Cultures are made up of two things:
The viewpoints, agreements and personalities of those in a group, and
The setup, infrastructure and boundaries established within that group.
What we are trying to do is increase accountability.
Accountability = answerable to; will happen because of them.
Often we have people in roles who may DO a lot of work but they are not the SOURCE OF ENERGY for that role.
It is important that the person wearing the hat is the one who is the source of energy from that hat.
“SOMEONE IS ACCOUNTABLE WHEN THEY ARE THE SOURCE OF ENERGY FOR THAT THING.”
This doesn’t mean they need to know everything.
It doesn’t even mean they need to do everything.
What it does mean is that they should be the one who instigates effort, figures out what to do, coordinates with others to get something done, gets others to help them when need be, etc.
Unfortunately, we often see owners and managers being the source of energy for the roles underneath them, with a bunch of different staff who, in essence, are assistants.
The way you increase accountability and shift the source of energy is to have a reference point with which to compare.
“ACCOUNTABILITY CAN ONLY EXIST IN THE PRESENCE OF A REFERENCE POINT CLEVERLY MADE, AGREED UPON AND USED.”
“The enemy of accountability is ambiguity” - Patrick Lencioni
Here are the top Accountability Reference Points your team should have:
#1 Performance Chart - shows very clearly as a dynamic Org Chart who is accountable for what. If I asked your management team a simple question like “who is accountable for profit?” then counted down from 3…2…1… would I get the same answer from them? If not, you’re lacking a Performance Chart.
#2 Job descriptions - detailed breakdown of their role on the Performance Chart.
#3 Weekly Action Plans - clear, concise items that are achievable and checked every week. Must be super clear if not done.
#4 Process Trackers - key processes in the company mapped out with transparency on which step has been done by whom and when.
#5 Checklists - recurring daily, weekly or monthly items required to be done, tracked and reported back.
#6 Graph Dashboard - Unless you measure the output of an area, you’re reliant on opinion and emotion. In the ideal world, every role would be measured in some way. This isn’t always realistic but for most roles it really is possible.
Once you have these reference points, the last piece is ensuring each manager is trained on, and knows how to:
Set expectations
Correct their staff
Train their team
Enforce and use company policy
Coach and mentor their team to solve their own problems.
These points combined create a strong accountability culture that makes it impossible for staff issues to exist beyond a few days, and achieve 90% + of what is assigned to them.
If you would like to speak to us about our training and programs that help you implement these, reach out today - info@educatex.com.au
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