What Can Business Leaders do to Improve Workplace Accountability?

The term accountability can make people uncomfortable, as it can stir up memories of past mistakes and consequences. In a business setting, employee accountability is vital to completing projects and achieving company goals. However, it can be challenging to keep employers and employees on the same page. Keep reading to find out how other business leaders build workplace accountability.

3 Tips for Improving Employee Accountability

1. Be More Accountable Yourself
One of the best ways to improve workplace accountability is to be more accountable yourself. Admit your own mistakes when they occur and use your team to find [solutions]. Hold yourself to the same high standards that you have hopefully set for your team and be honest about your shortcomings.

2. Get Staff Feedback for Goals
You’ll have a hard time improving accountability in your organization if your team doesn’t believe in the goals that have been set. Therefore, involve them in the process. This serves a two-fold purpose. They’ll have a say in what’s expected of them, and they’ll be much more motivated to achieve their goals because they had a hand in creating them.

3. Be Crystal Clear in Communications
If your employees do not know what is expected of them, how can you hold them accountable? They need to know exactly what they need to do, how they need to do it, in certain instances, and by when. Be overly clear in your communication, and your chances for higher accountability go up tremendously.

Set Reasonable Expectations

Holding team members accountable starts with setting reasonable expectations. Setting expectations when hiring a team member and staying consistent with those expectations are vital to maintaining accountability. Providing regular feedback on what team members are doing well and what may need improvement helps empower team members and build trust between the team and leadership. Finally, communicating rewards for achieving expectations and consequences of failing to meet them is the last piece to improving workplace accountability.

Clearly Communicate Expectations

Executive leaders need to hold themselves accountable – openly. Not only will they lead by example in practicing accountability, but they will create an open dialogue about the topic and prevent employees from being afraid of any repercussions due to their openness.

Workplace expectations should be clear. It is much easier for employees to remain personally accountable if they know exactly what they are to remain accountable for.

Set goals with your employees. Utilize one-on-ones to form a mutual understanding of expectations and create personalized goals with them that you can track together.

Visibility Creates Accountability

We’ve kept our employees extremely close and try to keep everything going on within the company out in the open for everyone to see. Every employee can see the other’s to-do list. We encourage employees to share successes and challenges and have everyone join our update calls.

If an employee is consistently missing the mark, it will be out in the open. Also, if an employee is consistently very successful, then it will also be known by everyone in the company.

Keep everything out in the open, so each employee has to take credit for what they are doing – the good and the bad.

3 Ways to Improve Workplace Accountability

1. Set clear goals for employees to follow and strive toward.
This will avoid a disconnect in understanding what the expectations are and will correct employee focus.

2. If employees are falling short on responsibilities or expectations, figure out why.
There may be a hidden obstacle in the way that needs to be removed, so assess the situation before making assumptions.

3. Create an environment where feedback is openly encouraged.
This doesn’t just mean management giving employees feedback. Employees should also be encouraged to provide feedback on their leaders. It creates group accountability and encourages communication.

Best Practices to Workplace Accountability

Accountability in the workplace is crucial to the success of your employees and the business, regardless of the organization or industry. As a business owner, I take accountability with my roles to be an example to my employees.

To improve workplace accountability:

1. Provide your employees with feedback. It’s critical to deliver frequent, actionable insights to your employees, both positive and negative.
2. Give your employees influence over their schedule. It is a small but effective method to improve their accountability and development.
3. Set clear employee expectations, as well as how you respond when your team exceeds or fails to reach those objectives.

Practice A Culture of Open Communication

First, I’d say to remember that at the heart of any accountability is trust. Create a culture of open communication, so all employees feel like they can be honest without fear of retribution. Keep the lines of communication open, and don’t let fear stop you from speaking up when something doesn’t seem right.

With the advent of social media, it’s more important than ever to make sure you are transparent in your dealings. If your company has an open-door policy, respect it! There’s no excuse for wondering why certain things are the way they are. Keep people informed.

3 Methods for Improving Accountability

Improving workplace accountability can sometimes have a negative connotation, but in reality, it’s how organizations can increase their productivity levels and focus on maximizing quality work performance.

1. Set Clear Guidelines
To improve workplace accountability, leaders have to establish clear guidelines defining exactly what their employees are responsible for. From clearly defining their tasks to reminding them of the organization’s values and mission statement. Setting these expectations will give employees a better understanding of what’s expected of them.

2. Goal Setting as a Team
Sitting down with your team to set goals can help to improve workplace accountability. Your team will feel valued and including them in the process can help to set realistic goals that your employees are eager to work towards. This can boost engagement and help them hit the expectations that you have previously set for them.

3. Praise and Recognize Accomplishments
While mistakes will happen in your organization, praising your employees when they go above and beyond or make progress can help to boost morale and leave your employees feeling accomplished.

Provide Task Transparency

My best tip for improving accountability is having a level of transparency that extends through every aspect of your business. Employees should know what managers and business leaders are working on and why. Have milestone kickoff meetings that explain these goals and the reasons behind them. Use task-tracking apps like Trello that allow everyone to see what everyone else is working on.

Trust Your Employees

The best way I’ve found to improve workplace accountability is to err on the side of trust. Trust that your employees are capable of doing their work on time and to the best of their ability. Trust that your team will put aside personal differences and come together for the company, client, or customer. Trust that team member tardies and absences are necessary and not malicious.

And probably most importantly, trust in yourself and your decision-making.