A lack of accountability in the workplace can produce disastrous results and unfortunately in recent times, there have been a number of high profile issues around lack of accountability. So, why is accountability so important?
Often, after a negative incident at a company, we hear the phrase “mistakes were made”, followed by the usual promise to put policies into place to avoid further errors. Sometimes this answer is valid but more often than not it is a tool to sweep the recent problem under the carpet and move swiftly along. In many instances the general public will pick up on what was missed and wonder how it possibly could have happened.
While we have progressed in placing clear guidelines around issues such as gender equality, discrimination and inclusion, we still have a huge grey area when it comes to accountability.
Accountability for some but not all
Of course, the level of accountability is different in each job. For example, a salesperson is always accountable for their sales, but they may not actually have the authority to make the decisions needed to close a deal. And yet it is commonplace that employers will not hire sales people if they are not prepared to accept this responsibility.
As we see in the current situation with the recent Chilcot report on the Iraq war, and the subsequent finding that such a decision by Tony Blair was taken irresponsibly and unnecessarily. Blair has come under fire but there is no clear path of accountability, and most likely he will never face any reprimands.
How to implement accountability in the workplace?
The key to accountability in a company is placing it within the culture of the firm. Employees need to be able to trust their employer, and know that a genuine mistake won’t result in disaster for them. For the employee, it should be made absolutely clear before a contract is signed what their role is, what accountability is theirs and what the extent of their responsibility is.
Some simple ways to cultivate a culture of accountability amongst the workforce is to have weekly goal expectations and a reward system for those who achieve those goals. This establishes a degree of trust between employer and employee, and familiarises workers with the idea of being responsible for their actions in a work setting.
Often when something goes wrong there is an instant scramble to appoint blame, as opposed to solving the issue at hand. We tend to have a blame culture often worsened by the involvement of the media. Blame breeds resentment and mistrust. In the rush to find someone to accept responsibility for a mistake, genuine error can become scandal and ruin a career.
Accountability is an ongoing process, and needs to be implemented as such in the culture of the company. It cannot be reviewed annually to assess whether obligations were met. It should be at the forefront, from the beginning.
It is a culture that is easier to implement if those at the top lead by example, showing their employees that they can accept responsibility for an error however big or small.
Motivation is key to accountability as a motivated workforce is more likely to take ownership of their role, a disenfranchised workforce has no incentive. Finding out what motivates your workforce and satisfying those needs will inevitably result in a more productive environment and as a result the accountability vacuum will most likely be filled.
Measure and track effectiveness before a project comes to an end, checking at various points of a task, project or body of work allows for natural accountability to reach to the fore. Issues are spotted, they are discussed in most cases avoided. Accountability across the board rises and errors in work naturally lower.
Naturally accountability in the workplace is a vast subject with varying levels of liability, however implementing a culture of openness and support is invariably the way to achieve the desired result.