Accountability in the workplace is all about ownership and initiative. But what happens if there is no accountability? When missed deadlines are tolerated and unfinished work is considered ‘no big deal’ because the rest of the team will pick up the slack.  Your team, and ultimately your workplace culture will suffer.

But have you ever considered that the lack of accountability in your workplace may not be intentional? The fundamental problem with accountability today is the narrow scope through which it is viewed. Often you will find that there is another underlying issue affecting the productivity of the workplace, whether that be unclear responsibilities, non-facilitating resources, or unrealistic goals and timeframes. So rather than setting your mind on an admission of accountability, a better way to address this issue is to look at the whole picture. Let the following steps guide you on how to identify the real issue and execute a plan to address it.

• Consider the role you’re playing

When there is an issue at work, maybe work isn’t getting done or deadlines aren’t being met, often our reflex is to try and pass the blame to someone else. If you feel that there is someone in the workplace contributing to this issue and you want to address it with them, first consider if you have any role to play in the cause, even if unintentional. A good way to approach this conversation is to ask ‘is there anything else I can be doing to help you?’ or ‘is there anything else you need to help get this work done?’ This will help to address any gaps in communication, help to clarify any uncertainties in relation to responsibilities, and address any resource insufficiencies.

• Listen and understand their needs and motivations

Sit down with the person you believe to be accountable, discuss the issue and ask them their thoughts, but try to avoid pointing the finger. By taking the time to listen and understand their needs and motivations in the workplace you may be able to recognize that rather than them being incapable or unreliable, they are just unclear of their responsibilities and the organizational goals, and are therefore not addressing and prioritizing tasks accordingly. They may help you to understand that there are other contributing factors that are stopping them from performing at their best and this can help you outline the best way to continue.

• Clarification is key

After identifying the underlying issues in the workplace, it is important to let them know the purpose of your conversation; to address the issue and collaborate on a plan going forward. When creating this new plan it is essential to clarify what the current issue is, how it should be addressed, what the final goal is, who needs to be working on what and when it needs to be done so that everyone is clear on their role moving forward.

• Set realistic goals

As you develop your workplace strategy to overcome these issues, work with your team to make sure that you are setting realistic goals. With all of the people that this strategy will impact it is important to take a step back before agreeing on the next steps. Consider, is this doable in the timeframe with everyone’s workload? If not, you need to go back and revise the plan so missed deadlines don’t become a recurring thing in the workplace.

• Track and measure the work-in-progress

After devising this strategy you will have this as a reference point to track and measure the progress of the workplace against to see if the changes have actually been actioned, and if so, if the changes made have had a positive impact. By tracking the progress you will be able to identify any revisions that may need to be made to the plan going forward.  Communication tools you will need to check the progress of the plan may include checklists, project plans, weekly meetings, and metric dashboards.

• Provide feedback

In order to maintain accountability in your workplace going forward, you need to communicate with your team. They can’t work on addressing an issue that they don’t know about.  So as a leader it is your responsibility to help them understand the areas requiring improvement in the workplace. Providing this feedback will reinforce amongst the team their responsibilities and will help them accept accountability, reducing any future lack of.

By shifting your mindset and following these six steps not only will you reduce your own frustration with the lack of productivity and accountability in the workplace, but by imparting this impactful change you will find that you will be driving better results for the business. In more cases than not, having a team that demonstrates accountability converts to having a higher performing and more productive team. As a leader, it is important that you introduce accountability as a core part of your team’s culture. It is a shift that may take some time, a change in your workplace dynamics, and maybe a little hit and miss, but the return is worth it. 

Do you need some help with the assessment of your workplace and with actioning these steps? Book a free consultation with our team today!