How many times have you tried to implement what seems like the perfect strategy only to fail because you can’t seem to get your employees to make it happen? Oftentimes the success of a strategy execution or performance management system hinges on whether leaders can create a culture of accountability in their organization.

Dr. J. Ed Barnes summarizes two approaches to accountability below. Even though the lists, taken together, read like a simple management 101 reference, I have found that many accomplished leaders and mangers are simply not very good at many of these key skills. The punitive approach is an instructive straw man for how NOT to approach accountability, while the second list outlines basic motivational methods for creating accountability.

 We’ve also created a simple assessment based on the above lists that anyone can use to assess how well your organization is at creating a culture of accountability. Any leader or manager can assess his/her performance by simply reviewing the statement and assigning a score between 1 and 10, with 1 being low.

If you scored yourself low on the formulation or communications of goals and expectations, you might investigate our Balanced Scorecard Professional program. If measuring success or reporting progress is a challenge, you might consider our KPI Professional program. If you score yourself low across the board, you might consider our Strategic Leadership course.