Key Expectations In Jeopardy

Whenever you have a key expectation in jeopardy of not being met, take immediate action, before it’s too late. Begin by honestly evaluating whether your key expectation was effectively established in the first place by applying The Accountability Sequence^®—form, communicate, align and inspect. If you discover that your key expectation was not effectively established with certain people along your Expectations Chain (the chain of people, inside and outside the organization, who will impact fulfillment of your key expectation), quickly reapply The Accountability Sequence to your key expectation.

Form—key expectations should always be Framable in the context of what matters most to the organization, Obtainable in light of resources and constraints, Repeatable up and down the Expectations Chain, and Measureable in ways that make it “easy to monitor progress.”

Communicate—the why, what, and when of the key expectation must be clearly communicated and completely understood.

Align—everyone involved along the Expectations Chain^® must be aligned with the key expectation, make sure by asking them to rate their level of alignment on a scale of 1 to 10.

Inspect—never expect what you don’t inspect, but do it in a way that is agreed upon by everyone involved, so no one gets blind-sided.

If you determine that your key expectation was, in fact, effectively established, then hold an Accountability Conversation^® with those people along your Expectations Chain who seem most at risk of not delivering. Use the conversation to determine exactly why they are jeopardizing fulfillment of your key expectation—motivation (willingness), training (ability), accountability (follow through), or culture (work environment). To learn more about how to address problems of motivation, training, accountability and culture in The Accountability Conversation or how to better apply The Accountability Sequence in the first place, go to www.partnersinleadership.com.