Four Conditions Necessary for Accountability Team accountability is about learning from the experience versus being vigilant about performance. “What support do you need to achieve our common goals?” Team accountability creates a different tone and generative outcome. Instead of judgment and blame: “Did you or didn’t you do what you were accountable for-team members are accountable-what happened?” Individual accountability is still essential, but there’s a strong relationship component that encourages mutual support.įrom there we see a shift to “our mission” and “our shared responsibility for results.” That said, individual accountability resides within this larger team context. It isolates individuals and promotes silos. Judgment of others, excuses, blame, and defensiveness when things go wrong. When the focus is on individual accountability, the emphasis is on “my task” or “my performance.” As a result, accountability becomes a proof test and can lead to all manner of negative outcomes. This shift in mindset creates a different environment, with different consequences. They do so by holding each other accountable. Team members support one another to meet team goals. This is more than a high level of individual accountability. There is clarity around roles and responsibilities with high follow through. Team members hold each other accountable. That said, our definition of accountability differs in that it’s based on a broader, more networked team context. Within that distinction between the individual and the interconnected team member lies the essential paradigm shift. Today, an effective team structure depends on collaboration: work accomplished in relationship. In the past, job function generally defined accountability it was there in the role and job description. They also need to be more aware of the impact that every action makes as it ripples through the interconnected world of work. Today’s organizations operate at an accelerated pace, in a more volatile and rapidly changing landscape.Īs a result, today’s teams need to be more nimble and responsive to the demands placed upon them. Particularly as teams evolve from hierarchical, top-down structures, to horizontal and networked. Unfortunately for most teams accountability is almost always applied to the individual and not the team. Without it, teams tend to be low-performing and unproductive. In our Team Effectiveness Model accountability is one of the seven Productivity Team Performance Indicators™.īeing accountable is an essential team competency. This is how most of us think of accountability. Notice that the focus is on the individual. Where those factors are clear to the team as the discussion begins to take place, others aren’t.Īmong the more misunderstood factors is achieving accountability as a team.Īccording to Merriam-Webster, the definition of accountability is as follows:Īn obligation or willingness to accept responsibility or to account for one’s actions. Low trust, poor communication and lack of alignment are but a few of them. As team coaches, we face many challenges in our work with teams, often at once.
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