Accountability Without Authority
How would you hold people accountable if you didn’t have authority? Don’t demand what must be given.
Coercion doesn’t produce ownership.
Accountability isn’t the cure for low commitment; it’s an expression of high commitment.
The Hammer Principle
Maslow said, “… if the only tool you have is a hammer, to treat everything as if it were a nail.”
When a leader’s hammer is authority, holding people accountable is a nail.
Short-sighted leaders use authority to force compliance, but pressure doesn’t build commitment.
Commitment can’t be demanded; responsibility can’t be coerced.
Accountability Isn’t
- Forced compliance.
- Pressuring people.
- Overcoming pushback with fear.
Ownership is self-imposed. You can’t force or manipulate ownership.
Accountability without Authority
- Responsibility only works when people share commitments. Explore commitment when follow-through is low. The uncommitted can be coerced, but they don’t feel accountable.
- Ask, “On a scale of 1 to 10 how committed are you to ….?” When the number is less than “7”, failure is about commitment.
- Agree on ownership, don’t impose it. My coaching clients establish their own responsibilities. I ask them, “What do you want me to ask you next time?”
- Connect accountability to purpose.
Create environments where responsibilities are co-created. Explore the path forward together.
Force invites resistance; pressure sparks compliance but extinguishes passion.
How can leaders build follow-through into organizations?
What makes responsibility work?
Read The Vagrant to take your leadership to the next level.
How can leaders strengthen follow-through in organizations?
–Engage people in setting clear, realistic goals and timelines.
–Define concrete start and completion dates.
–Ask what support, resources, or tools they need to succeed.
–Connect the task to meaningful benefits for both the individual and the team.
Thanks Paul, Very useful adds! My favorite is, “Engage people” in the process. Don’t unilaterally impose goals and timelines.
Responsibility works when:
–The person has both the skills and the drive to succeed.
–One person is clearly accountable for the outcome.
–The consequences of delays or missed deadlines are understood.
Two in one day!! 🙂 I find leaders struggle with establishing consequences.
Leaders should be able to explain how meeting (or missing) deadlines impacts customers and the business overall.
Abraham Maslow is said, “If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail.”
Nailed it. Anthony.
I like to teach leaders to think in terms of guardrails, not handcuffs. There are times we have to establish limits but make those limits flexible enough to allow for innovation.
Hey Bruce, Love the metaphor. Leadership without boundaries is a disaster. Put a fence around the playground.
I read today’s headline from another perspective –holding employees accountable for things over which they have no authority. One would think that’s an obvious disconnect, but it’s still happening today. I’d be interested in a follow-up post that leads with “How would you hold people accountable if *they* don’t have authority to do what you’re holding them accountable for”?
I tend not to write fairytales. 🙂 You can delegate a task. If you provide the necessary tools and resources qualified people should be able to complete it. However, delegating is about authority.
This discussion kind of reminds me of John Maxwell’s 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership. One of his laws listed was a Law of Respect. Hopefully, we have built teams and cultivated enough respect that they would want to perform despite our title (or given authority.) If we invest time and effort into each member of our team, then hopefully enough respect would exist where they hold themselves accountable.
You bring up an essential point with your last sentence. People hold themselves accountable.