Accountability ~ Whose Job Is It Really?

When you think of the term accountability what comes to mind? Results, consequences, expectations, responsibility, controls, imposing one's position over another are often what I hear. When you ask people to be accountable and what they really want? Typical responses are, reliability, meeting deadlines and goals, rewards, meeting key performance indicators, etc. The word accountability is used in a variety of ways and traditional approaches to accountability emphasize controls.  They focus on one or more of these approaches:

Cause ~ accountability is about blame or credit.  Who is at fault or deserves rewards?

Task ~ accountability is  about assignments. Who is going to do what?

Structure ~ accountability is about reporting relationships. To whom are you accountable?

If you want compliance, focus on these three. But remember, people don't want to be told what to do. That is why these approaches often lead to defiance or detachment (and we know engagement is a huge challenge today). They do not account for the link between people's motives and their behaviors.  An accountability system won't effectively promote long-term behavior change until it is linked to personal motives.

Can we really hold people accountable?  Accountability cannot be sustainably demanded or imposed; taking accountability is a free act.  Accountability flows naturally from choice; when we make choices that are intended to produce results that are important to us, we become more accountable for our actions. Conversely, when we feel forced to act in certain ways we tend to blame others or situations when things go wrong, instead of taking accountability for our interactions. We also can't just say, " be more accountable," and expect it to work any better than saying, "be happier." If we want someone to be happier, we need to focus on what makes the happy. We need to know what motives and activities lead to their happiness. It is the same with accountability.  When people choose to take ownership, they are also more likely to take initiative. Accountability, then, is the process of taking ownership and initiative to produce results.

Applying that skill is a process that begins in the core of oneself. That core is made up of your motives and values.  Motivations give purpose and energy, while acting as filters that can narrow or expand the range of our choices.  When we embrace our power to choose, with an accurate assessment of the situation and the motives of ourselves and other people, we can make more effective choices; we can select the right strengths to deploy at the right time. This personal investment in the decision making process connects our chosen actions to our core motives and increases our sense of ownership we have for our actions and results.  Choice increases accountability.

Let's dive a bit deeper. Accountability is a skill that can be learned and developed. We are all blessed with certain strengths we bring to our everyday lives.  These strengths are our behaviors; they are the actions we choose with intent of producing results for oneself, others and the organization.  Strengths can be learned and developed.  Again, let me say, an accountability system will not effectively promote long term behavior change until it is linked to personal motives.  Motives are the missing link.  When people understand why it is important, they are more likely to take accountability for it.  When motives connect with behaviors (strengths), people take ownership and produce far more effective results.

Accountability then is about ownership and initiative. Taking ownership by connecting with your motives to give meaning to what we do.  Taking initiative by choosing the right strength at the right time to create personal responsibility. A motivational and values based perspective is highly useful for improving performance because it helps people connect their choices of current and future actions to their motivational values.  When these connections are made, people's actions are more sustainable because they see that the actions help them fulfill a motivation or purpose that is important and valuable to them.

If you want to improve your results and the quality of your workplace performance and relationships, it is essential that you make effective choices. We may not recognize all the choices available to us, but accountability flows naturally from choice. We are accountable for what we choose to do and your core is where your motives, intentions and purpose come together.  Awareness of your core and the core of others gives you an understanding of motives that enables you to use the right strengths at the right time and produce the results you want.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. How would you begin to break through and better understand your core motives, thoughts, emotions and actions tp becoming more accountable? We would love to hear from you with comments or questions. Send me a note via email at brad@aperiocoaching.net or on Twitter @bparcells.