Hi Everyone,
Digging into the work.
You always know who is pulling their weight and who is committed on your team. You also know if you’re one of the people who could be doing more. For example, Dara, Tahzoo’s MVP as voted by all of you, has consistently been the most billable person in the company this year. Working across many different projects, working late at night, even putting in hours during his vacation, all this and he just had his third child. Pretty safe to say that Dara his pulling is weight and then some.
Dara is not the only person at Tahzoo who is committed to their clients and working really hard. Many of you who have received recognition from your peers or from me last week during our awards are also demonstrating the same character and commitment that Dara does. We didn’t have enough awards for each person at Tahzoo who is pulling their weight but as I said earlier, you know who they are, we all do. To each of you who comes to work everyday, Smart, Happy, and committed to their clients and quality work … Thank you!
All too often, when we are working with someone who is not living up to the company values or digging into the work, we avoid confrontation. We try to work around that person, we talk about that person, rather than talk to that person. We secretly hope that the Tahzoo project system will expose that person, or their manager will do something about the problem. We work in teams and although a manager can hold someone accountable, the highest performing teams hold each other accountable.
There are three simple ideas I’d like you to keep in mind as you seek to drive accountability. Assume the best in someone, performance, and commitment can be influenced by many factors. As Steven Covey says, “Seek first to understand before seeking to be understood”. Open and honest communication is essential. Be specific about the behaviors that are an impediment to the client or the team’s success. It might take many conversations, be persistent – a shared understanding takes time. Lastly, make concrete agreements about the changes necessary to improve the situation. Often, there is a give and take or a re-adjudication of roles and responsibilities. Confirm your mutual understanding, write it down, and send a follow up email. If you follow these steps, your teammate will improve and the whole team will see the results. Most importantly – our clients will have a better experience.
If you find that you need something to make a client happy or improve the quality of our work, speak up and ask, if that doesn’t work then call me directly or someone on the Leadership Team and together, we will make it happen. We are in customers for life business, that is all about meeting their expectation in big and little ways.
Let’s go be great!
Brad