Accountability

Accountability is what happens when someone owns the outcome of an event.  Business owners have inherent accountability, they don’t need to find or accept it, it is their company and money on the line, and the market creates an inherent accountability.The challenge is how to create accountability in non-owners?  The key is to develop a culture where each person is connected to their own success and where they can make a direct connection between their performance, their personal success, and the corporate success.The best way to do this is to show personal concern for employees’ professional well-being and success.  As the owner or leader, it is important to know your team’s ambitions and desires and to show them that there are direct opportunities to have what they want.  You can demonstrate this clearly by creating a direct relationship between their performance and successes. For example, if you are aware and have looked into what their ambitions are and have shown them that these can be achieved by doing their job well, now they have tied their success to the success of the company and now they are the owner of their own dreams and inherently accountable to themselves.  By regularly reviewing and showing your interest in their success you reinforce this connection and their accountability.Ultimately, this process of creating accountability requires that you pay attention. Your attention and direct connection with the people who work for you are your accountability and inherently creates accountability in them. Retaining your accountability and demonstrating it through regular observation and interaction is a vital part of this process.  Your accountability as a leader cannot be replaced, it is your most important activity, “what is measured grows.” If you don’t directly observe what is happening with your people, your success and their success will suffer.  Observation cannot be replaced, we all perform better when we know what we do will be measured and seen; done right this observation is experienced as support.There is little difference between being this kind of leader and the mentoring and coaching that I do. I call it Inquiry Management when we create an environment of growth and accountability that serves individual and corporate well-being.  Become the kind of leader who inspires, not requires, accountability.