Supervisor/HR Supplement Newsletter July 2012 Page 1

Helpful Resources From Your Employee Assistance Program

Deer Oaks EAP Services, your Employee Assistance Program, is always available to you and your dependents. If you are struggling with children, finances, or just want some practical advice on health or the mind-body connection, contact Deer Oaks at:

1 (866) 327-2400 eap@deeroaks.com www.deeroaks.com

Accountability is a buzz word popularized after the debacle at Enron in 2001. In many,

if not most mentoring relationships, accountability rarely comes into play, causing an

ineffectual, stagnate relationship that eventually ceases prematurely. Triple Creeks

Associates, Inc. in their April 2006 newsletter, Masterful Mentoring, wrote

“Accountability in a mentoring relationship directly affects the amount of learning that

can take place within the relationship.” As learning is the primary purpose of mentoring,

accountability must be a major part of the relationship. Building this accountability into

the mentoring relationship takes some time, but is certainly worth the payoff.

Accountability is a way of living and doing business that recognizes that we perform

our best when held to high standards. In a mentoring relationship, both parties should

not only be held accountable, but should have a complete buy-in to the concept of accountability, recognizing that it brings with it

high performance and effectiveness in the relationship. In the accountable mentoring relationship, each party plays an important

role by focusing on four primary areas; goals and expectations, progress monitoring, and measurement and feedback. By working

on each of these areas, both mentor and mentee will maximize the effectiveness of the relationship, providing each with a high

level of satisfaction.

Goals and Expectations

In a mentoring relationship, it is important to clearly establish the goals and expectations as well as a specific timeline. In doing so,

both the mentor and the mentee understand what is expected from the relationship. A few ideas for setting goals and expectations

are:

1. Concentrate on learning as the primary goal of the relationship. The mentor should realize that his goals may be more specific,

however, given his life experiences. While the mentor drives this part of the process, he should make sure the mentee both

understands and agrees with the goals.

2. Be clear with one another about what each is trying to accomplish. Lack of clarity at this stage will cause expectations to be

unclear and most likely not met.

3. Don’t worry about covering everything at this point. Goals and expectations will be readdressed at every stage of the

relationship as each discovers what does and does not work.

Progress Monitoring

Progress monitoring is crucial to the effective accountable mentoring relationship. As the business of life takes up much of your

daily routine, it is important that both parties monitor progress and predetermined times. Some ways to make sure progress is being

properly monitored is to:

1. Have specific outcomes to accomplish by specific dates. This takes some thought up front, but is worth the investment. Be

specific, but don’t be hard on yourself when you fail to meet these deadlines. These deadlines need to be fluid and should only

be used to guide you. This does not mean, however, that the timeline should not be taken seriously. These dates are for your

benefit and sticking as close to them as possible will help you get the most, and give the most, from your mentoring

relationship.

2. Have a pre-determined time to meet. This can be weekly, monthly etc, but should be consistent. Make sure it is a time that

works for all concerned and is unlikely to be cancelled because of schedule conflicts. Have a backup time set for those

inevitable conflicts.

Accountability and Mentoring: The Perfect Partnership

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Supervisor/HR Supplement Newsletter Helpful Resources From Your Employee Assistance Program July 2012

Page 2

3. Always be honest with one another about how things are going. Remember, this is a relationship that requires time, dedication

and a certain amount of work.

Measurement

There is an old adage; you can’t manage what you can’t measure. In the accountable

mentoring relationship, this is certainly the case. To insure you are able to measure (and

therefore manage) the outcomes of your relationship you should:

1. Using the goals and timelines established earlier, measure where you are compared to

where you thought you would be. Don’t get discouraged if things are moving more

slowly than anticipated. Keep your focus on the end goal. This relationship should be

organic and move at a pace that works for everyone.

2. Keep a journal of progress. This will keep you motivated when things seem as though

they are not going as well as you hoped.

3. Revisit your timelines and measured outcomes to reflect where you are. Keep things fluid

enough to be flexible, but not so fluid as to allow poor performance to go

unchecked.

Feedback

Communication is key to a successful relationship, whether it is marriage or mentoring, so don’t be afraid to share what things are

not working. Nobody has 20/20 foresight, so don’t be surprised when your goals need some tweaking. Remember, the end goal is for

you to teach (mentor) or learn (mentee) or possibly both. If you find your specific short-term goals are not meeting that end goal,

then make the change and make it quickly. If you fail to make changes, you will find yourself dreading meetings and ultimately

falling away from the relationship.

Communication and feedback also include sharing what things are working well. Positive reinforcement is healthy for both mentor

and mentee and gives energy to the relationship. Below are some ways to reinforce the relationship in this feedback period:

1. Show appreciation for one another by sharing recent successes. This works on both sides of the relationship. The mentee should

share how he is learning from the mentor and vice versa. These shared experiences strengthen the trust between the parties and

make for a much more effective relationship.

2. Keep a journal of your daily challenges and successes. Sharing your daily thoughts is a great way for the mentor to see how you

are doing emotionally.

3. Keep in touch by telephone, e-mail, texting etc. Frequent communication builds familiarity and in turn builds trust. One caution,

however, is to not let the relationship get too informal too quickly. Mentoring relationships require mutual respect with the

mentee looking-up to the mentor. Being overly casual, which can sometimes happen in e-mails and texting, may lead to more of

a friendship than a mentor relationship. This is not to say that this is always bad, but you should act with caution. Remember, the

end goal is your learning.

4. Bounce ideas off one another. An idea session is a great way for both to learn how you are progressing as well as learn about

your growth. Make sure these don’t get unproductive, however, as idea sessions can get out of hand very quickly. The concept

that there are no stupid ideas is flawed. Given enough time in a session, ideas can get silly and will no longer be an asset to your

growth.

Whether you are an experienced mentor or an inexperienced mentee, putting accountability into your mentoring relationship will

make it effective and produce an end product that is worthwhile for all parties. As you set goals and expectations, measure your

progress and get feedback—you are investing in a mentoring relationship that will pay great dividends. The partnership of

mentoring with accountability will maximize learning, providing a positive experience for all concerned.

1 Triple Creek Associates, Inc. Masterful Mentoring. April 2006.

Article Source: http://www.leadershiparticles.net

Continued: Accountability and Mentoring

Information contained in this newsletter is for general information purposes only and is not intended to be specific guidance for any particular supervisor or human resource management concern. Some of it might not apply to your particular company policies and available programs. This information is proprietary and intended only for eligible EAP members. For specific guidance on handling individual employee problems, consult with Deer Oaks at: 1.866.327.2400 or at www.deeroaks.com

July 2012 Page 3

Supervisor/HR Supplement Newsletter Helpful Resources From Your Employee Assistance Program

Q. My employee went to the EAP but was unable to stick with the treatment program for alcoholism. Unfortunately, the

employee’s job was lost due to the relapse. Why do some employees recover while others do not? I can’t help but think

the relapse was somehow partly my fault.

A. As with the treatment of any chronic condition, the burden of following instructions and managing a program of recovery from

alcoholism rests with the alcoholic (patient). A frustrating part of alcoholism is relapse. Your feeling upset and wondering if

you could have prevented it is a natural response. However, the relapse is not your fault. A universal tenet in all effective

treatment models is that patients are responsible for their own recovery. There can be many reasons for a relapse, including

inadequate treatment, inefficient or inadequate follow-up, concurrent mental health or physical problems, provocative and

non-supportive living environments, failure to follow instructions, poor education about the illness, and relationships with

co-dependent persons who undermine recovery. A failure to change one’s lifestyle is often another cause of relapse. The best

way you can help your employees is by better understanding the disease with help from the EAP, referring employees to the

EAP when performance issues appear, and holding them accountable for their own conduct or performance.

Ask Your EAP!

Copyright ©2012 by The Frontline Supervisor.

The following are answers to common questions supervisors have regarding employee issues and making EAP

referrals. As always, if you have specific questions about referring an employee or managing a workgroup issue, feel

free to make a confidential call to the EAP for a management consultation.

Q. I have an excellent worker with a serious absenteeism issue. I hesitate to initiate a confrontation or take disciplinary

action because these options could damage my relationship with this employee. Pushing a formal EAP referral might

also be problematic. What should I do?

A. A supervisor with an outstanding worker who has an absenteeism problem is a classic example of why employee assistance

programming melds so efficiently with management practices. Most supervisors with the problem you describe hope for the

pattern of absenteeism to spontaneously resolve itself, but unfortunately this rarely happens. Talk to your supervisor and the

EAP first. Bring and share information you’ve documented about the absenteeism pattern. This will help the EA professional

determine how you can better monitor and properly confront your employee. Eventually, you will need to face the crisis that

will appear if this problem continues. Will your job be jeopardized? Will other employees’ health suffer from working

overtime? Will direct and indirect costs associated with the absenteeism climb? Currently, your procrastination feels

preferable over taking action, but working with the EAP may help you feel comfortable about moving closer to intervening in

this situation (rather than losing control of it and experiencing undesirable consequences).

Q. How can I encourage my employees to use my expertise as a supervisor or manager? I think some employees are unsure

about how to use a supervisor as a resource. I don’t want to be just a boss, but a teacher, mentor, and career adviser as

well.

A. Many employees approach their jobs with the idea that the supervisor plays only a punitive role. Younger employees may be

more susceptible to this pattern of thinking. This misconception can make employees quiet and “avoidant.” To intervene,

offer guidance on how you can benefit them, especially their careers. Share how you can help employees develop their goals,

identify and point out strengths and areas for growth, deliver knowledge and experience, delegate valuable assignments to

encourage skill building, offer brainstorming collaboration, problem-solve workload and manageability issues, and invite

suggestions for changes in the office or workflow. Always explain that you seek loyalty from employees, but this does not

mean agreeing with everything you say. Don’t hesitate to put these and other issues into writing if it will help your employees

make more constructive use of your role.