This is a response to Pierre’s response to MSSL ET1 – “EL EQUIPO DIRECTIVO” here:
I have been reading many of the blog posts and especially enjoying the integration of our learning to our professional careers and how both the health and education sector are so closely related. I would like to focus my response to Pierre’s encouragement to Marcelo, to create more groups to tackle difficulties due to the perception of more work (Florendo, 2018). As mentioned by Florendo (2018), the urgent day-to-day activities often keep us from achieving important goals. This is very similar in health care and education settings. We are often inundated by urgent, but non-important issues where we have no other time to plan and act on important matters. In addition in forming more groups to tackle difficulties, I would also suggest the use of the Eisenhower Matrix to assist with prioritizing various tasks and projects. The matrix is sort into four quadrants: Important-Urgent, Important-Not urgent, Not important-Urgent, and Not important-Not urgent (Scott, 2018). Very often, we are plagued with work that is urgent and requires immediate attention. Some of these are important, but many more are not important. What’s critical of note is many of our important, long-term goals and strategies fall under the important-not urgent quadrant. When we are too busy and only spend our time with urgent issues, we often neglect what’s really important and impactful to the organization or team. As suggested by Scott (2018), we should be spending most of our time focusing on quadrant 2 items and not the other way around. Following the suggestion of this matrix can help individuals or team to refocus on what is the most important tasks that would fulfil long-term strategic goals.
In addition to the above suggestion, I would also want to touch on Pierre’s and Marcelo’s point to “there is no blame”. While I understand the cultural challenges to this point, I think it plays out very often in the North Americal culture as well. Very often, leaders forget to hold others accountable in their team. Lepsinger (2010) reported the following in a research study:
In our survey of over four hundred senior and mid-level leaders, 40 percent report that employees in their organizations are not being held accountable for results and 20 percent report that managers in their organizations do not deal with poor performers. It also appears that the presence or absence of accountability in an organization makes a difference—77 percent of leaders in top-performing organizations report that “employees at all levels are held accountable for results,” compared to only 44 percent in less-successful organizations.
We often believe creating a system of accountability is only required when certain individuals or teams are low-performing, or perhaps it is considered too “micro-managing” when leaders expect regular check-ins with their team members. Yet, increased accountability can enhance team performance, experience more success, and express more satisfaction with the members of their teams than those who are not held accountable (Lepsinger, 2010). My personal encouragement to all TSL is to consider accountability as a strategic tool to enhance the effectiveness of their team, whether it is in health care or educational settings.
References:
Florendo, P. (2018). RESPONSE TO MSSL ET1 – “EL EQUIPO DIRECTIVO” Retrieved October 20, 2018, from https://create.twu.ca/pierreflorendo/2018/10/19/response-to-mssl-et1-el-equipo-directivo/
Lepsinger, R. (2010). Closing the execution gap: How great leaders and their companies get results. Jossey Bass.
Scott, R. J. (2018). The Eisenhower Matrix: How to Make Decisions on What’s Urgent and Important. Retrieved October 20, 2018 from https://www.developgoodhabits.com/eisenhower-matrix/