Are you frustrated that team members don't follow through on projects or tasks? Has this become an issue as the organisation has grown? Do these experiences leave you resigned to the idea that you can do nothing to strengthen personal responsibility? If this resonates, then read on.
Accountability in the workplace means people honour their commitments and hold each other accountable positively and productively. The benefits of high levels of accountability are significant, with accountable teams enjoying high levels of trust among co-workers, positively impacting their job satisfaction, engagement, and performance.
If you are a leader in an expanding business and recognise accountability as a challenge, examine if your organisational culture derails people from taking personal responsibility. Rather than blame the people in your team, start by asking yourself: how might the culture contribute to this situation?
This article explores how to strengthen accountability through the quality of dialogue and the cultural norms that support this. Therefore, as a leader, take a moment to consider the quality of interactions in your organisation. Firstly, consider the degree of formality in how people communicate expectations. How comfortable are people to engage in productive conflict? Finally, when it comes down to it, how you respectfully hold each other accountable for the commitments that have been made.
Build a Culture of Accountability Through More Formal Communication
In a small team, informal communication can work well because everyone is closely involved and can clarify expectations as a project unfolds. However, as an organisation grows, departments emerge, and roles become more specialised. With this structural change comes the need for more precise communication to support accountability.
To address this challenge, entrepreneurial leaders and startups must balance maintaining an informal culture's creative and dynamic aspects while implementing structures, norms and processes that provide clarity and the basis for greater accountability. This shift involves more formal communication of expectations and establishing regular check-ins.
Ultimately, the key is to recognise the value of informality in fostering innovation and creativity while proactively addressing potential pitfalls as the business scales. Clear communication improves accountability and is essential for sustained success, and finding the right balance can contribute to a positive and productive organisational culture.
Some ways to strengthen the quality of communication are:
Close the gap between 'what was said' and 'what was heard': Wrap up meetings with feedback and next steps on what people have taken from the discussion.
Nominating one owner for every action ensures specificity in the who, what, where, and how.
Keep communication short and succinct. Recognise people's cognitive load, the concentration needed to process information, and how an excess load can erode understanding and accountability.
In doing so, use summaries, clearly defined implications, and actions to help people understand how to proceed.
Build a Culture of Accountability Through Positive Conflict Norms
Lencioni's model, 'Five Common Dysfunctions of a Team,' emphasises that healthy conflict is essential for teams to achieve higher levels of accountability. When team members feel safe expressing opinions, debating, and challenging ideas, it fosters a positive conflict culture. When people freely share different perspectives and when they feel heard, they are more likely to support a decision, even if it doesn't go their way.
However, do you notice situations where people in your organisation might value being accepted by the group over holding a different opinion? Does everyone in the team feel comfortable to speak up or get the opportunity to share their view? These behaviours can emerge when a perspective differs from the leader's or when a team grows with new members joining, so the team dynamics change.
Leaders play a crucial role in creating an environment where productive conflict can thrive. They set the tone by encouraging open communication, clarifying that diverse perspectives are valued, and providing guidelines for healthy debate. Leaders can also model the behaviour they want to see, demonstrating how to disagree respectfully and encouraging others to do the same.
Fostering an atmosphere where task-based conflict is normalised and seen as a natural part of the decision-making process increases teams' likelihood of engaging in robust discussions. Accountability strengthens when individuals contribute more freely and are committed to the team's chosen path because they actively participate in decision-making.
Some ways to strengthen commitment through positive conflict are:
Workshop with your team to decide on the behavioural norms that will build commitment—for example, as a leader, you could monitor when the team makes decisions too quickly.
Recognise contributions and different perspectives before evaluating ideas.
Facilitate team discussion, encouraging turn-taking and assembling diverse groups for problem-solving.
Ensure no one dominates team discussions and try giving someone in the team the role of taking a divergent view or facilitating a team discussion.
Build a Culture of Accountability by Holding the Line
The unconscious mind can take over when we fail to fulfil our commitments. Anxious feelings can emerge when we know we've fallen short of our commitments or expectations. In these situations, we use a range of defence mechanisms to protect ourselves from experiencing these uncomfortable feelings, a reaction that is a natural part of human functioning.
Common defence mechanisms include denial, blame, justification, or excuses. When these mechanisms appear, the conversation can quickly get reframed, and the people involved can soon lose sight of the commitment that had been made.
The challenge as a leader is to ‘hold the line of accountability'. In other words, remaining focused on the commitment made to deliver a project or task, while still being empathetic to the person’s situation.
One of the paradoxes of leadership is trying to be empathic while also holding someone accountable. When you observe a defensive reaction, try to approach the situation without judgment of the person. Respectfully help them assess the situation and remain focused on how they can make good on their commitment.
One of the most common defence mechanisms is an excuse, such as "I have just not had time." The leadership challenge is not to over empathise with the person's situation and take over resolving the issue or taking back the project. Holding the line involves helping the person reflect on the choices they made that led to this conversation, what they learned, and explore the options to make good on their commitment. This process may involve providing more resources or support but keeping ownership of the plan with the person.
Some ways to hold the line of accountability are:
Use the concept of ‘above the line and below the line’ to help draw attention to defence mechanisms emerging in team discussions.
Use coaching skills to support the person in finding a solution and define appropriate next steps for not delivering on their commitment.
Focus the conversation on the breakdown in accountability, avoid personalising, and help the person reflect on what they have learnt from the experience.
Cultivate a growth mindset by helping the person explore what they might do differently next time.
Accountability starts with motivating delegation conversations and paying attention to the quality of interactions in the organisations from where clarity, commitment and consequences emerge. Leaders who embrace a culture of accountability will look to themselves first when commitments are consistently not met and ask how does the culture need to evolve to keep pace with the growth of the business?