SHARPEN • 7
S
uch constraints, however, can be healthy and good leaders or managers will offer team members a certain amount of flexibility when it comes to the execution of actions. In fact, I will often remind people that we are only ever accountable for three things, everything we think, everything we say and everything we do. Often this elicits a chuckle amongst the group. Therefore, the leader needs to encourage his or her team members to nurture a sense of accountability using good coaching and mentoring skills.
Lessons from the past In 1964, a woman succumbed to a heinous crime which was witnessed by at least 38 witnesses. The incident happened in less than 35 minutes and although there was enough time to interfere with the crime, which eventually killed the victim, the witnesses opted to sit back and isolate themselves from the incident. Now we could only speculate what relatively better scenarios could have resulted had one of the witnesses decided to assume accountability and intervene.1
The unfortunate explosion of the Challenger Shuttle was caused by faulty O-rings developed by an industrial company called Morton Thiokol. One of the engineers from the company had recognized the dysfunctional O-rings but instead of going out of his way to decide whether to amend the glitch or, at the very least, inform the appropriate individuals
who could then decide on the matter, he allowed the dysfunctional products to move pass quality control. The ending, as we know now, was an accident that could have been prevented easily.
A study in accountability In research conducted to determine how individuals respond to a call for personal responsibility and accountability, a very curious observation was made: a higher percentage of the isolated participants came to the aid of an individual simulating a seizure, as compared to those who belonged to a group. This somehow communicates that people are less likely to assume a challenging role if there is no scarcity of individuals who could do the job.2 The outcome of the said research is quite relevant in positions of leadership and management. In a workplace environment comprised of individuals with different values, diverse personal backgrounds, and belonging to various levels of the corporate hierarchy, how can a leader or manager make sure that a sense of accountability from each individual is not hindered? In order to instil a sense of accountability to one’s employees, leading by example is an excellent way to start. Leaders and managers who consistently demonstrate a set of exemplarily behaviours will subliminally instil these same qualities into their subordinates, which over time will inspire employees to learn how to troubleshoot, as opposed to pointing fingers. Leaders and mangers can develop such skills and understand the values of accountability through effective leadership and management training courses.
[1] Rosenthal, A. M. Thirty-Eight Witnesses: The Kitty Genovese Case. (University of California, Berkeley, 1999) [2] Darley, John, and Latane, Bibb. “Bystander Intervention in Emergencies: Diffusion of Responsibility.” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 8, No. 4 (1968).