Is There a Weak Link in Your Chain-of-Command?

There is something about watching a team performing at its very best that is truly inspirational. It could be a yacht racing team in the America’s Cup, a pit crew on the Nascar circuit, a professional football, baseball or basketball team or a symphony orchestra. When teammates are in complete harmony with each other the resulting performances are amazing and far ahead of the competition.

Take a closer look at these ‘peak performers’ and you will see something critically important; there is absolute clarity regarding the ‘chain of command’. And by chain of command I mean that each player knows exactly what is expected of them and what their responsibilities and authorities are.

This same idea holds true for management teams within your business.

Managers need complete clarity over their responsibilities, authorities and accountabilities. They have full confidence in their own abilities and a sincere desire to contribute to the performance and success of the business. However, if they are unsure of exactly what they are responsible for, or what decisions they can make, problems will occur and performance will suffer.

If a manager has to get someone else’s permission in order to take action then they do not have authority or real responsibility and consequently cannot fairly be held accountable for the results.

In professional sports we’ve all witnessed autocratic owners that meddle with managers and interfering managers that override coaches. It’s a sure sign that the organization is not reaching its full potential. More often than not these teams can be found near the bottom of the standings!

“The best executive is the one who has sense enough to pick good men to do what he wants done, and self-restraint to keep from meddling with them while they do it.”

- Theodore Roosevelt