Leadership Accountability Starts Before Something Goes Wrong
Early in my leadership career, I thought accountability happened after someone failed to do what they were supposed to do. If I gave someone a direction and they didn't follow it, my job was to correct the behavior. If that didn't work, discipline was the next step. It seemed pretty straightforward to me.
Then I had an employee who challenged that approach. He was smart, capable, and liked doing things his own way. The problem was that his way didn't always line up with department rules and expectations. I would give him something to do, he wouldn't get it done, and eventually I would tell him, "I'm going to tell you again to do this, and if you don't, I'll write you up." He would do it, but he would do it begrudgingly. He thought I was using my position against him. I thought he simply wasn't doing his job.
Looking back, we were both taking it personally. More importantly, the way I was handling leadership accountability wasn't making either one of us better. I wasn't getting the performance I needed, he wasn't taking ownership of the work, our relationship wasn't improving, and I still didn't trust him to get the job done. Eventually, I had to recognize that he wasn't the only person who needed to change.
Leadership Accountability Begins With the Leader
One of the things I have always believed about coaching, teaching, and leadership is that you have to grow. If you're not growing, eventually something has to change. I also believe that if I'm leading a team, part of my responsibility is helping the people on that team grow.
That meant I had to look at what I was contributing to this situation.
I knew this employee was capable. I knew he was smart. But I kept using the same approach with him and expecting a different response. I was waiting until something went wrong and then dictating accountability after the fact. He heard, "Do it my way or else." I saw his resistance and became even more frustrated. One of us had to be willing to take the first step, and I was the leader.
That didn't mean lowering the standard or overlooking poor performance. It meant changing how we got there. Instead of focusing so much on how he completed the work, I started talking with him in much greater detail about the end result. The work had to be done. The deadline mattered. But if he could accomplish that result his way while still meeting the necessary requirements, I was willing to give him that freedom. That required me to extend some trust.
Build Leadership Accountability Before You Need It
We started having different conversations. Instead of waiting for him to disappoint me and then reacting, we talked through what needed to happen ahead of time. We established clear goals, agreed on check-ins, and made sure we both understood the deadline.
Then I asked him what he thought should happen if he didn't meet the commitment he was making. His answer? He should be written up.
That was interesting because the consequence wasn't really different from what I had been threatening before. What changed was how we got there. I wasn't standing over him using discipline as a threat. We had talked through the responsibility together. He knew what I expected from him, he knew what he could expect from me, and we agreed in writing to what accountability would look like.
After we changed our approach, I didn't have the same problems with him. He became less defensive and more open to accountability. He also became more willing to understand why the results mattered. Through those conversations, I got to know him better. I learned more about how he communicated, what motivated him, and how he preferred to work. The standard didn't change. Our approach to leadership accountability did.
Leadership Accountability Is a Shared Responsibility
There is another side to this lesson that matters. Good leadership does not mean endlessly accommodating someone who refuses to perform. I believe a leader has a responsibility to give people every reasonable opportunity to succeed, but it isn't a free ride. The leader has work to do. Open the lines of communication. Establish roles and responsibilities. Make expectations clear. Build accountability into the plan. Explain what the employee can expect from you and what you expect from them. Then listen. Ask what they think. Talk about how the two of you are going to make it work.
I might tell an employee, "We're about building a great team. We want you to be part of that team." Then the conversation becomes: What do you need to do to be part of it? What do I need to do as your leader? How will we know whether we're succeeding? Both people should have responsibility in that accountability plan.
Once you've done that work, the employee has a decision to make. If I'm working harder for someone's success than they are, or they continue to fall short of an expectation we've clearly established together, eventually I have to be willing to make the difficult decision. Accountability still has consequences. But consequences shouldn't be the first time someone discovers what accountability means.
Better Leadership Accountability Requires Growth From Both Sides
This employee frustrated me, but that's part of what made the experience valuable. Some of the moments that frustrated me most during my career were the moments when I needed to make leaps forward in growth, knowledge, experience, and confidence. Tough people can make us better leaders because they force us to think through situations instead of simply reacting to them.
That's what this employee did for me. I could have continued seeing him as the problem. Instead, I eventually had to recognize that my approach was part of the problem too. Once I changed how I led, he changed how he responded.
If you're struggling with someone on your team right now, don't wait until the next problem to talk about accountability. Have the conversation before you need it. Establish the outcome. Define everyone's responsibility. Decide how you'll follow up. And make sure the person understands that accountability isn't something you're waiting to do to them. It's something you're building with them. That's leadership accountability when it matters most.
Want a practical framework for setting expectations, coaching performance, and helping people grow? Explore our Coaching & Feedback for Growth microlearning resource.
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