The Advent of Peer Accountability

Commenting on workplace changes for a recent WSJ article, the Head of an Investment Bank said, “Continuity matters, developing people who understand the firm, understand the culture.

We're not turning the whole place upside down, it is enhancements and realistic to what this generation wants.”

Even in the notorious “grind them to death” Investment Banking world, leaders realize today’s marketplace demands a change.  The pre-occupation with performance and output creates an organizational imbalance.  “What we Do” is first and foremost in C-suites dominated by strategy, products, biz dev and technology executives.  Values, culture and professional development get the short straw.

The best and the brightest are increasingly attracted to firms committed to a world class workplace as well as best-of-breed products.  An ideal employer is purposeful about “How we Operate”.  Professional development should not be a byproduct or happenstance but rather part of an intentional plan to inspire the next generation of leaders.  Today's talent wants to thrive at work not just survive till the next bonus check or liquidity event.

Progressive young firms are experimenting with new organizational paradigms and structures as a means of improving “How we Operate”.  One such approach is a Collaborarchy™ built on five foundational cornerstones.

Ensuring leaders and staffers meet commitments and deliver on promises is basic to success.  Companies are trying to instill a high level of ownership among team members at all levels.  Peer Accountability has become a viable alternative to traditional top-down approaches.

In most organizations, the superior/subordinate system is the primary means of accountability.  Bosses set the directives then oversee their execution.  Reviews and compensation models are predicated on performance assessments from the supervisor.  While it's not nobles vs. serfs, managers’ means of enforcing accountability can range from effective to abusive, from collaborative to coercive, from empowering to power plays.  

The breakdown of vertical accountability can come from the subordinate side as well.  Staffers become adept at telling the bosses what they want to hear or deflecting blame onto others.  Accountability becomes a political game where some workers play better than others.

Traditional accountability structures foster a murky reality.  Communications up and down the ladder are filled with misconceptions and half-truths.  Determining who answers for missed deadlines or botched deliverables is muddled by CYA attitudes and self-preservation tactics.  As a result, trust is lost and performance suffers.

Peer accountability is an indigenous approach delivering increased productivity, robust customer care and higher engagement in a simple, more natural way.  The concept is straightforward; colleagues hold one another accountable for fulfilling their promises. 

On Championship teams, the players in the huddle challenge each other to play at their best. The coach is not on the field.  The workplace is no different.  Winning organizations don’t rely on bosses to define responsibility and meet expectations.  Teammates own the results and manage commitments amongst themselves.

Peer relationships are important to young workforces.  They can inspire one another to break boundaries and disrupt markets. Tapping these bonds is an enlightened means of sparking all staffers to achieve their potential while living out company’s values and cultural norms.  Working shoulder-to-shoulder, day after day, peers have the best vantage point on who is carrying their fair share of the load.

Peer Accountability can be implemented in a number of ways.  Self-directed teams are a great place to start.  As discussed in a previous Blog, autonomous teams generate their own agenda and task one another to meet deadlines and deliverables.  The proper balance of collaboration and independent thinking enables innovation to flourish.

Peer Reviews provide colleagues a chance to weigh in on each other’s performance.  Feedback from multiple co-workers on teamwork, leadership and values generates more robust insights for individuals. Coupled with self-assessment and manager input, the peer-to-peer review process leads to greater growth for all team members.

Holding their peers accountable for physical and emotional well-being demonstrates teammates' compassion for one another.  Proper rest, nutrition and fitness are often sacrificed in high growth business environments.  This imbalance leads to anxiety and exhaustion. 

Fatigued co-workers inhibit the capability of the team.  Colleagues can encourage appropriate work-life balance as well as create safe forums to address the stress and toll of their work.  Kindness and empathy are as much a part of great teams as passion and performance.

So why isn’t Peer Accountability the norm?  On the one hand, assessing one’s teammates is awkward.  Some feel they have no right to judge others.  Giving negative feedback can be uncomfortable and jeopardize relationships.  On the other hand, the power of peer accountability can be exploited.  A widely heralded exposé on the culture of Amazon highlighted the harsh treatment by peers in the review process.  Animosity and heightened internal competition resulted, the antithesis of what was intended.  There are other examples of companies suffering from peer feedback programs gone wrong.

Peer accountability is powerful.  However, implementing such changes requires the proper culture and work environment to yield the benefits.  In our next blog, we will explore the foundations needed to foster effective Peer accountability.