This week, Dan Neumann is joined by Adam Ulery to discuss the topic of accountability. In this episode, they address the concept of accountability that could sometimes be misunderstood and even carries some misconceptions.

Adam and Dan talk today about how leaders can foster accountability in organizations and which practices are the most effective to support this work. During this insightful conversation, they dive deep into the meaning and extends of ownership, setting clear expectations, and the value of honoring vulnerability as a necessary exercise to avoid the fear of making mistakes.

Key Takeaways

Is accountability negative?
- Many people treat the concept of accountability as if it is negative, but it actually is very positive, once it is experienced in a high-performing Team.
- Accountability can be disguised in blame in some unhealthy Team environments.
- Fear in an organization makes it hard for it to foster accountability.
- Fearing failure is counterproductive since making mistakes is the way for humans to grow.
- Making a good decision doesn’t necessarily lead to a good outcome and sometimes bad decisions end up in a good result.
Accountability is ownership.
- Owning your decisions and part in the decision-making is showing accountability.
- Accountability is to be willing to face the consequences that come with the outcome, success or failure.
- Accountability is also doing what you said you would do.
Leaders must model accountability.
- Leaders must be honest with themselves and be vulnerable in order to encourage those behaviors in others.
- Leaders can increase the level of accountability in an organization by empowering people to succeed, giving them the resources they need, expecting them to take action, and then making it safe for them to make mistakes.
Can people negotiate what can they be accountable for?
- It is important to communicate expectations clearly in order to align people with them.
- Open communication is vital since it allows a mutual understanding of where ownership begins and where it ends.
The SBI Model is great to build accountability.
- The SBI model is one of the most effective to provide positive and negative feedback.
- Saying how something made you feel is a way of modeling vulnerability.

Mentioned in this Episode:

Thinking in Bets: Making Smarter Decisions When You Don’t Have All the Facts, by Annie Duke

SBI Model

Listen to Episode 35 for more about the SBI Model

Leading Change, John P. Kotter

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