Accountability is a virtue and leadership characteristic that builds credibility and trust.
Accountability is one of those buzzwords we often hear in leadership circles, but how many truly understand what it means in practice?
Sure, it’s about taking responsibility for your actions, but accountability is much more than that. It’s a virtue—a fundamental characteristic that defines strong, effective leaders. And just like honesty or integrity, accountability shapes how others see you and, ultimately, how successful your leadership will be.
What the Numbers Say About Accountability
According to a survey conducted by Partners In Leadership, 91% of people believe accountability is one of the top development needs in their organization. Yet only 14% of employees feel their company does well in making sure accountability is actually practiced.
That gap between belief and practice… words and action? It’s the silent killer of team morale, productivity and effectiveness.
When accountability is absent, teams flounder. A study by Gallup found that organizations with a culture of accountability perform 17% better in profitability, customer satisfaction and employee performance. Numbers don’t lie—accountability directly correlates with success.
Accountability Is More Than a Leadership Skill—It’s a Virtue
While accountability is often categorized as a “leadership skill,” let’s be clear: it’s also a virtue.
It requires self-awareness, humility and a willingness to admit and own mistakes. In the context of leadership, accountability means owning not just your successes but also the failures and challenges that come with leading a team. It means saying, “I was wrong,” when things go off-track and working to make it right.
Leaders who understand this embrace accountability not just as a skill to be mastered but as a virtue and moral obligation.
Leaders inspire accountability through their ability to accept responsibility before they place blame.
Courtney Lynch, Leadership Coach, and N.Y. Times Bestselling Author
Virtues are the essence of who we are. They’re described in the world’s sacred traditions as the qualities of the Divine and the attributes of the human spirit. They’re the content of our character and the basis of genuine happiness.
The mission of The Virtues ProjectTM is to inspire the practice of virtues in everyday life by helping people of all cultures to discover the transformative power of these universal gifts of character. The virtues are spiritual life-skills that help us to live our best lives. As a Bahá’í, I also work to acquire these divine qualities because I believe we’ll need them in the life to come.
A Tale of Two Leaders: The Impact of Accountability
Imagine two leaders in a similar situation: a major project is behind schedule, and the pressure is mounting.
Leader 1: Take Charge and Own It
When faced with the delay, this leader steps up, takes ownership of the issues and works collaboratively with the team to identify solutions. They admit where the planning went wrong, recalibrate the strategy and set realistic new deadlines. The team feels supported, motivated, and ready to work harder to achieve the revised goals.
Leader 2: It’s Not Me… It’s X, Y or Z!
On the flip side, this leader avoids responsibility. They shift the blame onto the team, cite external factors and refuse to acknowledge their own role in the project’s failure. As a result, the team feels demoralized, disengaged and less inclined to go the extra mile for a leader who won’t take responsibility for the group’s outcome.
The difference?
Accountability. Leader 1 not only strengthens team trust but sets a clear example of how challenges should be approached. Leader 2 erodes trust, diminishes morale, and ultimately weakens the team’s overall performance.
The consequences of accountability—or the lack of it—are felt throughout an organization. According to a report in the Harvard Business Review, 82% of employees say they’re frustrated by their leaders’ lack of accountability, which impacts their motivation and productivity.
Mortifying Mistake leads to a Personal Lesson in Accountability
Early in my career, I led a team of technical editors responsible for reviewing airline fare publications—this was back when airlines published fares and rules on paper in large volumes called tariff publications. As part of their work, the team often found mistakes or discrepancies when the source material didn’t make sense. To address these, I developed a system where we’d report issues to the relevant department for investigation and correction.
Back then, everything was done through inter-departmental memos, routed through the department head’s personal assistant. This was before email, so we’d print the memo, pop it in an interoffice envelope, and wait for a response. The department head would review the memo and pass it along to the appropriate team for action.
Occasionally, we’d have to send a second request if the issue wasn’t resolved by the time a revised page came in. Sometimes, a third request followed. My team found this frustrating, so each time we reissued the memo, we’d change the subject line to “SECOND REQUEST” or “THIRD REQUEST.”
Then came the day we needed to send a fourth request. The team was beyond frustrated. To lighten the mood, I drafted a mock memo with the subject line, “FOURTH F*&#ING REQUEST” for laughs. My plan was to shred the mock version and send the actual memo with “FOURTH REQUEST” in the subject line instead.
The next morning, I got a call from the department head’s assistant. He was furious, and I could hardly believe my ears when he read the subject of the memo to me—it was the mock version! Somehow, I had failed to destroy it and sent it out by mistake. I could feel my heart sink as I realized the magnitude of my error.
He threatened to escalate the issue to his boss… and eventually to mine. I was mortified.
But I knew I had to own it. I immediately admitted my mistake, explained what happened (without making excuses) and apologized sincerely. I asked for forgiveness, promised to fix it and assured him that it would never happen again. Thankfully, I had built a solid relationship with the assistant, based on trust and respect. After some tense moments, he agreed not to escalate the issue and returned the memo to me.
Crisis averted—and lesson learned!
Communicating Accountability is as Important as Practicing It
Here’s the thing: being accountable is great, but if you aren’t communicating it effectively, you’re missing a crucial step.
Leaders need to not only practice accountability but also clearly communicate their responsibility to their team. Transparent communication builds trust and ensures that the team knows you’re in it with them, through the highs and the lows.
When you communicate your accountability:
- You Build Trust: Teams perform better when they know their leader is willing to shoulder responsibility for both success and failure.
- You Create a Learning Culture: When you own your mistakes, it encourages others to do the same. This opens the door to improvement and innovation without the fear of blame.
- You Strengthen Team Bonds: A leader who takes responsibility motivates the team to step up, own their part, and collaborate more effectively.
How to Practice Accountability as a Leader
- Admit Mistakes: Leaders aren’t perfect and that’s okay. Own up to mistakes and make it clear what you’ll do to correct them. Your own leadership and your team will appreciate and respect your honesty.
- Set Clear Expectations: Accountability starts with clear communication. Make sure everyone knows what’s expected of them and follow up regularly to track progress.
- Lead by Example: Don’t just talk about accountability—demonstrate it. Your actions speak volumes and will inspire others to follow suit.
- Acknowledge Success and Failure: Be equally willing to celebrate success and accept failure. Both are part of the journey, and both require accountability.
Parting Thoughts
At its core, accountability isn’t just about taking the blame or accepting praise—it’s about creating an environment of trust and growth.
Accountability breeds response-ability.
– Stephen Covey, an American educator, author, businessman, and speaker
When you lead with accountability, you foster a team that’s not only capable of doing great things but motivated to rise to the challenge. And when accountability becomes a shared value, you’ll find that success comes not just more easily, but more often.
Inspire on!
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- The Whisper that Yearns to be a Roar
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