Accountability – What does it mean to you?

When you read the word accountability, what emotion do you feel? 
 

Do you feel your body stiffening? Does fear or even terror come upon you? Do you immediately think of bosses, regulators or other officials knocking on your door to challenge or reprimand? Accountability can equate to…there could be trouble ahead.

Alternatively, do you feel your body stretching, feeling free, and a sense of excitement come over you? You relish the challenge in a ‘bring it on’ sort of way, accountability holds no fear, and you recognise the opportunity it presents to excel and stand out from the crowd.

In recent months, I have worked on a number of consultancy projects covering areas such as strategies for mental health, learning disability and autism, and community services, as well as reviews of business and financial processes in care jointly funded by the NHS and local authorities. Without exception, I have seen opportunities for greater accountability and the need for individuals to ‘step up to the plate’. Sadly, I’ve only seen a few great examples.

Accountability, or the lack of it in some instances, has become a bit of a soapbox subject, so I thought I would write about it. Over the next few weeks, I will share some thoughts which I hope will bring conviction to some of you – not to bring feelings of guilt, but absolutely to inspire many of you to step up, accept your accountability and be the champions of successful change you could be.

Before I go any further, let me make clear I am not joining in with politicians who are manager-bashing; quite the opposite. I am acutely aware of the pressures on managers in most organisations, not just the public sector. Managers, and I used to be one in the NHS, take a beating for a whole range of things, but I want to celebrate and support them. The desire from my writing on this subject is to inspire leaders and managers across all types of businesses and organisations and at every level to succeed as real champions of change.

Over the next few weeks, I will explore some of the areas I think hinder accountability being exercised and why every leader and manager should truly embrace accountability in both their roles and their corporate responsibility.

Meanwhile, can I challenge you to think about whether you truly embrace your accountability or whether the day-to-day pressures consume you so much that you don’t even think about it? A few weeks ago, I wrote about eliminating hurry, and one of the steps is to create space for thinking. Please take a few moments, whether over a cup of coffee, a glass of wine or a walk and talk to yourself or someone else about accountability and see what you discover. I believe in lightbulb moments over the coming weeks.

See you next week, but feel free to comment or contact me in the meantime.