In
Singapore, some business people could be heard saying at the coffee
shops: "Blame your parents when you have no food and blame the
government when your business is bad." Such wrong attitude provides a
bad start to solving your problems. Shame and blame are not
justifiable. Take responsibility.
Much of the world's trouble
arose as people blame others for their misfortunes. When criminals are
jailed for murder, they blame it on their childhood abuses that have
caused them to be angry against society. Teenagers got addicted to
drugs and they blame it on their divorced parents that caused them to
be delinquent. People get obese and sue the McDonalds for serving
fat-laden hamburgers. No wonder, we are increasingly becoming such a
litigious society. During the Asia financial crisis in 1998, some
Malaysians were blaming the IMF, or ' It's all Mahathir's Fault for the
crisis'.
The buck should stop with you. Troubled companies
should take responsibility for their pathetic state of affairs because
of their past actions. Otherwise, there is no accountability and
recognition of one's mistakes. Every action results in positive or
negative consequence. Learning will not take place if one does not take
cognizance of one's erroneous ways.
Many executives think that
'corporate wellness' is a question of the economic situation,
competition and customers' behaviour. Companies do not self-critique
its corporate culture and management, Similar to physical wellness,
most people thought that it is letting the genes determine the health.
They do not eat more vegetables, exercise regularly and maintain good
mental health. The individual or corporate efforts are not so
important. However, this belief is an illusion as we are responsible
for our own physical or corporate wellness.
It is found that our
behaviours as well as emotional and spiritual make-up can affect our
physical health. Corporations too should take responsibility for its
own wellness by taking personal accountability for the outcome. As an
author Robert H Schuller once said: "If it is going to be, it is up to
me."
Once you acknowledge the problem and take responsibility
for your action, the energy can be focused and channeled towards active
and constructive remedies. It saps away energy when one plays the game
of shame and blame or in medical terms, licking your own wounds.
Blaming behaves like the bad cholesterol of the mind as it is directed
towards vengeance and negativism. On the other hand, nothing is more
beneficial to a good organisation than having a solid system of
accountability rather than blaming.
Accountability is making
good on one's commitments and promises and dealing with the
consequences if these are not duly delivered. When this message is
communicated clearly throughout the organization, the message will then
be respected by all. Business leaders must develop a strong sense of
accountability. They must take responsibilities for their decisions and
know that the buck stops with them. They must not only know what tasks
to assign, they must ensure that their senior colleagues take due
responsibility for getting these tasks implemented effectively and
efficiently. They must deliver results. When things go wrong, business
leaders must not exonerate their guilt by finding scapegoats or through
witch hunt.
Moving down the line, all the staff have to be held
accountable for their plans, commitments and actions. They have to
deliver based on the financial budget committed for the year. They have
to deliver to customers what they promise them. They have to take the
rap for their actions.
Customers are generally quite forgiving
if you admit to a mistake and try to make amends. No supplier is
perfect and customers know that. The important thing here is that you
take responsibilities for any mistakes, rectify the mistakes, make
restitution if necessary and ensure that the problems do not recur.
Article Source:
http://www.articlerich.com
Dr
Mike Teng (DBA, MBA, BEng) is the author of best-selling book,
"Corporate Turnaround: Nursing a Sick Company back to Health." He is
known as the "Turnaround CEO in Asia" by the media.
www.corporateturnaroundexpert.com
www.corporateturnaroundcentre.com
