On Giving Credit and Taking Responsibility Where its Due

Speakers around the world tout the importance of giving credit and recognition to your team. However, what most people don’t realise is that there are two sides to every coin. Where there is credit, there is also an equal share of responsibility.

If the coin lands on one side and the job is done right, credit is yours for the taking, however, if it lands on the flip side and things go wrong, you take responsibility and you find a solution to fix what went wrong. Taking responsibility is a defining factor towards growth, not only for the gain of the people around you, but also for your own personal development.

There have been instances where I have had people come to me asking “Keat, can you approve this?” —and when I asked why do I need to check or approve it, sometimes the answer I get back is because they’re scared to make the wrong decision or because they want to avoid taking responsibility if things were to go downhill.

If people want me to make decisions, they won’t have to be responsible for any negative outcomes but in all fairness, they shouldn’t get credit either. While i’m not opposed to approving decisions, I’d like for my organisation to be a nimble organisation, surrounded by people who care for it and would make decisions in the best interest of the organisation. 

It is these individuals that are willing and eager to take responsibility by making decisions, that really make a difference. Ask yourself this, when you have limited hours in a day, who are you more likely to spend your energy and time with? Would it be with someone who can multiply your time by making good decisions on your behalf or with someone who just drains away your time and energy with endless unproductive meetings?

The way I see it, to gain a balance in the credit and responsibility toss, it is important to give credit where credit is due, whilst also enforcing the idea of teamwork for contributions. This will also ensure the organisation grows in a healthy fashion. 

For instance, during a recent year end performance review, I had the opportunity to review and gauge some of my staff. While reviewing Staff A’s performance, I noticed that she grew by leaps and bounds, fantastic, but also, I noted that her growth was also due to an extremely caring and dedicated senior who had helped make her growth smooth. To which, I credited a significant part of that credit to the senior, who had helped guide Staff A. This, I hope, would further encourage and incentivise that senior and other seniors in the organisation, to guide others well and create a supportive working environment.

There are those who seek out scapegoats to take the fall for their mistakes. This is often the case, as it is the easiest way out, but it’s also a highly negative trait to have in the workplace and I work hard to weed out this trait. No one enjoys working with a blamer, and such a person, if successful in stealing credit and shifting blame, would deter themselves and anyone else from growing within the company. Ultimately, this crumbles the company from within. 

Whether it comes internally or externally, blame diminishes trust. While some subconsciously blame others for their failures, some actively shift blame to avoid taking responsibility. Minimising blame-shifting in your team and encouraging taking responsibility is how we grow as an organisation. When we accept we’ve made a mistake is when we learn from those failures and begin to strive to never repeat.

If a person’s decisions begin to negatively impact the company, it would mean that there was poor judgement — this is where I would come in. It is my responsibility to mentor my employees and teach them to be able to think in our best interest. At the end of the day, if my staff make bad decisions, it impacts the company, which is why I feel it is crucial for them to be fully prepped to have excellent judgement in order to benefit and represent the company.

If at some point you do not actively take responsibility for making a decision, be it right or wrong, it won’t matter how great your work is or how much time and effort you have invested, credit will go to those that take the initiative of making a decision.

Develop the strength of character to admit when you are at fault and accept responsibility. If you get it wrong — you accept your fault and learn from that mistake. If you get it right — credit is yours! A job well done to you. It’s as black and white as that. No one is perfect, we are all prone to make mistakes; however, we should strive towards being correct more often than being wrong. Someone that acknowledges their mistakes and does everything in their power to rectify the situation rather than shift blame is someone that holds strong, positive personality traits.

While I have micromanaged my team at rare occasions, I would much rather spend time nurturing, as I believe positive nurturing results in long term growth and success for the company. I want them to make their own decisions and I want to be able to give them that responsibility. In my opinion, micromanagement is not worth the hassle it creates, not only does it make your team dependent on micromanagement, you also run the risk of a highly co-dependant team with little to no trust in their own abilities, which in turn deprives you of fresh perspectives.

Trust is key, and I want to be able to lay complete trust in my teams ability to make decisions that will make a positive impact on the company, as well as influence the organisation on a significantly larger scale.