If you read my column “I’m the Smartest Person in the Room (Don’t Bet On It!),” you may recall that whenever I started as the leader of a new project or business, I would present a set of ground rules to my team. I called it “The User’s Manual for the Boss.” I found it to be helpful in getting off to a good start. These were essentially operating principles on which we would agree to adhere. They covered background, expectations, communications, feedback, and other guidelines and priorities for conducting day to day business together. They were not all encompassing, but they did give us a jump start in working together more effectively.
In today’s column, I discuss the “expectations” part of those ground rules. These are simple and brief. Most importantly, they must be a two-way street – they include what you expect of your team members, as well as what they can expect of you. Here’s an example:
I Expect You To:
- Operate independently and effectively without day-to-day supervision
- Meet the commitments on which we have agreed – in full and on time
- Inform me in a timely manner if circumstances prevent you from meeting a commitment, and …
- Bring forward solutions, not problems. I am always willing to collaborate on potential solutions
- Actively engage and debate issues and support your positions with logic, conviction and business acumen, not just emotion
- Be an advocate for the project or business as a whole, not just your area of responsibility – commit to the overall success of the group
- Ask questions or seek clarification if you are not clear on direction I provide or decisions I make
- Offer appropriate, constructive, and timely feedback
- Operate ethically with integrity, honesty, and professionalism at all times
- Respect my privacy and work/life balance decisions
You Can Expect Me To:
- Give you the respect, independence, authority, and flexibility to manage your area of responsibility
- Delegate to the appropriate level and trust those empowered to do the job right, but….
- Seek to understand and monitor progress and results (trust, but verify)
- Make every effort to be available and get back to you with timely decisions, approvals, feedback, etc.
- Give you timely, constructive feedback
- Solicit, listen, and act on your feedback to me
- Operate ethically with integrity, honesty, and professionalism at all times
- Let you know in a timely manner if circumstances or priorities prevent me from meeting a commitment to you. I will have alternatives.
- Keep you informed on trends, strategies, requirements, news, and other issues affecting the business
- Respect your privacy and work/life balance decisions
With these simple rules in place, much of the mystery in what to expect is eliminated, or at least reduced. However, you can’t just email these rules to the team, or just read them aloud and walk away. It will take a collaborative conversation with the group, and perhaps some one-on-one follow up to make sure there is understanding and clarity. Be patient. Once established, enforce these rules. If you don’t, your team will see through it immediately. Worse, they will always wonder when you really mean it.
Make your own set of ground rules and try them out with your team. It takes some extra effort, but it works. This is another one of those upfront investments that will pay big dividends in the long run. Everyone performs better when expectations are clear and consistent.
Copyright 2021 Seabreeze Associates, LLC
Mind Your Own Business. No One Else Will. 