Holding employees accountable is an underpinning of good leadership, but as a manager, it’s hard to put into practice without damaging morale or trust. Done well, though, accountability at work creates ownership, enhances performance, and fosters a healthy corporate climate.
Done poorly, though, and results are disengagement, resentment, and turnover. This article looks at how leaders usually get accountability wrong when holding people accountable and offers practical tips for building an accountability climate in your organization.
Why Workplace Accountability Breaks Down
A recent survey conducted by Culture Partners revealed that 82% either do not hold others accountable or struggle and fail while doing so.
Worst still, only 15% have established and communicated key results, while 84% agree that leadership behavior is the single biggest driver when it comes to organizational accountability.
The gap between expectation and performance results from leaders’ fear of conflict, fear of damaging relationships, or a lack of leadership training.
Firing off an expectation and then not following through clearly results in uneven accountability and confusion, and subpar performance.
Leaders may also fail to follow up on setting goals, which conveys that expectations will not be held accountable. This undermines accountability across the organization.
Consequences for Lack of Accountability
Where there is no accountability, the negative consequences filter throughout an organization. In a YouGov survey for Acas, 49% of UK workers identified colleagues who fail to fully do their job as their greatest workplace annoyances.
This can lead to low morale, extra work for effective workers, and a toxic work environment.
Moreover, a lack of accountability has adverse impacts on trust for leadership.
Employees may perceive inconsistency or favoritism, leading to disengagement and higher employee turnover. A focus on accountability, conversely, fosters transparency, justice, and mutual commitment to business goals.
Long-term accountability continues to align business goals and the team, and maintains long-term performance.
Establishing a Culture of Accountability
Developing a culture of accountability takes deliberate effort and practice every day. The following are essential techniques for building accountability in the workplace:
1. Set Clear Expectations
Clarity is paramount for accountability. Employees should have a clear understanding of their roles and responsibilities, and performance measurement standards.
Defining roles and responsibilities and eliminating duplication and ambiguity can be facilitated using RACI matrices.
Avoid assuming everyone has the same goal concept; provide direct instructions and examples when needed. Adapt and review expectations when business priorities shift or when project scope changes.
2. Provide Regular Feedback
Continuing feedback keeps staff in line with what is expected and provides encouragement for continuing development. Gallup cites that 47% were given feedback from their supervisor “a few times or less” in the past year, which shows a significant gap in communication.
Ongoing, low-key conversations are more effective than sporadic formal evaluations. View coaching sessions as learning opportunities, rather than as times for blame.
3. Lead by Example
One should lead by example. By being personally accountable for your behavior, you establish a standard and invite others to be in compliance with your organization. According to Steve Arneson, Arneson Leadership Consulting’s president,
“Accountability means being dependable, trustworthy, and doing what you said you would do.”
If leaders fail to honor their commitments, credibility goes out the window. Leadership through example elicits respect and trust.
4. Encouraging Ownership
Workers’ empowerment should be granted to enable them to take ownership of their work and decisions. This encourages responsibility and problem-solving.
An article in Harvard Business Review said that employees should feel their work is valued while also creating opportunities for change.
Ownership promotes initiative because people who own what they do are more likely to pull through and innovate. Ownership does away with micromanaging
5. Tackle Problems Early
When performance issues arise, address them promptly and constructively. Delays in addressing difficult conversations magnify problems and signal that accountability is not an important priority.
Use an empathetic approach, and focus on behavior and results rather than personal traits.
Criticize specifically and not generically, write what needs to be altered, and provide guidance for such change. Consistency in addressing issues creates fairness and credibility
Integrating Accountability into Corporate Culture
Establishing accountability in your organization’s culture requires more than personal efforts alone; you need a change of system. Here’s how you can embed accountability in your corporate culture:
1. Align Accountability With Core Values
Make accountability a core value for your organization and integrate it into your mission statement. Alignment reinforces its importance and has an impact at all levels.
Promote responsibility for organizational objectives through team meetings and new-hire orientation. Emphasize these relationships repeatedly.
2. Incorporate Accountability Into Performance Appraisals
Regular performance appraisals need more than reviewing results but also the way in which the staff deliver them. This holistic approach serves to underscore accountability in daily operations.
Practice self-assessment and peer review to encourage candor. Use formal standards to encourage fairness.
3. Acknowledge and Reward Accountability
Recognize workers who exhibit accountability regularly. Acknowledgment has powerful motivational potential and reinforces good behavior.
Rewarding accountability, either formally in terms of rewards, or informally in terms of commendations, leads to its acceptance across the organization.
Publicly recognize good examples of accountability in team meetings to set clear expectations. Link recognition to organizational objectives.
4. Provide Training and Development
Invest in conflict resolution, communication, and leadership skills training programs. Providing employees with these skills empowers them to hold others and themselves accountable for results in an effective manner.
Ongoing development fosters a growth mindset, encouraging individuals to continue growing and acting upon initiatives. Continuous development makes them confident when handling difficult conversations.
Team Leader Tips for Promoting Accountability
Expectations must be defined to avoid confusion. Employees need to know clearly what their role is in the work culture and what performance is required of them from their leaders.
This is more than distributing a job description. Effective leadership is required when you need to get clarification, set measurables, and make sure all people are in agreement about timelines and results expected.
When expectations are well-defined, accountability is a goal rather than a source of confusion.
Equally vital is the establishment of open communication within the team. A workplace where workers feel comfortable discussing challenges, seeking clarification, and seeking help is one where accountability can truly thrive.
Communication Between Team Members
Leaders need to establish psychological safety through listening, responsively answering, and opening up discussion. Openness allows issues to be raised early enough that small issues do not escalate into major obstacles in the company culture.
It allows team members to share ideas and voice concerns without fear of blame. Encouraging accountability between peers can also fuel team performance and collaboration.
When team members hold each other accountable, rather than just the manager, you develop a culture of ownership and respect. This does not require teammates to police each other, but to assist each other in staying on track, meeting deadlines, and producing quality work.
Team check-ins, collaborative goal setting, and collaborative metrics can encourage such dynamics. This will also foster camaraderie and a sense of owning results together.
Another essential competency for any leader looking to build responsibility is positive, constructive feedback. Feedback should be timely, behavioral, specific, and not personality-based.
Factual Observations vs Vague Criticisms
Give factual observations instead of vague criticisms and apply them for real changes for growth. A positive feedback environment leads to better results, clearer development tracks, and higher levels of trust among team members and leaders alike.
Positive feedback further fosters confidence and allows workers to develop good leadership skills themselves in the long run.
Finally, leadership through example is the strongest way to show how to hold people accountable.
Leaders should practice what they preach when it comes to the values and behavior we require our staff to adopt. This entails making and honoring commitments, owning up to mistakes, and being fair to everyone.
Leadership through example has the impact of setting an example for the firm and proving the importance of personal responsibility. Integrity takes credibility, which is crucial in getting agreement when holding others accountable.
How to Manage a Team
Holding employees accountable does not mean micromanaging or punishment but rather creating an open and positive work environment in which clear expectations are communicated, feedback is given constructively, and everyone is working toward common goals.
Through these practices, leaders can develop an accountability culture that enhances performance, increases trust, and drives organizational success.
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