Last month we talked about PSE Day 3 which wrapped up the implementation days. This month we’re going to focus on the first Quarterly Meeting, which starts the quarterly cadence of meeting every 90 days instead of every 30.

Thirty days after your last PSE Day, we’ll meet again for your first Quarterly Meeting.

We’ll start the day with a review of the past quarter and specifically how you performed on your Rocks. Did you meet the majority of them? Or did you miss the mark? We don’t expect anyone to complete 100% of their Rocks in this first Quarter. This is a new process of prioritization that takes some getting used to. It is a muscle that you are building over time. What we really want to focus on is understanding what you’ve learned about Rocks over the past quarter and how you can use that insight to improve your Rock setting for next quarter.

Then we’ll extend those lessons learned to the full quarter, outside of just your Rocks. How did everything go? What are you proud of accomplishing? Where do you wish you had spent more time or effort? What lessons did you learn and how can you get better next quarter?

Then we’ll review and discuss all of the work from PSE Days 1, 2, and 3.

We’ll review each tool and answer any questions you still have about them as well as understand how they have been working for you over the past 90 days. How can we continue to improve those execution muscles? Which tools do you need a refresher on? Which tools are working well? As a reminder, those tools are your Key Accountabilities Chart and Talent Plan, your Rocks, the Meeting Cadence, the Problem Solving Process, your Dashboard, and your PSE One Page.

We’ve already reviewed your Rocks, we don’t need to revisit them now. And we’ll spend some more in-depth time with your Key Accountabilities Chart in the next section, so we’ll start by reviewing the Meeting Cadence, the Weekly Meeting Agenda you’ve been using, and the Problem Solving Process that is part of that agenda. How are those meetings going? Are they effective? Are you solving problems the first time they come around? How could you get even just 10% better?

Then we’ll talk about your Dashboard. You’ve used this Dashboard for a full 90 days now. We want to make sure that these are the right numbers for you to be looking at every week. What are these metrics telling you? Are you getting a full picture of company performance from them? Is there anything that you’re not seeing weekly that you would like to see? 

The last tool to review here is the PSE One Page. We’ll go section by section to ensure that everything is still accurate and up-to-date. Does this one page document truly reflect who you are, where you’re going, and how you plan to get there?

Next, we’ll review your Key Accountabilities Chart and Talent Plan.

The Key Accountabilities Chart exists to make sure you have the right structure for the organization and that you have the right people within that structure. So our review will be two-fold. First, is this the right and best structure for your organization over the next six months? Is this an effective and efficient structure that will help the company be successful? And second, are all these people in the right seats? Do they know what they’re doing? Have they received the training they need? Do they enjoy their work? Are they set up for success?

If we uncover any Right People or Right Seat problems, we’ll park them in the Parking Lot for now and revisit them as needed.

Next is a review of the Talent Plan. This is simply the future extension of your Key Accountabilities Chart for one year, two years, and three years from now. What seats will you need as your company grows?

This helps you to be more intentional about who you add to your company. You’ll decide first which seats you’ll need in the future and then you can be proactive about finding the right people for those seats well in advance of needing them.

Is this Talent Plan an accurate reflection of what you think you’ll need as you grow?

Then we’ll set Rocks for the next quarter.

These will be your new priorities for the next quarter. As a reminder, Rocks are 90 day goals that help you keep your eye on the ball by focusing your efforts on your 3-7 most important priorities. As humans, we often get distracted by what Four Disciplines of Execution calls the whirlwind of the day-to-day. Having these top priorities clearly laid out will keep you and your team better focused on what your goals are. And it will help bring you back on track if you start chasing shiny objects.

So we’ll use what you’ve learned over the last quarter to set SMART Rocks and focus your efforts for the new quarter.

And then we’ll spend the rest of the day Problem Solving. We’ll refer to your newly set Rocks as well as both your Long Term and Short Term Parking Lots in order to find the most pressing problems to solve right now. The goal is to remove as many obstacles to growth here in this session so that you are set up for a successful quarter.

Lastly, we’ll Wrap Up.

Which starts with deciding if there are any Cascading Messages that need to go out to the rest of the company for those that aren’t in this room. You have to decide how you’re going to tell everyone, what you’re going to say, and when you’re going to say it. And then we’ll review everyone’s To Do’s so that there is no confusion as to who is responsible for what.

As always, the final step in wrapping up is a Go or No Go decision. After each of these days together you have the option to continue on in the process or to stop right there. If you choose to Go, we’ll meet again in 90 days for your next Quarterly Meeting. But if you choose No Go, we’ll make sure you have everything you need to use what you’ve learned in these first four days and wish you luck.

If it is a Go, there is also the option to move to a retainer relationship in which we would be on call to help you with any projects or Rocks in between the Quarterly Meetings. We will dedicate one full day a month to work with you and your team in person. We’ll also check in with you, the CEO, every week to review progress and problem solve. The majority of our clients do choose to move to a retainer, but it is not required by any means.

The PSE Method can help get your company unstuck and moving towards your goals again. It is singularly focused on helping your company run more effectively and efficiently.

If you’d like to learn more about the PSE Method, give us a call today.