Create A Culture of Accountability

One of my clients hired me to set up a culture of accountability in an organization he was responsible for. It was a small outfit comprising 400 plus employees, a good time to install a structure of deep accountability.
 
This CEO wanted to elevate his employees to high performance by igniting their passion. He needed structured tools that ran down the line, so every employee understood their goals clearly. This enabled them to operate with success at their individual levels while indirectly engaging their teams to a higher level. 
 
Expectations were set up front, goals adjusted after two-way discussions. This clear definition of roles and responsibilities with a Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) goal setting process, lessened the work of Supervisors, Managers & Leaders at all levels.
 
Helping employees realise where their gaps were was a great place to start as it  defined where focus needed to be directed. Each employee was trained to be a coach and was also assigned a coach.
 
Coaching became part of the corporate culture. There was someone to discuss gaps when results were not being achieved. Wearing the hat of a coach, this also clarified in the coach’s mind how to support another, beyond working on their personal goals.
 
Employees were given contextual help from the organization. For instance updated technology and weekly reviews became a part of the eco-system. Feedback became the norm rather than the exception.
 
A major tenet of accountability, rewarding behaviour that the organization aspired to was clearly laid out. Small wins were celebrated most of the time with verbal recognition, spurring employees forward to the next level.
This entire process took less than six months for employees to fully engage. What was the difference that made the difference? Employees knew how their daily roles contributed to the organisation’s Purpose and Vision.
They felt a sense of belonging hence were self-motivated. There was no need for managers rather the trust afforded to them went a very long way. They were inspired by the organisation’s level of transparency that helped them meet their commitments.
The CEO’s objective was met. With self-discipline installed in his employees, his daily schedule freed up. His open door policy which encouraged employees to meet him if they needed to, was still in place but he noticed, many did not have the need to seek his views anymore.
Silo-thinking had broken down and employees were happy, engaged and productive. Throwing his hands in the air, he smiled and said “we did it!".