How Many “Box Tickers” Do you Have in Your Business?
According to the Cambridge Dictionary, the definition of “box ticking” is the fact of doing something just because there is a rule that says you must do it.
A critical question that CEOs and leaders often have is how they take their team members from a ‘box ticker’ (someone who does what they do because they are told to do it), to a ‘frame maker’ (someone that uses their initiative to create new processes or practices that enable the growth of a company).
During the darker days of the pandemic, thanks to a 7-minute overlap with a potential Covid case in a large bicycle store, I was deemed a “close contact” of a Covid case and required to isolate for 2 weeks.
I had a home visit from a contract tracing individual, accompanied by two army officers. The person that turned up was what I would call a “box ticker”. They solely wanted to make sure I was at home. Never mind the four other people who lived with me, for all they knew, were circulating freely in the community. They had no curiosity or interest other than the fact that I was at home when they visited.
The army officers were completely disinterested, standing three or so metres away from the contact tracer, playing with their phones whilst I was asked the same questions that ten of their bureaucrat colleagues would ask me in the preceding seven days.
While I could go on and on about this experience, upon being released from my home quarantine and being tracked and monitored by the Victorian Government, it gave me an inside view of their fragmented contract tracing processes, the narrow-minded focus of their staff and the definite lack of knowledge as to what any of their roles were in the bigger picture. My experience gave me some grave concerns and triggered some considerations I think are essential for any CEO, business owner and leaders of businesses.
What proportion of your team spot an issue, have enough care to ask the next question, and resolve the issue at hand beyond just ticking a box? More importantly… How do you know this?
How many of your team understand that bringing feedback and suggestions to their management to improve the organisation and enhance service delivery is a critical part of their role?
How many times in the last three months have you communicated your company’s One Phrase Strategy, your Big Hairy Audacious Goal (BHAG), your company’s core values, its core purpose, and the top 5 business priorities?
How well can your team “join the dots” between their specific roles and your company’s strategy and critical measures?
As the CEO, business owner and/or leader of a business, you must satisfactorily answer all of the questions above. Doing this will help grow your business with the following:
Your team become proactive, care for your business and its stakeholders and offer feedback from the front line. They will not be "box tickers" and are incredible market-intelligence agents that help you meet your client's needs – the oxygen for your business.
Your team members and management are creating an environment where feedback is provided daily, weekly and monthly. This feedback generates suggestions from front-line experiences that enhance the business's likelihood of success.
You repeatedly communicate your company's strategy, core purpose, and other vital elements. You are probably getting sick of it, and your team would have heard it many times, but it is NEVER, EVER enough!
All team members should clearly understand the relevance of their role and how it relates to the grand plan of the business. Understanding the significance of their role is a significant contributor to employee engagement.
You and your leaders are constantly connecting with team to assess their understanding of their relevance to the business. There will be some occasions when you can assist them in enhancing their knowledge. As a CEO or business owner, it's a great subject to check in on with them when you conduct your informal one-on-one connection discussions.
While all organisations need processes and procedures to be upheld to keep the company running smoothly, having a box-ticking culture can be a self-perpetuating road to disaster, primarily if it exists in the top levels of your organisation. Hence, as the business owner, it's your responsibility to ensure boxes are being ticked that move the company forward, not just because they look good on paper.
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