Accountability and Role Clarity

Many years ago, I worked for a manufacturing company the made products onsite. One weekend in early fall, I was asked to come in on the weekend, to support a surge in making our product. Holiday deliveries were woefully behind. At the time, it seemed like a victory - standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the production staff – boxing up products. Though we considered this a great success, I now recognize it as one of many fire drills that we constantly faced. This one was simply more visible, with higher stakes.

Gladwell’s The Tipping Point had recently released. The owner, an avid reader, paced the halls with every fire drill saying “Tipping Point…Tipping Point.” As if that somehow explained the chaos. Success eventually came, but not at the speed it could have if systems and processes had been in place to support the growth and scaling of the company.

I recalled this episode when reading “When Did You Know You Needed a Reorg?” (Nov. 18 INC Magazine, p. 40)

“When we didn’t have much staff, everyone naturally did a bit of everything. We reached our breaking point during our busiest season last year, when I saw leadership handling customer calls. I realized I could hire someone a lot less expensive for the small tasks while those leaders helped grow the business- but only if we gave people clear roles to own.”

-Michael Moran Founder and CEO, Private Label Extension, as told to Kate Rockwood

Whatever stage a company is in, it’s vitally important that everyone knows who is accountable for what. When there is a need to ramp up Manufacturing, staff Customer Service or order supplies, there should be no guessing as who owns the problem. When there’s clear ownership, peoples are thinking ahead. Developing strategies to better manage what’s coming and preventing fire drills.

Introducing “the Accountability Chart,” an EOS tool that helps define the “Who” and the “What” by creating the right structure for any company. It is reviewed each quarter- with ongoing adjustments supporting the growth and scaling of the organization.

Have you recently had your own "Weekend Warrior" story - working nights and weekends to do things that were not your job?

Consider reading more about Accountability Charts in Traction, by Gino Wickman.

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EOS® or the Entrepreneurial Operating System is a simplified way of doing business. A proven set of simple, practical tools that synchronized your team’s efforts in support of creating a remarkable, scale-able business. #Accountability #EOS #Traction