A few years back, I was a member of a group that was looking to design the managerial roles, management systems and work processes for a new organization. We were being helped by one of the then Big Five consultancy firms. As part of this, the consultants produced a set of draft job descriptions, which included one for the role that I was filling.
I saw the descriptions as bland, matter-of-fact and limiting.
But, when I argued that I was not excited by them, my comments were dismissed by the in-house sponsor: "Job descriptions are not meant to excite," he insisted, "Provided they set out the main activities of the role and identify what’s in and what’s not, that’s good enough for me." My continued protests fell on deaf ears. Or so I thought.
During a break, the Director chairing the meeting confided that he’d agreed with what I’d said. Of course, he couldn’t say so in the meeting itself - money had been spent on getting the experts’ advice and the ‘defender in chief’ was his right-hand man – but he asked me to send him an outline of my thoughts. And so, the Contribution Statement was born.
Making a difference
The aim of the Contribution Statement is to provide vision, and to answer the question:
“What specific contribution do we want from the role which, if performed excellently, will make a significant difference to the organization’s performance and capability?”
It therefore begins by stating the role’s purpose – to make clear why it exists at all(!). And it then sets out the performance aims for which the role-holder is accountable.
Whereas Job Descriptions:
- focus inward on pre-defined activities
- relate to tasks and resources used
- use neutral, matter-of-fact language
- accept a passive, ‘doing the job’ approach
- seek conformity and compliance
- look for performance within pre-determined boundaries
- discourage personal growth and development beyond the role.
… Contribution Statements:
- focus on outward contribution
- relate to objectives and results
- are positive and challenging
- promote a pro-active, ‘making a difference’ approach
- increase the scope for individual initiative
- encourage continuous improvement of performance in line with emerging possibilities
- stimulate personal growth and development within and beyond the role.
In summary, Contribution Statements clarify the ‘making a difference’ contributions that help people to create meaning and purpose in their work. The focus on outputs (contribution and results) rather than inputs (resource usage and activities carried out) is an invitation to escape from the ‘activity trap’ of rigid job descriptions and procedural straight-jackets that too often limit performance – and ambition. It lets people concentrate instead on:
- excelling at what they do
- delivering meaningful results
- discovering new ways of adding value
- developing the role and their own capabilities, to continue this upward spiral of performance as new challenges, expectations and opportunities emerge.
Job descriptions fall well short of the mark in all four of these areas.
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