Originally published as the cover of the July 6, 1916, issue of Leslie’s Weekly with the title “What Are You Doing for Preparedness?” this portrait of Uncle Sam went on to become—according to its creator, James Montgomery Flagg—“the most famous poster in the world.”

In fact, Flagg patriotically contributed forty-six works of art to the war effort in order to bolster the recruitment of citizen workers, soldiers and sailors for both world wars. One can only imagine what Uncle Sam saw in the faces of the men, women and children who gazed upon this poster back then. Was it determination? A readiness to serve? A confidence of victory over our enemies as long as we stick together?

What would Uncle Sam see today if he again asked Americans to pitch in on the economic battle in which we are engaged presently? Unfortunately, many of those faces would be donning looks of doom, doubt and despair. And, it wouldn’t just be the tired, the poor and the huddled masses yearning to breathe free, either. Many of the dejected would be CEOs of once-prominent banks, automobile manufacturers and insurance firms with their palms outstretched for government bailout money.

Have we really fallen that far? Do we really believe the US Government—the same government that cannot operate within a balanced budget and reeks of inefficiency and impropriety—can lead us back to prosperity? I wouldn’t bet my stimulus check on it. If there is to be any economic rebound, it will be led by the thousands of small business owners and entrepreneurially-spirited individuals that have grown tired of corporate and governmental ineptitude. However, willing it so will not do the trick. It will take a special brand of leadership and a firm grasp of the concept of accountability up and down the organizational chart. Interested? Let’s roll it out.

Hope, partnership, servitude

Recently, I had the privilege of attending a webinar titled “Leading in Uncertain Times.” The guest speaker was Ken Blanchard, renowned author of many business books, most notably The One Minute Manager series.

He reminded his audience that downturns and upturns are cyclical, although he acknowledges this recessionary dip is significantly deeper relative to previous ones. How did things get so bad so fast? Arguably, one may say it began with American manufacturing plants losing work—and, subsequently, America losing jobs—to foreign competitors with cheap labor. So much work was lost that some American companies moved their entire manufacturing operations offshore; certainly, our industry has seen its fair share of that practice.

What is made in the USA these days? It seems America makes best what other countries simply can’t make at all: specialty and technologically-advanced goods such as farming equipment, gas turbines for power plants, computer chips and fighter jets.

I would nominate decorated apparel as a specialty product, as well. When demand for finished goods slumps, all types of manufacturing suffer equally. But when the cycle reverses itself, it will be the higher-end work—and jobs—that will rebound first. Workers and companies who make goods more cheaply produced overseas may have a difficult time surviving.

According to Manufacturers Alliance/MAPI, an industry trade group, 30 years ago the United States produced 80 percent of what it consumed. Today, that percentage is around 65. Fifty years ago, 28 percent of the American work force toiled in factories. In 2009, only eight percent of our labor force holds manufacturing jobs. The numbers—though painful to those who lost jobs—show how companies are making more with less. And that should be a lesson for all of us: Make things that others can’t or aren’t willing to make, and be frugal and efficient at all times, good or bad.

Ken Blanchard shared what he believes are the three keys to moving forward in this troubled economy:

be a bearer of hope;

adopt your people as business partners; and

become a servant leader.

It is a given fact that one manages best when one is optimistic about achieving the organization’s goal. Allowing negative thoughts to infiltrate your work space will conjure up doubt and most likely lead to a less-than-desirable outcome. Blanchard contends that all leaders should exude hope: “Put it this way: If we all knew what the future was going to be, we wouldn’t need any faith . . . in a Supreme Being, in others or in ourselves.” Norman Vincent Peele once said, “Positive thinkers get good results because they think positively.” And, when the slightest bit of good news arrives, make time to celebrate it. You will find it nearly impossible to deal with the bad times if you forget to appreciate the good times.

Now, ask yourself these two questions: Did you see the recession coming? And, if so, did you ask your personnel what we should do about the tough times ahead? If you agree that our economy is cyclical, you would have to answer the first question in the affirmative—although you may argue about how much advance notice you were given. Ken Blanchard’s idea of adopting your people as business partners suggests business owners and managers need to share more information about the health and welfare of the enterprise, tell the truth about the present reality, and let everyone lose sleep together.

Finally, the concept of servant leadership starts in the conscience of any person designated as or seeking to become the leader. When anything productive or noteworthy happens in your business, who is seen seeking and expecting the credit for it? Be honest. Is it you because you are the business owner and ultimately the one for which everyone is working? That would be an example of the behavior of a self-serving leader, not a servant leader. It’s important to note that there is no limit on the amount of credit that can be passed around when your team wins.

Likewise, if the outcome of a particular work effort is less than optimal, who in your organization is ready to throw another person under the bus to take the blame?  Servant leaders engage in one of four variations of leadership to handle mistakes and errors:

self-leadership—and the outcome will render perspective;

one-to-one leadership—where the desired outcome is trust between leader and follower;

team leadership—where the outcome creates a sense of community; and

organizational leadership—where the company seeks to produce effectiveness and success.

Blanchard explains that servant leaders let as many people as possible know what is expected before the effort is put forth, and listens carefully for her people’s concerns throughout the process. Simply, it becomes a matter of holding others and one’s self accountable.

Accountability that works

In February, the Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig stated emphatically that he should not be held accountable for the widespread use of steroids and performance-enhancing drugs in the sport during his tenure, since 1998, as baseball’s top executive. Really? Then, who should be held accountable?

Days after taking office, President Barack Obama issued a scathing critique of Wall Street corporate behavior—calling it “the height of irresponsibility”—for employees to be paid more than $18 billion in bonuses in 2008 while the crumbling financial sector received a bailout from taxpayers. The President went on to say, “It is shameful. And part of what we’re going to need is for the folks on Wall Street who are asking for help to show some restraint, and show some discipline, and show some sense of responsibility.”

Yet, as of this writing, Wells Fargo & Co., which received $25 billion in taxpayer bailout money and was once among the top underwriters of subprime mortgages, had booked 12 nights at the end of February at two upscale Las Vegas hotels for its annual conference and recognition event, which has, in years past, included helicopter rides, lavish gifts, wine tasting, and private concerts. Unbelievably, a Wells Fargo spokeswoman defended her company’s plans by saying, “Recognition is still part of our culture. It’s really important that our team members are still valued and recognized.” You’ve got to be joking.

Is it just me or have we completely forgotten the meaning of such words as accountability and responsibility? Please indulge me as I share with you—the small business owner and the only people I personally trust to revive our sub-par economy—the only model of accountability that works.

You may want to kick off any effort your company undertakes to stimulate sales or improve productivity in your business by defining the task at hand and securing commitment among the people being asked to complete the task. Unless you hear the exact words of task ownership, your chances of holding anybody accountable later are slim. Don’t be fooled into assuming people have taken responsibility for the job when you hear them say, “We should . . .” “Someone should . . .” or “We ought to. . . .” Insist on hearing, “I can . . .” “I will . . .” and/or “I own it!” Simply put, responsibility is a before-the-fact mindset of ownership of a task, job or project.

Along with the definition of the task and who is the owner of it, you must describe the desired results and set a deadline as to when the job will be completed. Once a person or group accepts responsibility for a job, the authority, resources and tools to complete the assignment must be made available to them. Most important, it is the owners of the task who must believe they are empowered to perform it. Empowerment is taking personal action to ensure an agreed-upon result and there are four characteristics of empowered people:

deciding what steps to take—usually in the form of a detailed plan;

asking for assistance—asking questions, anticipating obstacles, keeping key personnel informed of the progress being made;

overcoming challenges—using an analytical approach and disciplined thinking to be innovative and break through barriers; and

staying on track—being disciplined, meeting milestones, and following up with others.

Finally, accountability is a personal willingness—after-the-fact—to answer for the results of one’s behavior and actions, regardless how things turned out. When you look back at the examples given above, one may conclude that the first two steps—gaining agreement on who would be responsible for seeing the job through and having each person act in an empowered manner—were never established from the beginning. Attempting to hold someone accountable, without assigning responsibility and ensuring empowerment first, is futile and is merely finding a scapegoat to blame after the effort has failed.

 Wake up, America

If you’ve read this far, you may be asking yourself, “What can a single small-business owner do to fix the economy?” Well, to quote Annie Savoy—played by Susan Sarandon—in the movie Bull Durham: “Why, there are laws we don’t understand that bring us together and tear us apart. Uh, it’s like pheromones. You get three ants together, they can’t do [expletive deleted]. You get three-hundred-million of them, they can build a cathedral!”

The number of small businesses in America in 2005 reached a new high of 25.85 million, according to the Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy’s annual report to the President on the small-business economy. And, small (fewer than 10 employees) employer firms—that is, companies with payrolls—account for over 78 percent of all businesses. Perhaps we should heed the message of a less-famous James Montgomery Flagg poster from 1917. . . .

Make a difference in your community. Don’t wait for the government to tell you what to do to survive and/or grow your business. Recruit local business owners and band together to get through this recession in solidarity. Train your people together. Advertise cooperatively. But, in all you do, employ the aforementioned model of holding others and yourself accountable for the results. Good luck!

Broad Strokes

This month’s broad strokes include:

The words “accountability” and “responsibility” have either lost their meaning or we have collectively chosen to misuse and/or misapply them.

If there is to be any, economic rebound will be led by the thousands of small-business owners and entrepreneurially-spirited individuals that have grown tired of corporate and governmental ineptitude.

The three keys to moving forward in this troubled economy include being a bearer of hope, adopting your people as business partners, and becoming a servant leader.

Any effort to stimulate sales or improve productivity in your business should begin with understanding what responsibility, empowerment and accountability are and how to implement them properly.