Focused on Accountability?

Accountability is a hot topic these days. In my recent experience, accountability is most always referred to in a context that means, “Why aren’t THEY taking greater ownership over their work?”
 
If you manage others, it can be frustrating when you feel that you have made expectations clear, provided ample support, and removed obstacles, yet you’re still not seeing the results, effort or ownership that you hope for.
 
Not wanting to micro-manage, managers dissatisfied with accountability get creative…

• Let’s create incentives to provide motivation!
• We need consequences to sculpt behavior!
• Maybe I should offer training for the whole team? (Even though it is just one or two people who need it.)
• I’ll just wait and see what happens.

Unfortunately, when we look toward another person and want, wish or will them to change, it never works. Instead of continuing to run the same old loops, turn the mirror around and ask yourself a few hard questions:

1. Have I built trust in this relationship so that I can give direct, honest feedback about what I observe and what I need, and it will be received without causing damage?
   
   Trust provides a foundation for accountability because in high trust relationships you can talk about expectations, standards and mistakes without it feeling like a blow to the ego. When a person really knows that you have a high positive regard for them as a human being, these conversations are easier to have. Step back and reflect: have I provided ample recognition for my direct report? Have I pointed out their strengths and gifts? Do I acknowledge their contributions regularly? If not, it’s time to get started!
2. Have I supported success through consistent 1:1s - specifically by providing clear expectations and then monitoring progress on a regular basis?   1:1 Meetings are a great forum for building trust and for providing CLARITY, and yet, many managers are not leveraging the 1:1 for all it’s worth. Luckily, I created a FREE RESOURCE (download from my website) that can help you make every 1:1 more meaningful. Get it HERE.
3. Have I had the hard conversations I need to have in a timely manner? Or have I perhaps been sitting on my frustration for a long period of time, subtly giving the impression that things are “fine?” When your manager doesn’t communicate about what’s going wrong, it’s much harder for you to fix it, right!? Do your team members a favor and address difficulties swiftly and clearly. It takes courage, but if you have that strong foundation of trust that we talked about, you’ll be able to tackle issues while they are still small and much hardship will be saved!
4. Have I done a deep dive on the real barriers that might be holding my person back? This one can be tough because sometimes the barriers to success are invisible.

Though performance challenges CAN be very frustrating, YOU have a lot of power to make a positive difference. II’m here to help.
 
Check out my resource page, ClaireLaughlin.com/resourcesmembers/ for a wide variety of FREE videos and worksheets that are specifically designed to help you tackle accountability issues and be a Happy, High-Energy Leader!