May 2007
Follow-Through and Accountability are the Cornerstones for Achieving Success and Maintaining Morale
Earlier this month, while reading an e-mail from one of my clients who chairs a volunteer board, I felt a sinking feeling and let out a large groan. A recalcitrant committee chair had insisted on an individual meeting with her, even though a meeting had already been scheduled to include him and several others on his committee to avoid problems that had been experienced the prior two years. My immediate thought was that this individual would persuade her to undo plans and discussions held over several meetings by the board's executive committee. After all, this organization has been famous for its whimsical leadership style./p>
To my surprise (and pleasure), my client who has been coached on the importance of consistency and accountability, handled the situation perfectly. As she noted: "When one of my chairpersons asks me for a meeting, I think that it is my responsibility to respond to their request. The meeting was actually quite uneventful, because I simply reiterated our intention to oversee the committee and to place key members on the committee to ensure our successful transition with the changes that are taking place this next year."/p>
The relief and reassurance I felt hearing about that experience is quite different from what most people feel in the following situations:
- How many times have you left a meeting excited about all of the great ideas that were generated, only to be disappointed some time later when you discovered that those "great ideas" were never followed-up on?
- What about the time when you reluctantly agreed to support a costly project only after the person championing the idea told you that your concerns about implementation were unwarranted? And then after the money was spent, the project languished without anyone taking responsibility.
- Do you remember a multi-day strategic planning retreat where all of the key stakeholders developed your organization's Mission, Vision, and Values? Are they used or left sitting on a shelf somewhere collecting dust?
- Have you worked for a boss who started a new business fad every year but never really stuck with any of them?
Everyday leaders, employees, and volunteer workers experience situations like these, in which morale and motivation are seriously damaged. The worst part of it is each of these examples started off with good intentions. They just lacked the follow-through needed to achieve the intended results.
As with most situations, the solutions to these types of problems can be achieved through the proper combination of people, process, and structure. In this article I'm going to address the people solutions, while my partner, Rick, and one of our consultants, Bernie, will tell you about process and structure solutions in their articles.
Learning How to Ensure Follow-Through and Accountability
In the June 2006 newsletter, you were able to read about how to effectively use collaboration in a decision-making process and how to build a team that gets results. Collaboration is the tool that creates buy-in and commitment from all of the key stakeholders when decisions are made. Conversely, as Patrick Lencioni notes in his book The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, the best results possible will not be achieved if the people responsible are not held accountable for or do not focus on the results.
Much easier said than done, right? Most of us are uncomfortable pointing out to others that we feel they are not living up to their commitments or following through on agreements. We often don't know how to say what we think without sounding confrontational. We worry that we will make them mad and make things worse, so we just settle in silence, hoping that everything will work out.
It's usually what we are feeling about the person or the situation that gets in the way of our speaking up or saying the correct thing when we do. So the first step is simply to stop and take a look at what you are truly feeling. Are you feeling frustrated, hurt, sad or angry? Then ask yourself, why would I be feeling this way?
It's the thoughts we have -- the meanings we give to situations -- that cause our feelings. Sometimes those thoughts are irrational, but most of the time they provide us with good information about our own expectations or observations. Identifying these underlying thoughts and letting go of our ensuing feelings can be the key to addressing the problems directly and more effectively. Now ask yourself, if I weren't (frustrated, hurt, sad, or angry), what would I say to (the person you think should be responsible) about this?
Let's take a couple of the examples above to talk about how this method might work.
You left a meeting excited about all of the great ideas that were generated, only to be disappointed some time later when you discovered that those "great ideas" were never followed-up on.
- How were you feeling? Disappointed.
- Why would you be feeling that way? The previous meeting had been about solving a key issue that, say, had been affecting how much extra work you had to do in your department. Because no one followed through on their part, you feel like they don't know, appreciate, or even care how much harder you have to work. If you simply stay feeling disappointed, you might think about finding a way to leave the situation you are in -- perhaps even looking for another job. If you just stay and continue to say nothing, you will probably become angry and resentful.
- If you weren't feeling disappointed, what might you say either to the group that came up with the ideas or to the person in charge of the group?
- "A few weeks ago we came up with some great ideas for solving (the key issue in your department) and I'd like for us to talk about where we are in implementing those ideas."
- Then you can say what you remember the group had agreed to do and ask if you are accurate in your recollection. If everyone agrees, you can let the group know that implementation of the solutions is important to the work you do and ask if everyone would agree to a specific date to have them completed.
You reluctantly agreed to support a costly project only after the person championing the idea told you that your concerns about implementation were unwarranted. And then after the money was spent, the project languished without anyone taking responsibility. (This one is more difficult!)
- How were you feeling? Angry, manipulated, frustrated.
- Why would you be feeling that way? You had been right when you expressed concerns that implementation of the costly program might be more difficult than presented by the "champion." You had allowed yourself to back away from your concerns, and money that people had worked hard to collect was now being wasted (Note that this example comes from a charitable organization, but it can of course apply to a profit-making enterprise as well). The "champion" had made you feel as though you were an obstructionist because you are too conservative and pessimistic; now you would really like to say, "I told you so." You feel the champion has dropped the ball, just as you expected. All of these feelings could really get you into trouble. And if this wasn't the first time that this has happened, you might want some coaching if you don't find great relief in the suggestion below. You are a great person to have on the team; it's just learning how to use your strength earlier on in the decision-making process that will make you more effective and happier.
- If you weren't feeling angry, manipulated, and frustrated what might you say either to the group that agreed to support the project or to the person in charge of the group? (Notice I did not say, to the "champion" of the project.)
- "Several months ago we agreed to a significant investment in the X project and I'd like for us to talk about where we are in implementing that project."
- Then you can say what you remember the group had agreed to and ask if you are accurate in your recollection. If everyone agrees, you can then ask that the group schedule a time to evaluate the progress to date and identify the issues that may be preventing the project from achieving the expected results.
Perhaps you noticed that these solutions apply to situations where a group was involved in the decision-making process, which is much more common in today's work environment. When the people in a group are responsible for making a decision, you will serve them and yourself well by having the courage to get the group to focus on and be accountable for achieving the results that they wanted in the first place.
To your business success!
Gail Schaper-Gordon, Ph.D.