We often encounter organizations which fancy themselves as highly entrepreneurial and independent. These organizations are often partnerships where each top manager is an owner (and therefore an entrepreneur in their own eyes) or organizations that are so laid back that dogs follow their owners to their cubicles (normal rules don't apply!). Accountability, and a reporting structure, is generally absent in these examples, which by the way are not far-fetched at all.
The definition of an entrepreneur is very simple. An entrepreneur is someone who starts a business usually with his own investment or with funds from family and friends, draws little or no salary, and carries the ongoing obligation of meeting payroll, collecting receivables, and meeting payables on time. Those who fancy themselves as entrepreneurs while they draw a salary, and have never struggled to collect receivables, make payroll and meet payables on time, are deluding themselves.
Many partnerships and entrepreneurial startups reach a certain level and then fail. Without accountability, plans are not delivered and the obligations to investors and owners will not be met. Without accountability all companies will fail to execute and therefore their corporate or partnership lives will be of short duration.
Accountability means that everyone is responsible to someone else -- the CEO is responsible to the Board of Directors (his boss), the managing partner is responsible to the partnership (his boss) and the entrepreneur is responsible to his investors – perhaps himself only (his boss). Everyone else in the organization must also report to a boss who is responsible and accountable for his performance and results and for all those within his organization. This string of accountability based on the organization structure and strict reporting relationships provides the basis for effective execution, accountability, and making plan.
Everyone must report to someone. |
