Accountability is a Good Thing

Accountability is a good thing…

Rick Wagner was recently forced to step down from General Motors (GM) due to the poor performance of the company he led.  I know there are various opinions out there as to whose ‘fault’ it is that GM has been failing, but ultimately, his job performance is tied to the company’s performance. After all, the CEO is in charge of making the decisions necessary to keep the company profitable on a good day, and at the very least, prevent it from going under.  I will be the first to say that it is not an easy job, but that is why CEO’s make the big bucks! Given that GM has continued a downward slide since he has been at the helm, he should be held accountable for his lackluster performance.

Accountability is a necessity in the business world.  Managers hold their employees accountable, ultimately, shareholders and board members are supposed to hold the executives accountable.

With all that being said, I also believe highly in rewarding people on good performances as well.  Productivity, making money and serving customers well should all be rewarded when done above and beyond the call of duty.  When expectations are exceeded and top performers emerge, they undoubtedly should be paid handsomely.  There is much talk out there today about ‘excessive greed’ in large companies (especially those too large to fail).  I say that it is excessive when it is not warranted.  When the leaders are at the helm of a sinking ship, they do not deserve a reward at all, but deserve more the fate of Rick Wagner.  However, if there are performers within the company that are making money for the company (despite the horrific spending/bleeding of the rest of the company), they should be rewarded regardless of the overall company’s health. Why?  Because they are the only people who can actually save a company.  If you don’t reward performers, those performers will go to another company who will.  What happens if all the performers leave?  The show is over.  Plain and simple.

I understand this implicitly as I was one of only 3 performers at a former company.  They penalized me (due to the health of the company) by eliminating the tools that kept me effective and reduced my pay and commissions to pay for their own splender.  The CEO had a ‘need’ to fly first class and stay in the finest hotels while my cell phone was eliminated (hello, my #1 most critical tool – a telephone or a cell phone when traveling). It didn’t take me long before I decided I didn’t need to company to do what I loved doing.  At that point I was flying solo and had built the confidence of being able to do it on my own, so I left.  Shortly after, productive person #2 left and finally, productive #3 left.  Before they knew it, they were singing ‘Kiss him Goodbye’ and the show was  through.

Tough decisions need to be made in business, especially in times like these.  Be warned to make your decisions wisely.  Eliminating those who are not making the cut sooner rather then later so you can be sure to continue to reward those who continue to make money for the company is hard, but wise choice.

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