A Tale of Two Accountabilities: Creating Shared Responsibility in the Workplace

“It is not only what we do, but also what we do not do, for which we are accountable.” — Molière

The story of accountability in the workplace is a tale of two perspectives. It’s a story where the same situation—a missed deadline, an unclear deliverable, a project that’s gone off track—can look completely different depending on where you sit in the organizational hierarchy.

Workplace relationships around accountability range from highly functional to completely dysfunctional. And just like in personal relationships, when things go wrong, both sides often feel frustrated, misunderstood, and convinced that the other person is in the wrong.

The fundamental challenge isn’t that people don’t want to be accountable. It’s that confusion exists—for both managers and employees—about who is responsible for what, and how to recognize and resolve that confusion when it arises.

The Manager’s Dilemma: When High Expectations Meet Reality

If you are the leader or manager of a team responsible for holding others accountable, you often feel excited when hiring a new employee. After the interviews, reference checks, and due diligence comes a leap of faith that includes worries that it won’t work out and the hope that it will. Hope for support from a new team member. Hope for growth for the company. Hope for relief from the growing list of tasks and initiatives on your plate.

When a gap forms between expectations (hopes) and performance (reality), the hope turns into doubt and the bright future begins to dim. Ideally, feedback and performance conversations begin here. If they don’t, frustration can quickly turn to resentment, and a thought emerges: “I need to hold this person accountable.”

You might find yourself thinking:

• “They should be able to take this project from start to finish.”
• “They’re not doing what I hired them to do.”
• “They need to take more ownership.”

The dictionary definition of accountability is a person who is required or expected to justify and be responsible for their actions and decisions. Justify and be responsible for. But in practice, accountability conversations often originate from three different frustrations:

1. People not doing what they said they would do.
2. People not doing what I expected them to do.
3. People not doing what I hope they will do.

Each requires a different solution. The first might be a commitment or follow-through conversation. The second suggests unclear expectations that require additional level-setting communications. The third requires intellectual honesty and realization that unrealistic or uncommunicated expectations exist.

Your Leadership Responsibilities: The Why, How, and Who Framework

Your responsibilities as a leader:

Before you can hold anyone accountable, you must first answer three question areas with clarity for yourself and then clarify their commitment:

• Why does our team or company exist? What goals are we trying to accomplish, and what will our success bring to us and the customers or clients we serve? Once we have an understanding of why, we can move to:
• How will we accomplish our goals? What’s our plan and criteria for success? What tasks need to be done? When will they need to be done, and where will our efforts need to be focused? After the how is figured we can move to:
• Who, already existing on the team or role to be hired, is needed to execute the plan? What skills and capabilities will they need to possess or learn in order to be successful?

Inspired by the Drexler-Sibbet Model of team decision making, but modified or simplified to for the sticky problem of accountability.

You can’t hold somebody accountable to something they haven’t committed to. If you try, you’ll find yourself discouraged and find them frustrated.

Lastly, as a leader, it’s important to understand that the organization’s model for accountability is you. If you aren’t doing what you said you would do, that will invariably create a culture where others don’t follow through either. Culture is the behavior we walk past—in others and in ourselves.

The “Why, How, Who” framework is just the beginning. Executive coaching can help you master these conversations and develop the leadership presence needed to create high-accountability cultures. Connect with us to explore working with a Reboot Coach.

The Employee Experience: Navigating Accountability in Your Role

If you were hired to be responsible and accountable, you likely began your journey with hope, too. After the interviews and compensation negotiations comes excitement about contributing to something meaningful, learning new skills, and proving yourself capable.

With every new role, there’s a period of uncertainty where you’re discovering the difference between what you thought the job was and what it actually is. Certain things can happen during this period that make you start to question your decision. The project scope keeps shifting. The priorities change daily. You find yourself wondering: “What does success actually look like here?”

When you’re on a team with high levels of accountability, these periods are characterized by more communication than you might think normal, which brings clarity to the situation. This results in you generally feeling empowered to move freely within the constraints of your role. The expectations have been clearly communicated, or you engaged in a two-way conversation to clarify success criteria for your job. You feel trusted to push on constraints if it will create better results, even if it means you might make a mistake.

You’re thinking: “What can I do here to make this the best it can be?”

You’re NOT thinking: “What should I do here to avoid upsetting my boss?”

But when accountability is dysfunctional, you might find yourself:

• Constantly seeking approval for decisions you should be empowered to make
• Receiving conflicting priorities without clarity on what takes precedence
• Being held responsible for outcomes you don’t feel you have control over
• Working harder but feeling like you’re always missing the mark

Your Employee Responsibilities: Seeking Clarity and Making Commitments

Your responsibilities as an employee:

Your primary responsibility is to seek clarity and feel good about the commitments you make:

• Why am I in my role or assigned to this project? What does my presence enable for my company and the people we serve? 
• How will I accomplish my goals? What does success look like for those goals? What’s the expectation for schedule, quality, etc.? 
• Who do I need to be to be successful here? What skills do I already possess that will be brought to bear? What skills or information will I need to supplement through learning and growth, or acknowledging limitations and asking for support?  

Personal accountability begins with understanding the purpose of your responsibilities, and is marked by an intentional commitment to them.

This means it’s your responsibility to speak up when expectations are unclear, when you lack necessary resources, or when priorities conflict. It’s uncomfortable, but necessary to create high-accountability environments where we can do our best work.

Answering these questions honestly can be uncomfortable—and that’s exactly where growth begins. Working with an executive coach gives you a safe space to address these challenges and develop actionable solutions. Discover how coaching can accelerate your results. 

The Path Forward: Shared Accountability

The truth is, accountability isn’t something one person holds over another—it’s something created together through clear communication, realistic expectations, and mutual commitment.

High-functioning teams exhibit these behaviors:

• Focus on team outcomes over individual self-protection
• Commitment to keeping commitments (and honest communication when they can’t)
• Taking responsibility for actions and their impact on relationships

When accountability breaks down, both sides need to look inward:

Leaders should ask:

• What is the communication like on my team?
• Have I made a commitment to my own commitments?
• Have I owned my mistakes and modeled accountability?

Employees should ask:

• Have I asked the right questions to understand what success looks like?
• Have I clearly communicated what I need to be successful?
• Am I being honest about my capabilities and constraints?

The Bottom Line: Accountability is About Clarity, Not Control

Accountability isn’t about control, it’s about clarity. And it’s not something you do to someone else, it’s something you create with someone else.