Accountability has been a hot topic in my recent discussions with executives. These leaders struggle with a lack of ownership in the culture, and in many cases, on the executive team as well. Not only is this frustrating, but it also leads to a lack of trust. In the words of the authors Mike Erwin and Willys Devoll, “Exhibiting accountability over time is a gateway to trust. When we see someone acting with accountability, we gain the evidence we need to trust them.”
The toll leaders describe in our conversations is great: blaming, second guessing each other, duplication of effort, and overall inefficiency and ineffectiveness. Wouldn’t it be better to spend your time and effort to build a culture of accountability than to deal with the aftermath when it doesn’t exist? Here are a few ways to do that:
I. It starts with you. You set the tone for accountability through your actions. Are you clear with others about what you commit to do, and what you will not commit to? Do you consistently deliver on your commitments, and when you do not, do you blame and make excuses? Are you open to hearing what is/isn’t working in your area? Are you willing to hold yourself, your team, and your peers accountable even when it requires difficult conversations and consequences? Often, highly accountable executives jump in to do the work for others versus fostering accountability in them to do it, as “it is just easier to do it myself.” While this is understandable, you are enabling the very behavior that frustrates you so is it the best choice to make?
II. Build accountability into your teams. This includes the team you lead, but it also includes the team(s) you are a member of. Patrick Lencioni (author of The Five Dysfunctions of a Team) points out that peer-to-peer accountability is far more efficient and effective than pulling the leader in to solve the issue. Teams must spend time building trust as well as communication and conflict skills to hold each other accountable. They must have clear roles and responsibilities, while also feeling ownership of success of the whole, not just their individual parts. This can be particularly challenging at the executive level, where individual leaders have strong histories of outperforming others and being rewarded with promotions. It takes time and effort to create the conditions on the team for shared ownership and accountability.
III. Leverage the “Accountability Partner” role. In defining clear roles, responsibilities, and metrics for each other, define and use the “Accountability Partner” role that everyone is expected to play for areas that are not their specific responsibility. The Accountability Partner role includes behaviors such as the following:
Sharing feedback with other team members about the impact of their behavior.
Respectfully challenging each other, for example when there is a different understanding of the facts and details of a situation, or when denial, excuses, and blaming need to be brought back to a productive discussion.
Ensuring the full team is aligned around who is responsible for what and by when.
Offering help and resources when needed.
Staying engaged in discussions and project updates to effectively represent the full work of the team and to assist in problem solving and issue resolution.
Supporting team members to others outside of team meetings.
Addressing conflicts on the team and not letting them fester.
Each person should be measured on their ability to enact this role with their peers.
IV. Develop a shared language for progress updates and use it with discipline. Project updates are where accountability issues are often felt. There are a few typical miscommunication patterns when projects struggle: (1) People don’t raise issues because they believe they must act as if they have everything under control or they will be judged to be incompetent. This first pattern is rooted in fear, and leaders need to create a culture that makes it not just okay, but expected, to raise issues so they can be managed. (2) People feel like they have accurately shared the challenges and asked for help, but it has fallen on deaf ears. These two issues can be alleviated by adopting a common language to share status. For example, something as simple as Green, Yellow, Red can be the basis for your language, where:
Green: Project is on track, all milestones and deliverables to be met as expected.
Yellow: Project is off track, but the team working on it believes it can bring it back on track with its existing resources.
Red: Project is off track, and help is needed from outside the team to bring it back on track. The conversation must result in clear decisions about what additional help will be provided, or if no additional help is provided, what the accepted impact is on the project.
V. Coach for accountability. It isn’t easy to keep accountability where it belongs. As mentioned earlier, some executives just prefer to do the work themselves, but unfortunately that isn’t helpful in the long run. Coaching skills are essential for effective leadership and are particularly helpful in fostering accountability in others. Beyond the standard questions such as “What will you do?” and “When will you do it?” here are a few great coaching questions that can ignite accountability in others and unearth areas of misalignment:
What is important to you about the success of this work? In your mind, what are the costs of failing?
Given all we have discussed, what do you believe you are accountable for?
What will I see you doing that demonstrates your ownership of this outcome?
What do you feel is outside your control, but must happen for you to be successful with your accountabilities? What ideas do you have for how to ensure those dependencies are met?
How will I know you have done it?
How would you like me to hold you accountable for this goal in a way that feels supportive to you and your commitments?
If you would prefer to have a team or organization of owners versus renters, there are concrete actions you can take as a leader to foster a culture of accountability in others. Start by reflecting on the five areas above. If you want to learn more about how Inspirati Leadership Solutions can help you and your organization enhance your culture of accountability, reach out to me at kate@inspiratileadership.com. I look forward to hearing from you.
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