A professional’s success is often determined by their accountability. Without any sense of accountability, any professional’s career trajectory would be downward sloping. The same can be said for businesses at large as well. Meaning it’s imperative to establish a staff full of accountable employees as without them your business will likely fail. This can be particularly challenging, as finding naturally accountable employees is no easy task. It’s even harder to instill a sense of accountability in existing employees. Organizations should always push their employees to take more responsibility and accountability as they often directly relate to a sense of heightened job satisfaction, an increase in an organization’s bottom line and more chances for professional advancement.
You might think that accountability starts with employees, but the truth is, the ability to hold employees accountable should be a skill in every managers’ repertoire. However, recent research indicates that four in five managers feel as though they have little to no ability to hold their staff accountable. The same research found that nine in ten employees have indicated that their organizations should further prioritize managers being able to hold their coworkers accountable more effectively.
While it may seem simple, the truth is that spreading this value throughout an organization can be difficult. Of the most important ways to instill this value, one stands out above the rest. It all starts at the top of the organization’s hierarchy. Executive and managerial staff need to set the bar high enough in regards to taking blame and communicating their mistakes and their suggested solutions. Only though this communication can any issue or mistake be properly assessed and solved. This is the type of accountability that employees should strive to achieve, while also being the value that should differentiate aspiring employees interviewing for any organization.
It’s also up to the executives and managers of any organization to set forth clear goals of a company and its’ expectations of its’ employees. The sooner these expectations are known, the more likely that employees are able to adapt and fulfill their responsibilities accordingly. In some instances, it may require an overarching understanding of how their roles are incorporated in the overall success of their organization in order to see the best results. This often requires executives and managers to begin these conversations, but they should also foster an open-door type policy in regards to employee communication, specifically regarding questions or concerns.
It’s no easy task cultivating a culture that relies so heavily on accountability for any organization. When this culture is fully realized, however, an organization can truly strive. Any organization searching for additional information regarding how they can improve their workplace culture, be sure to take a minute and review the infographic paired alongside this post. Courtesy of Minute7.