03.2008
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The Accountable Organization:
25 Years of Witnessing the Best
If every person in your organization were personally accountable, would you have an accountable organization? No. It would be nice if it were that simple. It would be nice if a one- or two-day training workshop could create an accountable organization, but it can't. Creating an accountable organization that results in benchmark performance results, high employee morale and retention, and achieves customer loyalty, is only created by commitment, courage and the never-ending pursuit of excellence beyond current standards. This article describes what many organizations want to achieve and few do. But unlike a theoretical discussion, our focus is on representing what organizations have achieved by practicing a high level of accountability. There are six qualities of the most accountable organizations.
Quality #1: The Ability to Recreate Itself
While many organizations spend countless time, effort and resources on visioning, strategic planning and change, many do not demonstrate the foresight or courage to recreate themselves. The difference: one looks like it is making progress but doesn't experience improved business results. The other creates a new paradigm for achieving business results and rises to benchmark status. One example could be seen in the automobile industry. Almost forty years ago, the Japanese auto manufacturers recreated themselves and eventually became the world leaders in that industry, surpassing the three big American automobile manufacturers. They have already become known as best in class.
Actions for Success
- What is your direction for the future and when was the last time you recreated yourself or thought of doing so?
- What would recreating yourself look like, based on your assessment of the future?
Quality #2: Clear Direction and Expectations through a Picture of Success
While we see many organizations create vision statements, value principles, strategic plans, dashboard processes and other sophisticated tracking mechanisms, they do not provide a "picture of success." The leading accountable organizations create a clear picture of success that describes their ideal picture of the future, something that everyone at all levels can experience and relate to. This picture includes a description of their customer reputation, standards of performance and efficiency, financial health and the culture relating specifically to execution – how people work together to achieve business results. This picture of success is non-negotiable and is referred to for all change efforts, significant decisions and strategic plans. It is compelling, inspiring and provides people with a context for change and increasing standards of excellence. In contrast, some companies develop slogans or use metrics that don't seem to be meaningful indicators of excellence. The concept of creating a picture of success permeates the organization, reaching every manager and supervisor, including delegations. Pictures of success are used as the basis of communication, rather than delegating tasks, which leaves room for interpretation and confusion.
Southwest Airlines created a clear picture of success that led to them becoming one of the most profitable airlines. They created a distinct culture for employees that resulted in clear customer loyalty and expectation for passengers.
Actions for Success
- What is your picture of success?
- How have you communicated that picture of success in a consistent and regular manner – using it as a reference point for change efforts, major decisions and continuous improvement?
Quality #3: Accountable Employee Engagement
While employee engagement has become a popular term in the past few years, it has also been a critical part of highly accountable organizations, which include people at all levels and value their input. Some organizations have misused empowerment as a way to avoid making people uncomfortable; in this way, they have abdicated their leadership role in setting new direction. The accountable organization facilitates input from people at all levels, regarding change and improvement in a way that is meaningful for everyone involved. An accountable organization engages employees for many purposes, including improving change efforts, planning execution, resolving challenges and problems, developing critical thinking and leadership skills and creating an environment of trust and support. Employee engagement is not used to make people comfortable with change, to seek people's approval for leadership's vision and direction, or as a human resources objective. It is purposeful, focused and improves performance execution and employees' sense of ownership.
Actions for Success
- How are you facilitating employee involvement and engagement?
- How do you make it safe for employees to raise issues in a way that supports a positive environment, focused on solutions?
- What can you do to engage employees more effectively, to support their development as leaders and critical thinkers?
Quality #4: An Environment of Change and Discomfort
One quality I notice in the most accountable organizations is the "buzz" that is heard when you walk down the halls. People are constantly asking questions about possibilities of improvement: "how can we be more responsive to customers; how can we improve our relationship with the IT department; how can we streamline our process or improve our efficiency?" What is most noticeable is the lack of crisis. While change is continual and a permanent fixture in the organization, crisis rarely exists.
In accountable organizations, people are not afraid of change, but they aren't comfortable with it either. Change of direction, process, structure and the like is welcomed, even though it is not comfortable. The organization presents the context for change, the picture of success for the change, but doesn't sell the change. Management is honest about the benefits and the drawbacks of change and there is an effort to make people safe with it, without making them comfortable or being concerned with buy-in before implementation. In fact, trust and credibility is developed through honest communication and addressing the challenges associated with change. And rather than complaining about change, employees at all levels are more focused on resolving challenges than using them as excuses for not making a change.
People also understand that some of the challenge associated with change is that their role may expand, resulting in them needing to develop more skill and competence. Ultimately, people feel supported during a change, even when they don't feel comfortable with it.
Actions for Success
- How do you currently promote change as an on-going culture and environment?
- How do you present change as an honest way to address issues, rather than selling the change, hoping for buy-in?
- How can you create an environment of support for people affected by change without making them comfortable?
Quality #5: A Supportive Environment for Challenging Others
I am fascinated with all the training programs that focus on giving people skills in managing conflict and having difficult conversations, when the environment or culture of the organization still exhibits a lack of trust, respect and support that results in fear. And we wonder why these kinds of programs are often short-lived in terms of results.
Accountable organizations put a great deal of effort into creating a culture and working environment that is based on the safety to make mistakes, surface problems and have conflicts. They develop clear processes, expectations and accountable agreements (not guidelines) for openly sharing issues in a supportive environment that builds trust. But even this is not the end goal for the high-performing accountable organization.
The top accountable organization is so dedicated to actualizing each person's and each team's potential that they commit to raising issues where optimization isn't taking place. Rather than being a negative focus to point out someone's faults or blame them, it sounds like this: "You are so important and I have so much respect for you that I won't let you perform at a substandard level, based on your capability." The concern is less for the results of the organization and more about each person realizing their highest level of capability.
You can tell when you are in a highly accountable organization, because people at all levels are continually challenging each other to higher levels of excellence. It is an inspiring and fun environment where each person is dedicated to raising the bar for the experiment and fun of it. This was often the case in the early days of Apple, where setting new standards of excellence was done in a fun and fast-paced environment.
Actions for Success
- What have you done to create accountable agreements to ensure that people feel supported in challenging each other or raising issues?
- How are people inspired to actualize their potential capability and raise the bar on their own performance and communication?
- Does each person have a personal vision of excellence that they are committed to attaining beyond job expectations?
Quality #6: Gratitude and Celebration Replaces Recognition
Many organizations have recognition awards and ceremonies. Sometimes it takes the form of employee of the month awards, while other times it involves a fun ceremony. However, accountable organizations create an environment of continual gratitude and celebration. Gratitude is expressed daily for the value that each employee provides , and for his or her contribution to the organization's success. It is less about achieving a particular goal and more about demonstrating a high level of integrity, commitment and dedication to one's role and job. It is about optimizing one's potential, whether it be in regard to communication, performance or teamwork. People at all levels are continually acknowledging others (yes, even upward and across levels) for their support, contribution, effort or great results.
While gratitude is freely and continuously expressed for the everyday effort and accomplishments of each person fulfilling their role and job, the organization and teams take special time for celebrating major accomplishments and achievements. This includes celebrating performance achievements and improvements.
As a result of having an environment of gratitude and celebration, people at all levels feel valued and respected. They love coming to work and the popular topic of work-life balance is rarely mentioned. Why? Because people are cared for at work as much as they are cared for at home, but not in a way that makes everyone comfortable.
- How are you expressing gratitude to and for your manager, your peers and your direct reports?
- How do you celebrate your wins and the wins of others, whether it be achieving goals and high standards of performance or making improvements?
- How do you convey each person's value and contribution on a regular basis?
Summary
Accountable organizations aren't perfect or lack problems. They make mistakes, bad decisions and have poor performing employees at all levels. The difference is that they address those issues in a way that supports their picture of success and helps those who don't fit into their desired culture to find jobs elsewhere. Accountable organizations require people to be courageous and dedicated to their own personal excellence. Accountable organizations build a high sense of trust by demanding integrity at all levels for open communication, a positive focus on finding solutions to problems and demonstrating respect for all roles that values each individual for his or her contribution. Accountable organizations work hard, play hard and demand a lot from their employees. They also give a lot back in the form of dignity, self-confidence, a true learning environment and being part of a winning team.
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