3 Steps to Building an Accountable Organization

"He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else."  Benjamin Franklin

Today we hear a lot about accountability, but it appears that holding people responsible for their behavior and their actions is a lost art.  Accountability, too many times, seems like a corporate buzzword. True accountability is when you are held responsible for your actions and the decisions you make.

Accountability may not be as easy as 1-2-3, but here are 3 steps that can result in an accountable organization.

1.  Provide Clear Expectations - You cannot hold someone accountable if they do not know what they are being accountable for. The clearer the goals and expectations, the less time you will spend managing poor performance or misaligned expectations.

2.  Monitor and Measure - Setting clear goals with the appropriate metrics allows employees to know how they are doing and whether they are meeting expectations. You need information if you are going to measure their performance. It also allows them to know how they are doing against stated goals. This is also a good time to provide constructive feedback.

3.  Don't Compromise - If there are consequences for not meeting expectations, you must, for the good of the organization, hold people strictly accountable for the results.  However, if they are consistently meeting expectations, they should be rewarded for their performance.

Lastly, before you can hold anyone accountable you must hold yourself accountable. 

Taking Responsibility Is More Than Just Saying It

Unless you are living under a rock, you have heard the story about New York Congressman, Anthony Weiner’s fall from grace.  With the release of certain provocative photos of him which he had sent from his Twitter account, Congressman Weiner has been hit by the media, and both the Republican and Democratic parties.  First, he denied the photos were of him, however with the threat of the release of additional photos, he finally came clean.

“…and you may be sure that your sin will find you out.” Numbers 32:23 NIV

“For there is nothing hidden that shall not be disclosed, nor anything secret that shall not be known and come out into the open.”  Luke 8:17 AMP

When Anthony Weiner says he has taken responsibility for his actions, I am not sure he has.  Taking responsibility is more than just saying it.  When one takes responsibility, especially for a wrong action on their part, they should also be willing to be held accountable.

In Congressman Weiner’s case, I believe that if he really wanted to take responsibility, he would resign.  However, he has steadfastly said that he is not going to resign even though members of his own party are calling for his resignation.  This is what is wrong with some of our leaders today—they say one thing, but do another.   They think they are above it all and that rules and laws don’t apply to them.  There is this belief that because of their position and power they can do and say almost anything they want.  It is all about them. As a result, the public continues to be very cynical when it comes to politicians. 

With this latest failure of one of our elected officials (there will be others) , it is clear that many people do not have any real understanding of what it means to be responsible. Responsibility means you are willing to be held accountable for your actions.

I believe we must demand more of our leaders, not perfection, but sound ethical behavior from leaders  who live by an uncompromising set of standards.  Is that too much to ask of the men and women that we trust to run our country?  If it is, we are indeed in trouble.

The Blame Game

A few years back our company was in a deep decline. Revenues were down and sales were extremely slow. The cause of the problem was poor decision making and a lack of understanding of our business. The general manager in charge of the largest division of our company made several decisions that accelerated the decline. As the Vice President, I was asked by the CEO if I would take over the division, and I gladly accepted the challenge.

I proceeded to implement a new strategy for the business and within several months we began to experience a significant turnaround. I made the best decisions I could, but not all of them proved to be successful—sometimes you learn through trial and error. When something I tried failed, I did not point to the prior leader as an excuse for my failure.

Leaders accept the blame when we fail and give the team the credit when we succeed.

As a nation we continue to endure an unemployment rate of 9.5%, crime, war, poor educational system, homelessness, foreclosures, etc. Politicians on both sides of the aisle claim to have all the answers. Meanwhile many Americans continue to suffer through one of the greatest downturns in our country’s history.

When asked why things are not turning around, our elected officials continually blame the prior administration’s policies and the mess they inherited. Even if there is truth in that position, it should not have come as a surprise. After all it was clearly evident that our nation was in trouble and none of our problems were hidden from those who said they had the answers to setting the country on a new course of prosperity. When it did not happen they merely blamed the prior administration. They were elected on the promise of “Change”.

If we are ever going to extricate ourselves from this morass, we as a nation need to come together and work through issues that continue to divide us. We must be willing to be held accountable for the actions we take and the decisions we make, not play the blame game.

True leaders hold themselves accountable for the results of the decisions they make, good and bad.

The lives of millions of Americans are at stake. Fear and anxiety continue to dominate the hearts and minds of those who do not see a future with much hope. If we continue to seek out our own interests and not those of all Americans, Democrats, Independents and Republicans alike, we will continue to decline. Remember, this economy is affecting us all.

Are you willing to be held accountable for the decisions you make?

Honest Man

“I hope I shall possess firmness and virtue enough to maintain what I consider the most enviable of all titles, the character of an honest man.”
George Washington

My family and I went out for dinner at one of our favorite burrito places. With our meal we asked for water cups instead of sodas, much to the disappointment of our kids. After getting our food we went to fill our cups with water. When my son got to the table with his drink he noticed that he had, out of habit, filled his cup with coke. Without any prodding he quickly went back to the register and told the manager what had happened and that he wanted to pay for the drink. The manager had this stumped and surprised look on his face. He could not believe that this young man would be honest enough to voluntarily pay for something he did not order. A smile gradually appeared on the man’s face and he graciously said to my son, "Thank you for your honesty, the drink is on me."

My son could have easily hidden the fact that he was drinking a soda he had not paid for. The manager could have accepted payment and would have been justified for doing so. However, both responded in a way that exhibited character and a key attribute of a leader, honesty.

In today’s world many of our leaders lack character. They make promises they do not keep. They operate in the world of “quid pro quo.” They refuse to accept responsibility for their actions and the words they say. It’s amazing how we as a country continue to accept leaders with poor character. We must demand more from our leaders whether they are in politics or in business. Why? Because the decisions they make can have a significant negative impact on the people they lead. Wall Street is a prime example. Taking sweetheart mortgage deals, stashing money in freezers, and lying about sexual relationships must be challenged. Until we stop accepting mediocre leadership we will continue to underperform as a nation.

In our home my wife and I have tried to instill into our kids the importance of character. We are so proud of our son for doing what he knew was right and displaying the kind of character that is essential to good leadership. My son could not have enjoyed the coke had he not paid for it.

Leadership Essential #1, Honesty - check.

Room To Grow

Like most men I know I am not really into taking care of plants. However, in my office I had a plant and for a long time it thrived and gave me a lot of visual pleasure. Over time I noticed that the leaves on the plant had begun to turn brown. I continued to water it, but to no avail. The leaves had a burned look and then began to wilt. I thought about whether I should throw the plant away.

One day a woman with a floral printed smock and a floppy straw hat came by my office bringing new plants. I asked her what she was doing and she said her company provides plants for offices and maintains them on a weekly basis. I asked her if she could take a look at my plant and let me know whether it could be saved. She took one look at it and told me the plant had outgrown the planter. All that needed to be done was to place it in a larger planter with new soil and it would recover. At my request, she placed it in a new planter with new soil and shortly thereafter the plant gradually showed signs of new life. Over the next few weeks the plant was back to full health.

As a general manager I was responsible for leading a team of over 70 salaried staff. Part of my responsibilities was to work with the various supervisors in evaluating the individual performance of their team members. During one such evaluation we were discussing one of our once-excellent employee’s work. We noticed that over the previous few months his performance had not been up to standard. In spite of our best efforts we could not turn him around and as such we had to make a decision on whether we would need to separate him from the company.

I kid you not, while sitting in my office one day I glanced at that plant that had once been dying and was now completely restored and thought of that employee. We brought him into my office and had a different conversation this time. The result was we determined that he had outgrown his position. He felt stagnated and unchallenged. It so happened that we had a manager’s position opening up that we believed he would be a great fit for, and would do an excellent job. We promoted him and sure enough he became one of our best managers.

When I look back, I think of what a shame it would have been to throw both the plant and employee out simply because I did not understand the importance of environment. As leaders it is our responsibility to mentor, coach, and challenge our employees to grow and play bigger within our organizations. When we do, we all win and we have the pleasure of watching the growth of our potential replacement.

Have you ever been in a pot too small or given someone an opportunity to grow, and how did it turn out?

Introducing Leadership Perspectives

With all of the books, tapes, seminars and workshops on leadership, why is it so hard to find good leaders? This blog has been developed out of my frustration and concern with the lack of leadership in today’s society. From Wall Street to Main Street and everywhere in between it is very hard to find both men and women who are willing to stand up for what is right and to be held accountable for their decisions. Being rewarded for poor performance seems to be the benchmark for today’s leaders.

In my future posts I will share my perspectives on leadership and the critical need for men and women to take a stand and fill the leadership vacuum. It is up to all of us to look deep within ourselves and ask the question, “If not me, then who?”

There will be discussions on the importance of character and integrity in leadership. It is my desire to stimulate insightful discussions on the subject of leadership and how we all can become better leaders in our homes, our communities and our work places.

Because of my varied background from my days of being a union steward for over 600 employees, to managing real estate, to building a successful construction service company with over 1200 employees in 23 markets, I believe I have a unique perspective on leadership. In addition, I am very passionate about leadership and want to have a positive impact on the development of future leaders as I continue my own development.

I hope you will join me in the discussion and comment frequently in the exchange of ideas and perspectives on leadership.