At Echo Consulting, LLC we believe in radical transparency and flexibility with accountability.
What is radical transparency and how do we practice it?
1. All team members are aware of all other team member’s salaries and profit share bonuses.
2. All team member’s goals are shared with the entire team.
3. When a team member is struggling with one of their goals or role expectations, it is shared on our CRAID log as a risk or issue so team members can help and offer support.
4. Company financials are shared with the entire team quarterly and any team member may request a cashflow update at any time.
5. All business development goals are shared with the team and updated at least monthly so that everyone knows if we are
6. The Echo team is encouraged to meet at least quarterly (without me) and provide feedback on how we can/should improve the culture and work environment at Echo Consulting – Most recently the team completed a KALM (Keep, Add, Less, More). The feedback was provided as a team.
Radical transparency is seldom comfortable. Sometimes sharing information with the whole team feels unnatural or even intrusive. Calling out individuals for their wins and accomplishments is more generally accepted, but exposing our weaknesses to others, even within our team can make us feel vulnerable. So why do we do it? How can we foster psychological safety on our team if our individual risks and issues are shared openly? If one person is paid more for the same role, doesn’t that cause tension?
I think Simon Sinek says it well “A team is not a group of people who work together. A team is a group of people who trust each other.”
As a team, we need all members to bring their best selves to work. We do not all contribute equally all of the time – and that is ok and should be expected. But we all have a responsibility to push each other to do our best for the good of the team, for the good of our clients, and the good of our community. We should be empowered as individuals to express and be confident in the value we bring, and when that is in comparison to others on the team, having those goals/contributions open to the team helps that conversation be constructive. It's not always easy, but it is an important step.
How transparent is your team? How can we improve transparency at Echo? As we like to say at Echo – Sharing is Caring!