Creating Accountability

Steps to Creating Accountability

1. 1. Give clearly defined expectations and goals with assigned dates. Document these agreements.
   2. Help the employee understand how doing their job impacts the customer and other employees, as well as the achievement of the mission of the organization.
   3. Ensure the employee has the appropriate tools, training, resources to achieve the desired result.
   4. Create a way for the employee to report on their results or for you to see evidence of the achievement of the desired result.
      1. Help the employee become accountable by installing hourly or daily reporting, even if it remedial.
   5. Give immediate and specific positive feedback for accomplishment of desired results. (Give 7 times more positive feedback when they start a task, action, or behavior. Successful change requires frequent positive feedback).
   6. If desired result is not achieved:
      1. Give immediate and specific constructive feedback to support improvement.
      2. Ask the employee why the result was not achieved.
         1. Remove barriers to success.
         2. Support the employee in overcoming barriers to achieving the desired result.
         3. Ensure the employee has the appropriate tools, training, skills, resources, and power bases to achieve the desired result.
      3. Coach the employee:
         1. Ask the employee how he/she plans to solve the problem.
         2. Ask them for a real solution.
         3. Ask them what resources they have available to them to achieve the result.
         4. Help them come to their own solution.
   7. If necessary, install consequences (positive or remedial) so that both parties know exactly what will happen if the action is not taken.
      1. Positive: Reward, recognition, social currency.
      2. Remedial – Removal of positive consequences, disapproval, coercion, Progressive Discipline to firing.

Steps to Take When An Employee Is Still Not Being Accountable

• • Find out if there is anything going on in the employee’s personal life that may be affecting his ability to perform the job.  Remind him of his ability to access the Employee Assistance Program, if applicable.
  • Find out why the employee’s integrity or self-esteem is low – that’s usually the source of waning accountability.
  • Make the employee accountable for someone else so that they learn what it’s like to hold someone else accountable.
  • Find a better position for the employee.  He may not be capable of doing the job, may not be suited to the job, the job may not match his personality, he may not be the best person to do the job, he may be bored, or he may have outgrown the job.
  • Utilize Progressive Discipline process as far as necessary, up to firing the employee.

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