The Catholic Leadership Institute developed a management class for priests called Good Leaders Good Shepherds. It is my hope that the ideas and terms from their class will help us communicate the goals and objectives of our parish better.

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KEY RESPONSIBILITY AREAS (KRA'S)

A Key Responsibility Area Statement describes ongoing role functions. A KRA Statement is started by grouping tasks and activities that focus on one or more specific areas and starting the purpose and benefits of performing those tasks.  The KRA Statement is broader and less specific than a Goal Statement or Task Statement. 

Step 1:           Take the time to write down all the things that you do in the course of your work for the Church. 

Step 2:           Sort the above list into 3-6 categories.  One of these categories should be about personal development. 

Step 3:           Write you Key Responsibility Statements (KRAs)

Writing a KRA Statement: Does – What – Why
Does
-           Contains two or more verbs
-           Describes ongoing function
What
-           Outlines a functional area
-           Describes a group of activities and tasks in a specific area; such as, customer service, sales, merchandise analysis,       etc.
Why
-           Clarifies the intent of the function and how it benefits the organization.
-           Helps self leaders understand how they influence final outcomes.
-           Adds meaning to the tasks and activities
-           Makes the connection between individual effort and the larger organizational picture.
*          A good KRA normally has two to three action verbs.

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SMART GOALS

When making goals for yourself or your organization please keep the following in mind.

SPECIFIC
1          Is goal an end result, not a set of action steps or how to’s?
2          Does this goal contain an action verb that leads to a specific outcome?
3          Does goal NOT contain fuzzy words and verbs?
4          Is the goal measurable in terms of Quantity—how much?   Quality—what level? Timeliness—completion date or  % of change
5          Is goal measurable through a result ratio or is a change in attitude?

MOTIVATING
1          Is achieving or doing the goal a reward in itself?
2          What does working on this goal do to your energy level?
3          What do you find useful about this goal?
4          Why do you want to achieve this goal?
5          Would you get one of the three primary intrinsic motivators from achieving this goal?
                 a.            Growing as an individual
                 b.            Having a satisfying personal relationship
                 c.            Making a contribution to the community, organization, or something greater than yourself.

ATTAINABLE
1              Have performance standards been established after consideration of questions, such as:
                a.            What was past performances for the goal achiever?
                b.            What is industry average?
                c.             What is group average of others who are also achieving the goal?
                d.            As the leader, would I be willing to accept this goal if it were mine?
2              Does the goal have a ranger of standards from acceptable to outstanding performance?
3              Is the goal within the control of the goal achiever?

RELEVANT
1          Is this goal the most important of all the goals that need to be accomplished?
2          Where does this goal “fit” or rank in relation to other goals to be achieved?
3          To what key responsibility area is this goal connected?
4          If this goal is not accomplished at a satisfactory level, would/could it be argued that the KRA has not been fulfilled?

TRACK-ABLE
1          Consistency
            a.            What information will be collected to measure progress?
            b.            How will it be collected?
            c.             Will the collection of the information be done the same way over time?
2          Frequency - How often do you collect information to monitor progress toward the goal?
3          Fairness – Is the information that will be used to measure success…
            a.            Unbiased?
            b.            Collected by someone not vested in the outcome?
            c.             Verifiable?
            d.            Not subject to outside variables, influences, or contingencies?
4.         Timing
            a.            Is there a deadline for an end result?
            b.            Are there milestones for reflection and evaluation?
            c.             Is there an established start date to help overcome procrastination?

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PROBLEM SOLVING & CONFLICT RESOLUTION

The following steps can provide a road map for problem solving and decision making.
 
Step 1:         Define the Problem*
What is causing you to fail or preventing you from succeeding?  Remember the apparent issue may not be the “real” issue so take some time to do some honest investigation of the problem.  You may want to use Root Cause Analysis worksheet to help you.
 
Step 2:         Define Objectives
What is that you are trying to accomplish?  Sometimes people working together may simply have different goals.
 
Step 3:         Generate Alternatives
Take a moment to brainstorm at least 12 possible alternatives and evaluate them all.  Remember in brainstorming all ideas are welcomed.
 
Step 4:         Develop An Action Plan
Choose the alternative that you think will best help you reach your objective and make a plan to implement it.
 
Step 5:         Troubleshoot
Take some time now to anticipate future problems and how to avoid them.
 
Step 6:         Communicate
Make sure that everyone who needs to know of the decision learns about it.  What is the best way to communicate the decision to others?
 
Step 7:         Implement
Now that a decision has been made, an action plan has been developed, future problems anticipated, and everyone knows what he or she needs to know, not it is time to implement the plan.
*             Use all sevens steps for problem solving and only the last six for decision making.