Accountability for Commitments made
is essential
Holding people accountable for the commitments they have made isn’t about success or failure. It’s about their genuine effort.
If people aren’t willing or prepared to be held accountable for the commitments they make in coaching conversations or sessions, then how can you be sure they will apply genuine effort?
And, importantly, if you don’t hold people accountable, what message does it send? Does it mean you don’t care about their performance?
When you hold people accountable for their commitments, you’re helping them to value their work.
Accountability:
• Is about trust
• Is not about controlling
• Inspires and increases team member skills and confidence
When people know they are going to be held accountable for their commitments they make more realistic commitments.
Following up with your team members soon after coaching conversations or sessions is essential to keep them focused on the actions and behaviours they have committed to work on.
If you don’t follow up you risk sending the message that the commitment they have made isn’t important.
Following up also means you check in to see if they need any further or ongoing support or assistance from you, or if they need to modify their commitment.
Remember, following up is about supporting your team member in their efforts. It’s not about success or failure, it’s about them making a genuine effort to do what they said they would do.
In an earlier Leadership Minute I talked about the importance of a Commitment To Action as an essential outcome of a coaching conversation or session.
Following up with your team member is about checking in to see how they have progressed with this action.
If you don’t follow up after coaching it indicates the action committed to is not so important to you. And if it’s not important to you, why would you think its going to be important to your team member?
Take action now:
Use the worksheet to list some of the follow up questions you can ask team members following a coaching conversation/session, to check in, offer support and hold them accountable for their commitment.
