During World War II, a Chief Petty Officer of the Royal Navy was called on by his Captain of the HMS
The Chief Petty Officer admitted he failed to follow the standing orders that the depth charges be armed with detonators. He continued to explain to his Captain that to avoid the risk of charges imploding during enemy fire, he and his crew were trained and ready to arm the charges with detonators within a matter of seconds. After all, large barrels full of high powered explosives are innocuous without installed detonators to set them off.
Upon learning this, the Captain knew if he reported back to the Royal Navy the reason the HMS Stork was saved, the Chief Petty Officer would have been court-martialed for disobeying a direct order. Grateful for the transparency and for the safety of the crew, the Captain shared with the Royal Navy that my grandfather, Chief Petty Officer William Crudge, was given direct orders not to arm the charges with detonators.
Imagine if the Captain of the HMS Stork had empowered his leaders with the true framework of accountability by inspiring with ‘the why’ — the purpose of the ship —while empowering its leaders to act in a way that fulfills the overall mission — to go after the enemy while not blowing us up in the process. My grandfather would have been empowered to make a life-saving decision without undermining the integrity of the mission or risking his career.
Let’s face it — there are some dumb policies and antiquated procedures out there. Granted, they may not be lethal enough to blow up your organization when faced with an attack, but they can impede accountability, engagement and the spirit of continuous improvement. When targets are missed and engagement is low, the 'solution' is sometimes more rules and extrinsic incentives. While this may help in the short-term, there is opportunity cost in not engaging and empowering the teams for the long-haul.
Mary Barra, Chief Executive of General Motors, explained to Quartz how she updated the company’s dress code as “dress appropriately,” and emphasized: “...you really need to make sure your managers are empowered — because if they cannot handle ‘dress appropriately,’ what other decisions can they handle?" Think about the rules in your organization. Are there any policies that would be better left in the hands of leaders to own and carry through? Any procedures that could be the tipping point in moving towards a culture of continuous improvement?
I find the trend of companies who have opted to throw out vacation policies a fascinating study. Research shows fewer vacation days are taken when employees self-police. I would place my bets on people holding themselves to higher standards than a dumb policy may spell out. I would also double down on modeling behavior and peer pressure as being a strong force in accountability and empowerment. Hello, high school! I haven’t missed you.
Think about rules in your organization begging to to be refreshed or needing to be escorted to the door.
Yes, there’s a time and a place for rules. However, leaders win all day with an empowered and engaged team. If the rules are at all getting in the way of that, it may be time shake things up.
To take this full circle, the learnings from the HMS Stork and my grandfather’s actions changed the Royal Navy’s policy going forward. What life-saving, rule-breaking moves can your team think up to drive accountability?
I would love to hear more accountability stories at my breakout session: The New Competitive Advantage: How Accountable Leaders Achieve 21% Better Results at our fabulous Breakthrough Conference in October!
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