Meme Menagerie

Here’s an almost-completely-baked model / acronym / mnemonic / metaphor,  that addresses the key elements that go into achieving success (also called “performance”) in business and life  (yes… we’re being ambitious today) : 

A.V.O.C.A.D.O.

or…

A+V+O+C+A+D=O

Where the last ”O” stands for ”Outcomes” aka, Results.

 

 Start at the core (the pit?) of this A.V.O.C.A.D.O. model and work your way out:

A = Aspirations: What are you striving for? What’s the vision? ..the mission? ..the goal? ..the dream?

V=Values: What rules are you playing by? If you don’t understand the relationship between standards of behavior (sometimes called”ethics”) and performance, talk to my good friend David Gebler. 

O=Opportunities: What is available to you?   Many human performance models ignore this element, and/or take it as a given — mainly because it’s outside a person’s control — but I take a less (or more?) controlling view of these matters.  After all, we don’t control everything internal to our organizations or even every aspect of ourselves, but we still generally include those things in our typical performance models.  Some of us are born with or without certain capabilities, in a way that makes us stand out from the crowd, and the same goes for the opportunities that our environment presents.     Yet, our available opportunities are  a crucial factor to us consider, together with the other variables in this model.   Furthermore, as with the other factors of success, our available opportunities can be deliberately manipulated using actions that are guided by decisions or strategies which change our external environment… not all the time, but often. 

For example, let’s say you’re looking to sell something… or get a job… or find a mate. In some cases, changing your location will be a viable strategy that improves your available opportunities.  Other times, your opportunities will be constrained by externalities beyond your control… or will be constrained as a result of your own aspirations and values.    So, yes, let’s include oppportunities as part of our A.V.O.C.A.D.O. performance formula.   You can think of it as the back half of  a S.W.O.T. analysis… and then some… as Peter Senge notes, opportunities (aka “reality“) and aspirations are often in creative tension.  Don’t deny reality… work with it… stretch it upwards to a better place.

C=Capabilities: What can you do? What knowledge and skills do you possess / need to possess?  What learned abilities do you have (or need to have), and what natural talents or strengths can you leverage, to get stuff done?  Most corporate “talent development” functions — e.g. recruiting, hiring, training and coaching –  deal with this part of the equation.

A=Attitudes: What kind of emotional energy do you have… or need to have?  To quote something often said by the good folks at rogenSi: What  is your “ability to access your ability” when it matters most? What beliefs about reality (as opposed to beliefs around values – that’s a different part of this model) cause you to act on your capabilities effectively?  Human brains are not computers – effectively harnessing the non-rational aspects of our minds is a key component to achieving success, whatever your aspirations are.

D=Disciplines: What are the good habits that you practice? Some people call this “following a process” which sort of makes sense… though discipline is so much more than process, it’s process done with perseverance and purpose. Disciplines are a willful mastery of the things described above. Disciplines are what enable you to take the A.V.O.C.A. and achieve the outer “skin” of this model, namely…

O=Outcomes: What are your results?  Taken as the output of  the equation, outcomes are the sum (product?) of all the other A.V.O.C.A.D. elements… but outcomes are also an important input to the equation, in terms of reinforcement and continuous improvement/development of those elements.

THE SALES PITCH:  This model captures, in a few tasty bites, some of the key concepts that are embedded in the more complex systems — for example,  BPM (Business Performance Management), HPT (Human Performance Technology), OBM (Organizational Behavior Management), and probably several other TLAs (Three Letter Acronyms) that I’m not thinking of – all of which seek to help people and businesses get stuff done and achieve success.

Example of how to apply the A.V.O.C.A.D.O. Model:  

For a long time now, I’ve been looking for an easy-to-remember checklist of criteria to use when analyzing performance issues.  Training and development consultants tell you that your performance problems can be solved by their training.  Leadership consultants tell you that your problems can be solved by their vision and values alignment seminars. Research analysts tell you that your problems can be solved by their market insights. Management consultants tell you that your problems can be solved by their processes and strategies (and PowerPoint decks and high daily billable rates). Mental health professionals tell you that your problems can be solved by yourself… with a little guidance from them, and maybe some meds.  So, before you hire that army of consultants and shrinks, slice open the A.V.O.C.A.D.O. and take stock of the issues. This well-rounded (egg shaped?) model offers a level of breadth that is found in some of the more complex and rigorous performance consulting process diagrams/systems that are out there, but without all the… process.   

For example, I’m currently designing a diagnostic survey for a client, one of the Big Four accounting firms, to measure (a) their people’s competency in a few specific “soft skills” areas, and (b) to gauge individual interest in receiving training in those areas.  This little A.V.O.C.A.D.O. was useful for me to think about the kinds of questions that I was asking in the survey, in relation to those competencies/behaviors:  What is their current state of knowledge or skill?  What kinds of attitudes are they bringing to the table?  What kinds of output (results) were they seeing? What do they value?  How often were they exercising “good habits” versus “bad habits,” and so forth.

The “opportunities” vector didn’t play out too much in this particular diagnostic survey, but it will be very important in terms of designing & delivering training to these folks, based on the output of the survey. When designing and delivering a learning intervention, having a good understanding of the performance context and the opportunities it presents, is second only to understanding who the learner is and what they’re all about.

So, to recap:

AVOCADO stands for:  Aspirations, Values, Opportunities, Capabilities, Attitudes, Disciplines &  Outcomes

Combine that with a T.O.M.A.T.O. human performance model, an O.N.I.O.N model and some L.E.M.O.N.  (or my preference, O.R.A.N.G.E), then you’ve got yourself a…

Grand

Utopian

Altruistic

Community

Accommodating

Many

Other

Learning

Excellencies….

 

(I’ve just killed it, haven’t I…)

Filed under: Business, Information Design, Jargon, Learning, Life