A walk-around number is a casual yet succinct way to talk about your current projects – a chance to promote what you’re doing inside and outside your organization while forcing you to measure your work (something we all know is important yet often skip). Your walk-around number can be handy in the elevator, at a coffee meeting, or the minutes before your Zoom meeting starts.
These short, digestible statements quickly share what you’re up to, make others aware of the work itself, and give credibility to the job.
Examples of Walk Around Numbers:
- “One transmission every thirty seconds – that’s the goal at least.” – an engineer at a manufacturing plant.
- “We did about 90 deals this year.” – a large animal veterinarian.
- “Just put another 52 managers through our leadership training.” – a Talent Management consultant.
- “Our retention is around 85% after the two years.” – Post-grad program owner.
- Much of our work happens when in “heads down” mode. Walk-around numbers and shareable moments are handy in our work’s “heads up” part.
Imagine this scene: You ride in the elevator at work, and your CEO gets in clutching her sunglasses and notebook, balancing her oversized coffee cup. “Hey there, how’s it going?” she asks quickly. You reply, “Good! Yeah, ready for the weekend!” “Yes, me too,” your CEO smiles as she breezes out of the elevator to prepare for her morning meeting. This brief interaction was pleasant enough but could have added more value for you or her.
Instead, this moment could have gone something like this: You get into the elevator, only to find the CEO of your company standing toward the back. She notices when you walk in and says, “Hey there, how’s it going?” You reply, “Good! Yeah, ready for the weekend. Yesterday our team just wrapped another leadership training. We put another 34 managers through it!” The CEO looks momentarily impressed before she steps out of the elevator, saying, “Really? Well, that’s great!” When she’s walking away, you hear her whisper to her Executive Assistant, “Hey, did you know our last leadership class had 34 managers in it?” Having that walk-around number ready allowed you to share your work quickly and conversationally. Your CEO normally would not have had that level of detail in your daily work, but now she does.