Accountability

The word “accountability” gets thrown around a lot in business.  We all like to think we’re holding ourselves and staff accountable, but are we?  Does your staff know what you expect on a daily/weekly/monthly basis?  Do they know why?  When someone doesn’t meet expectations, do you address it or try to hide from the information?

Of all the issues I’ve seen in business over 30+ years, failure to hold employees accountable has caused the most problems. 

Why is accountability so hard?

I’ve heard lots of excuses on this: I don’t have time to deal with it; I don’t want to have a hard conversation right now; it’s not a big deal—this time; they haven’t been here long enough, or they’ve been here too long; the list goes on. Often what happens is the issue mushrooms until the supervisor is frustrated and ready to terminate while the employee may not even know there’s a problem.

Ignoring expectations causes issues with the employee and other staff.  Who hasn’t worked with someone who never seems to get called on for not doing their job?  Or had a supervisor who never holds him/herself accountable?  These issues cause frustration, burnout, and retention issues with staff. 

So why do we allow it to continue unchecked?

First, make sure your employees know their responsibilities.  Be clear—if they don’t understand why what they do matters, that’s a problem.  No one wants mindless work; we want to feel we’ve accomplished something.  Every employee you have should be important to the organization or either you shouldn’t have hired them or you now need to make a change.

Concentrate on each position and make sure you know what you expect from them.  Then make sure the staff’s understanding mirrors yours so you’re on the same page.  Set review times and check-ins and pledge to hold yourself accountable, too. 

Requiring staff to uphold their responsibilities while ignoring your own is a great way to encourage discontent.

Understanding the role staff each play in an organization and holding them accountable in producing as expected helps employees be more targeted and industrious overall.

#positivity #accountability #management #hrconsultant

Knowing what their accountable for and why helps with employee productivity.