Most leaders I talk to yearn for more accountability from their teams. They would prefer to be an empowering leader, giving people their trust and autonomy to deliver the job.
But what happens when accountability is noticeably absent?
The impact on leaders that I see is often frustration, confusion, self-doubt, double-handling, inefficiency, overwhelm and patchy deliverables. You start to question what you’ve done wrong and how on how on earth to get people to step up.
If this resonates for you, these scenarios may sound all too familiar:
Lack of autonomy: Team members frequently reach out for guidance on minor issues, failing to prioritise their tasks. This constant need for direction can make you feel more like you’re spoon feeding than leading.
Subpar quality: There are times when you feel dismayed by the poor quality of reporting or other deliverables that are submitted. Riddled with errors or lacking in depth or detail, you are forced to put in additional hours to ensure accuracy and completeness.
Repeated instructions: It's frustrating and exhausting to continuously re-explain tasks, especially when it feels like the person isn't paying attention or taking accountability for the getting it right.
The sentiment "I thought I was clear the first time?" repeats on a loop.
Missed deadlines: Suddenly you realise the paper hasn’t been submitted and the time you’d allocated to review it has now been pushed after hours, putting you under more pressure.
Lack of attention to detail: Having to consistently oversee and correct mistakes can quickly become a significant portion of your day. When basic mistakes aren't addressed and the quality of work doesn't improve over time, it gives the impression that the team just doesn’t care enough to make the effort.
You might have got to the point that you resist delegating anything of substance due to previously poor outcomes. As a result, you end up doing everything from oversight to execution, or constantly firefighting, which can quickly lead to bottlenecks and burnout as the organisation grows.
However, it's not just about pointing fingers or laying blame. You may have more control over this issue than you think.
Here is a checklist of strategies that have helped clients in the past: (#7 is often missed!)
Assume no knowledge: You know more than you realise. We often overestimate the confidence, courage or competence of others, especially with smart and senior people. So, until you know otherwise, assume no knowledge and spell things out more clearly than you think is necessary.
Expectations & replay: Specify the job/project and the outcome you are expecting. Show an example if possible and ask for a replay of understanding. Many subconsciously expect you to check, and finish it off, so will take it to 80% unless told otherwise.
Deadline buffer: Build in a buffer of time to review and return work for completion if the quality is lacking, so that the person develops the skill and understanding for next time.
Direction: Even the most talented people need clear direction and support with new responsibilities. Just because they're smart/experienced/confident, doesn't mean that they are clear on everything. This can be less comfortable if you prefer an ‘empowering’ approach, but it’s necessary to adapt your style to meet them where they are at.
Confidence: Many people are capable, but not confident, so need your support, encouragement and coaching to execute well. Show them your faith in their abilities to build their confidence.
Ability: On the flipside, others are less capable than you think, or than they’re willing to admit. If something’s new to them, put in checkpoints to keep things on track.
Mistakes: Often, people are very fearful of getting things wrong and will avoid something rather than make a mistake. Encourage giving it their best shot. Reassure them that you've got their back if a mistake is made.
Decision making authority: A big one! Be crystal clear on who can decide and approve what.
Purpose: Bring the team together to define their collective purpose and identify what success would look like and be measured by in 12 months’ time. This builds collective accountability.
Delegate by design: This is a big topic that I’ll cover separately. Suffice to say, time spent up front on delegating effectively has a compounding effect on accountability.
Meaning and value: Continuous connect the importance of their contribution and completion to you and the bigger picture. Sometimes they expect feel that it won’t be good enough so you’ll polish it up anway.
I haven’t covered more obvious things like KPI’s and feedback, perhaps that’s something for another day.
If you’re doing all of these things and still not seeing the empowered and accountable team of your dreams, you may have a performance issue, a skills deficit or something else going on behind the scenes. Time for some further diagnosis.
Consider the next 30 days....what’s one thing you can do right now to build more accountability in your team?
I’d love to know if this is helpful? If you have a request for a future topic, let me know!
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