Accountability

This is a difficult topic for most people to grasp.  When we say we are going to hold someone "accountable" for their actions, what are we really saying?  Have you really ever given it serious thought?

Today, we had some serious accountability at our Management Review Meeting (MRM).  How was this accomplished?  We were originally scheduled for 1:30 P.M. through 4:30 P.M.. We actually ended at 3:30 P.M. [kind of nice for me, because I was going straight home after the meeting, and I got home at 4:30 P.M.]  So how is ending early a form of accountability???

This is simple, one way we define accountability is "ownership".  We ended early because we are requiring all the performance indicator owners to update their analyses and actions to be specific, not generic, and to close performance gaps.  They will get to present their results next Thursday at a repeat of our meeting, and this will continue weekly until we demonstrate as a management team "that we get it!".

So, here is my question to you - are you truly accountable for your actions, behaviors, responses to challenges and negativity?  We need to recognize that we "own" how we are perceived, how we respond and react to others, and how we internalize our lessons learned from our life lessons.  Are you accountable to yourself?  I say, go to the bathroom, look in the mirror, and assess this for yourself!

Tags: Accountability, Ownership, Mirror, blogplugs