Hire accountable people or die ??

If you have been following this newsletter for a while – you will know that I’m big on accountability.

Why? Because accountability breeds and influences positivity. Naturally. Without even trying. People with this trait are responsible for their actions, behaviour, decisions and performance.

When you are accountable for something, you OWN it. I’m not talking about glory hunting either, cringe.

Let’s look at it this way, an error has been made, you are angry, you sit down to have the conversation with the person responsible and..... they take full accountability for the error.

What are you going to do now? You are disarmed. Somehow, it’s incredibly unreasonable of you to continue to be angry.

The conversation has changed, it’s now a proactive discussion around how to prevent this from happening again, or perhaps uncovering an issue that you didn’t even know existed.

See, it’s positive. I have never seen a negative outcome from someone taking accountability. In the workplace, this means taking ownership and not passing the buck.

Not all people are accountable and find it challenging to work in such an environment, seeking clarification rather than making decisions. This is often down to feeling uncomfortable about being reprimanded or being unconfident.

Personally,? I think it’s a behaviour that is difficult to instil in people, which is why it’s so important to make sure you are prioritising accountability in the hiring process.

Below are some questions that I recommend including in the interview:

• Tell me about the last time you made a mistake?
• Tell me about a time you received negative feedback?
• Tell me about a time you failed to meet a deadline or a commitment?
• Tell me about your biggest failure in your career?
• Tell me about your greatest weakness

Interviewers, we are not looking for excuses, justification or deflection here. Accountable candidates will explain the example, their reaction, what they learnt, and how this experience is put into practice now.?

Any questions that I’ve missed? Let me know in the comments ????

Until next time,

Lukas.