Aligning Employee Goals with Company Objectives

Wisdom from Mark Cuban and Dwight D. Eisenhower

A recent article on Mark Cuban’s leadership philosophy quotes him on something I think a lot of leaders miss—the CEO’s imperative to align their own goals with the goals of their employees.

Says Cuban:

Leadership is having a vision. What’s my goal.

Part two is getting to know the people who are working with me, and what their goals are.

And then the real definition of leadership is making those two merge.

It’s a lot like what Cuban told me when I interviewed him several years ago and asked about his management approach. He told me one of his formative experiences was

recognizing that if my vision wasn’t aligned with those of my employees . . . nothing works.

Cuban’s point is basically a version of my favorite leadership quote of all time, Dwight D. Eisenhower’s definition of leadership: