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What Does Email Have to Do with Accountability? A Lot!
Lack of accountability. If there was ever a single characteristic of a culture that could guarantee under-performance, Lack of accountability has to be it. We’ve all seen it. Deadlines missed. Lack of follow-thru. Messages ignored. We’ve all experienced the frustration and aggravation and wondered why does it have to be this hard? This article provides a novel way to ratchet up the degree of accountability in your organization.
Two Levels of Accountability
But first, let’s look deeper into the presence of accountability in an organization. The opportunity to be accountable exists at the organizational and personal levels. When an organization performs at its highest level, it is likely guided by a living strategic plan, utilizing strong performance management, and living by its stated values. These are all components of accountability at the organizational level.
Top performing organizations will also exhibit a high degree of personal accountability among employees.
Their accountability will be shown in two ways;
- They will produce the work they are asked to produce.
- They will do it in a way that is aligned with the organization’s expectations (or the stated values as described above).
The degree of accountability that exists at the personal level is a strong determinant to that which exists at the organizational level.
Our Email Behaviors – An Indicator of Accountability
I’m convinced that somewhere in this world there is a massive hole filled with unanswered email messages. Clients and colleagues constantly express frustration over a general disregard for their efforts to communicate via email. The tolerance for ignoring email messages can become ingrained in an organization’s culture. I’ve noticed that often a lack of accountability related to email is indicative of a broader accountability issue – usually at both the personal and the organizational level.
There are many reasons why emails go into the abyss, but few of them are defendable. In the end, an ignored email is equivalent to an unspoken statement that goes something like this – ‘I don’t care enough about your success to help’, ‘I’m too busy to do what you are asking and I want to avoid a difficult conversation’, ‘I have chosen to remain unorganized at the expense of others’ effectiveness’, etc… Not exactly statements of accountability.
I know what you are thinking. These points are unreasonable. I get so many emails that it is impossible to keep up. My response is that some of the busiest people I have known (including some who are executives with really big jobs) have found a way to keep up… and without delegating email management to their assistants. One thing they have in common is that they are also among the most accountable people I know.
Our Email Behaviors – A Cultural Change Lever
Regardless, it’s no secret that email behaviors need to improve. A colleague of mine used to say ‘if you can’t win the game you are playing then change the rules’. If you are losing in the email game, then you are probably losing the accountability game as well. That’s a big deal. So change the rules… change the way email is used. Here are some things you can do.
Tips for the Sender
- Be clear about what you expect from the recipient… and express that early in the email.
- Use the Subject line to indicate the level of urgency. Adopt a classification system for all of your emails that indicates the importance of the message to the receiver – “FYI”, “Response Requested by X” (and don’t make X be 30 minutes from now), “Not urgent but important for you to know”.
- Where appropriate, take an assertive approach. For instance, “We plan to move the files into archive by Monday unless you have shared any concerns”. This will minimize iterations.
- For long emails, write them like a newspaper article. Start with a summary and then elaborate.
Tips for the Receiver
- Respond to every message where a response is requested or warranted.
- If a message involves action, close the loop with a message back. A simple ‘got it’ is often good enough.
- Try to touch it once – respond, file, forward when you first read the message.
- Adopt an e-filing system that keeps your inbox clean. Using your inbox as a holding tank for all messages causes stress and quickly become unmanageable.
- Think about whether your response should go to all who were copied on the original message, only the author, others who were not copied on the message, etc…
- Cut off email chains and restart new ones if the audience needs to be different.
- Think about whether email is the best vehicle. Sometimes a conversation can shortcut the communication and make it more effective.
Close the Abyss, One Step At A Time
The email abyss costs organizations a mountain of productivity and enables a culture that lacks accountability. The worst approach is to allow the abyss to exist. The better outcomes are to establish a personal vendetta against unanswered email and to revamp the organization’s approach to using it. You have a great opportunity to set an example for the rest of the organization and to promote desired behaviors. As a leader, you can start small by adopting new practices for yourself and among your team. After you see the benefits, then expand them to the entire organization. Help the organization recapture productivity by setting the example AND the expectation.
Steve, thanks for the great reminder to touch each message only once. Working constantly on that habit, and when I’m good at it, it’s amazing how easy it becomes to keep my Inbox volume low.
I heartily agree with the Sender advice to be very direct about what is required. I do indicate what’s required in the subject; also issue a lot of “if I do NOT hear from you I will assume you are OK w/ this” messages. When a request is clear, people will respond. I sense a great deal of email avoidance is related to confusion or indecision about what action to take… and doing nothing is easier.
Thanks for a great post and reminder.
Thanks for weighing in Jim. It feels great when I’m efficient in dealing with incoming messages. When I’m not as good, I feel stress and sometimes even out of control. And a great point about clarity. It may take a touch more time and effort to be clear but the ROI can be significant.