify any gaps.
2. Are my goals clear and attainable?
As part of your strategic planning process, your team would have reviewed the overall business objectives for 2020 and set business line goals accordingly. If the process of setting goals hasn’t yet taken place, take time to sit down now and identify your goals for the coming year.
When it comes to goal setting, people and organizations often miss the mark, identifying initiatives that are far too vague or cannot be measured. For example, it’s not uncommon for an organization to say, “We want to grow.” Of course you do! But grow what? By how much? How will you know your efforts have been successful?
Create your goals with clarity (consider the abbreviation SMART – specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-focused). Your goal to grow might actually be a goal to grow consumer deposit households by 10% over 2019 by the end of 2020. By getting specific, your teams have a clearer path forward and you’ll have a metric you can gauge throughout the year to track your progress.
3. Which goals take precedence?
Next up, take a look at your task list and assess where each of those various to-dos falls in your list of priorities. If your FI is like many, you may have a giant wish list from the various business lines, each task with varying levels of complexity and relevance.
While not every task will further your business goals in a quantifiable way, striving to ensure the majority of your daily efforts contribute toward your FI’s overall goals is a good rule of thumb to keep your teams focused on what moves the needle. Due to that prioritization, it’s very likely that some tasks just won’t make the cut, and that’s OK. When your time and resources are finite, it’s reasonable to focus on the initiatives that provide the most impact toward your goals.
Give yourself the option to change direction. Plans are living things and sometimes need to be adjusted because of a new opportunity or changing market conditions. Build in checkpoints where possible changes can be discussed so that you don’t get derailed from the broader goals.
4. How will I ensure it all gets done?
Allocate the resources that you will need to your tasks. Be mindful of your team’s bandwidth, and consider what you are able to accomplish with the resources available to you. You will want to be certain to not spread yourself too thin. Determine what you can execute masterfully, and if necessary, revisit step three and adjust your priorities.
If you lack the internal resources you need to keep key projects moving forward, consider outsourcing as an option. Galapagos offers its clients full outsourcing, as well as project-based outsourcing, as a cost-effective way to support busy financial institutions. Unlike a standard freelancer, our teams have banking knowledge and expertise that complement your existing teams to further your objectives throughout the year – without increasing your headcount.
5. How will I measure and share progress?
Because your goals are specific and measurable, it is beneficial to regularly assess how your efforts are performing. Whether it’s weekly, quarterly, or monthly, these regular check ins allow you to monitor progress toward your goals and adjust your tactics if necessary.
Consistent tracking allows you to avoid a Q4 crunch; it also increases the likelihood of success in reaching the desired target. What is measured can be managed – so it is essential to look thoughtfully at your efforts and determine what is or is not working so you can refine your efforts to maximize your results.
Equally important, share your progress. Providing other teams visibility to your progress adds a level of accountability that ensures that efforts are being made.
With renewed enthusiasm and a strong focus, you can start your year on the right foot – and keep things moving steadily throughout the year. Feeling buried or not sure where to start? You aren’t alone, and we can help. We know your marketing department is probably trying to do more with fewer resources. Galapagos can help you navigate your FI’s initiatives, whether that’s outsourcing efforts, or providing a good-old gut check of your marketing plan from an experienced strategic partner. Call Jeremy Kane at 616.608.7359, or email us to get started.