Accountability is the key to success in any organization. Accountability increases trust, employee engagement, morale, talent retention, and ultimately, the most desired result – achievement of goals.
Building a culture of accountability among your workforce ensures clear expectations, fosters ownership, and promotes a growth mindset, leading to better decision-making and increased transparency.
Accountability begins with understanding what the goals are and the results you want the team to achieve. You have to ensure as a leader you have been clear on these goals, provided focus with these goals, and that you’re not putting too many goals in front of team members.
67% of disciplinary issues are not because the employee sets out to fail or slack off. Every member of your team needs to know what your priorities are. If they can only get five things done in a day, what do you want those five things to be?
You as a leader need to consistently communicate the progress that you see the group and individuals making as it relates to your goals and expectations. For one thing, this helps keep them on track and focused
Hire and promote right. Accountability is about rewarding, promoting, and hiring the people that meet the expectations you are asking them to achieve. Be clear on what a successful person looks like in your organization from a values and experience perspective
And last, but not least, have consequences for those not achieving results. If it is a skill issue, then roll up your sleeves and coach them. If it is a discipline issue, then move them off your team.
Accountability is critical to the overall success of your organization and keeping your team engaged. Your team wants to invest in you, and by showing them you care enough to hold them accountable, you communicate to them that this is a company and a leader worth investing in.