BOUNDARIES, EXPECTATIONS and ACCOUNTABILITY

If, in my view, there are three things that good people need in order to grow into great people they are clear (adaptable) boundaries, expectations and accountability.  A lack of boundaries is unsafe and anxiety ridden.  A lack of expectations is just insulting and a lack of accountability is debilitating.  Also a lack of clarity breeds chaos, confusion, consternation and collapse.  

In most working environments there are four element which the B.E &A need to address as clearly as possible:

• Technical
• Administrative
• Relational
• Leadership

Regardless of the specific position or "job" these four areas need to be defined/measured by BE&A's.  Too many times a staff member is evaluated not by any real objective criteria but rather based upon how they have or have not stayed below the radar for the couple of months before the evaluation.  It's usually a matter of, "what have you done for me lately," or "how have you screwed up lately."  Most evaluations are a very unfunny, if not cruel,  joke.

Developing, maintaining and executing a useful set of BE&A's is not as hard as it sounds.  Actually, the more detailed they seem to need to be the more concerned you need to be about the employee.

The BE&A's should be as clear and simple as they can be.  They need to be thoroughly explained to the staff person and a period of "settling in" needs to be provided so anything unclear can be made clear.  

The responsibility for establishing and clarifying the BE&A's lies with the one who will evaluate them.  The dangers of poor communication, lack of clarity and no time to settle into the "box" are all elements that the "leader" must be conscious of and seek to avoid.

This provides the employee and the 'boss' with a "box" that both can use to measure performance, skill, ability and willingness to perform. HOWEVER -ADAPTABLE must also apply to the box.  You need to build the box out of bamboo.  It must be flexible and growing.  

Equally as important as adaptability is ACCOUNTABILITY.  This is two-fold.  Of course the employee is accountable to "get it done right," but YOU are accountable for building the right box, in the right way for each person.  Certainly all the boxes you build will have similarities but they can't be one size fits all - because on size doesn't "fit" all.  You build a crummy box - you're gonna get crummy results.

Once the "box" is built, communicated and understood you have two things to determine.  CAN this person do this job and WILL this person do this job?  If they CAN'T then you bust your behind figuring out what they need in order to do the job (I mean you hired them - it's not their fault).  If they WON'T do the job - then it's clear they don't want the job and you need to do them the kindness of removing them from such an unpleasant circumstance.

Yes, this is short and a little glib and I've made no references to sheep, pastures, etc..  But sometimes one just has to say it plain.

Any questions?  Drop me a line.  msanders.consultant@gmail.com