Outputs vs. Outcomes
Are you looking to accelerate your career? Do you want to get a raise, a promotion, or show that you’re moving up in an organization? Here’s something to think about: Most people starting their careers focus on getting things done.
Getting things done is important, but if you want to become highly valuable in your organization, worth more money, bonuses, and higher roles, then it’s not just about productivity. It’s about effectiveness. Both are important, but there’s a big difference between the two. You can’t be effective if you aren’t productive, but don’t stop by only focusing on productivity. You also need to consider what it takes to be effective.
Let’s talk about the difference, which I refer to as the difference between outputs and outcomes.
What are Outputs?Outputs are the things that you control. They’re the results of your hard work, smarts, ingenuity, resourcefulness, and hustle. They’re things you can control, and if you create a lot of outputs, you’ll get lots of check marks from the boss too. But in some ways, by excelling at creating outputs, you’re making the team dependent on having you in that role. This makes it really hard if you want to be promoted out of that role. What you also need to think about is not just being productive, but being effective, and that’s about outcomes, not outputs.
What are Outcomes?An outcome is something that happens after your output. You aren’t in control of outcomes. For instance, imagine you’re a salesperson and your output is that you made several outbound calls, booked client meetings, and gave presentations. All of these things are productive, but did any of them lead to a signed contract? This is the outcome.
You don’t have to jump all the way to a signed contract, either. For example, did any of the meetings lead to a sales-qualified lead or a proposal? We can look at leading indicators, outcomes, but the key thing is that you don’t control those things. You don’t get to sign the contract on behalf of the client. You don’t get to take the next meeting, which are outcomes that happen as a result of your work.
How to Balance Outputs and OutcomesIf you want your star to rise in an organization, you need to balance your focus on outputs and outcomes. And if at any point all of your hard work and all of those outputs aren’t leading to outcomes, then you need to reassess.
Think about what you focus on all week. Are you focused on outputs, and have you connected those to the outcomes you need? Talk to your manager to find out what outcomes you should prioritize. One of the best ways to know that is to understand how your manager is being measured. The ways that your manager is being evaluated likely create some of the key outcomes that you need to think about. Also, talk to your manager about what’s working and what’s not working. If, over time, you’re not seeing a connection between more output and the outcomes you’re looking for, then ask what you need to change. What’s a new approach?
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Balance what you pay attention to, what you measure, what you manage, where your energy goes between outputs, and being productive. Consistently ask if your productivity is leading to the things that are most important for your team and your business. That’s what’s going to set you apart as somebody who’s more strategic and more business-oriented, and that’s where career growth is going to come from.
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