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Why do you feel your leader is successful? I am fortunate that I get to observe many leaders and organizations.
I was at an extremely high-performing organization. By high-performing, I mean they are rated number one in their area in consumer trust. They have incredibly low employee turnover. They rate in the top 1 percent in having a culture of safety. They are financially successful. I spoke with a number of people in leadership at this organization and asked them what they feel creates and sustains their high performance. The three characteristics mentioned most are clarity, rigor, and accountability.
In the book "Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard," the Heath brothers wrote that 80 percent of failure is related to a lack of clarity. Clarity means being clear, easy to understand, and free of confusion. It can be challenging for those in leadership, myself included. We work hard to communicate. My "aha" moment came when I was president of a hospital and we had our monthly leadership meeting. I did a good job updating the group in key items. Their role then was to cascade this information to their direct reports. To check how clear my communication was, I asked them to send me their top takeaways that they would be sharing. The responses came in. There was no right or wrong, but in reading them, it was evident that my communication was not what I thought it was. I need to be better with clarity.
Rigor is the second characteristic. I asked what they meant by rigor. The answer is that the standards are understood, there are discipline processes, and results are measured and communicated.
Accountability is the third characteristic. It is the commitment to take ownership of actions, expectations, and outcomes. Follow through on all commitments.
Clarity is ensuring people understand what action needs to be taken. Rigor is taking action to meet the standards that are in place. Accountability assures the results. And all people are responsible and recognized for these. Rewarded and recognized behavior gets repeated.
Clarity, rigor, and accountability require a deep commitment on the part of the organization to invest in the development of people. When asked what separates the best CEOs (or top leaders/owners) from others, my answer is this: The best CEOs see providing skill development to people as a wise investment versus an expense.
Investing in technology and facilities is important and should make the workplace better. We need to bring that same mindset to developing people. It pays off in many ways.
In my book Hardwiring Excellence: Purpose, Worthwhile Work, Making a Difference, I quote a worker at Holy Cross Hospital in Chicago. A group of media people asked Tom, from environmental services, "What is the difference between Holy Cross then (a few years back) and Holy Cross now?" Tom replied, "We used to focus on money, and we lost it. Now we focus on people and make it."
Well said.
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Quint Studer is the author of 16 books on leadership in the workplace and the community. His book "Building a Vibrant Community" is a valuable resource for civic leaders, business owners, and all citizens who have a stake in building a community they can be proud to call home.