Gaining Accountability

from Others
Strategies for Success
Gail Levitt

Abstract: This practical article explores how to gain

­accountability from others when following two ­different
paths to achieve this goal: compliance and c­ ommitment. It
explains proven strategies that any leader or ­professional
can apply for success. These s­ trategies are r­ elevant for a
position with or without formal a­ uthority within a union
or nonunion environment, and when communicat-
ing in person or digitally. The author ­provides relevant
­examples, case studies, practical tips, and useful templates
for ­immediate use.

Keywords: accountability, assertiveness, collaboration,

communicating assertively, communications, conflict
management, conversation planning, critical listening,
diplomatic communications, engagement, gaining
buy-in and commitment, influencing, leadership,
managing, negotiating, ownership, performance
management, persuasion, productivity, project
management, strategies, supervising, tips, tough
conversations, winning strategies
Dr. Gail Levitt is an influential
leadership specialist based in Toronto,
Ontario, Canada.  She is an experienced
Workers Define Accountability Very Differently
and versatile coach, facilitator, and Seeking another’s accountability generally involves the
author with extensive work experience expectation that the other person will acknowledge and
in business management and assume responsibility for a decision, result, task, or out-
collaborative leadership. President
come. Seeking accountability from others is a common
of Levitt Communications Inc. for
over twenty-five years, Gail provides occurrence in the workplace. In my experience, it ranks
strategic and tactical solutions to as one of the top challenges professionals face daily.
diverse clients on a variety of topics I  base this conclusion on surveys and interviews with
related to influence, including: professionals I have trained and coached over the past
managing up; strategic thinking;
productivity management; business
two decades. These people come from very diverse job
writing; negotiating; collaboration; ­functions, ­including customer support representatives,
change leadership. Gail can be reached administrative professionals, supervisors, managers,
at [email protected]. technical and business specialists, scientists, doctors,
nurses, social workers, directors, vice presidents, CEOs,
government officials, and board members. Although

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 Gaining Accountability from Others

these individuals consider gaining account- There Are Two Paths for Gaining
ability essential, how they define it differs Accountability: Compliance
widely. and Commitment
Some managers perceive accountability When seeking accountability from an indi-
as owning up to mistakes. Others I have vidual or a team, one can use two different
­interviewed consider doing one’s job c­ orrectly, strategies:
on time, and within ­budget as ­being ­accountable.
One individual ­explains accountability as 1. Asking on the basis of compliance
being willing to take r­esponsibility for a 2. Asking on the basis of commitment
decision, even if that ­decision turns out to
be the wrong one. Some office professionals These are two different paths to take on
consider accountability to be one’s ­willingness the journey to accountability, and each has
to complete a task on time as requested. advantages and disadvantages.
One senior executive defines accountability Compliance usually involves telling the
as taking the necessary risks to achieve the other person what needs to be done and
best results. ­explaining the reason(s) why. Accountabil-
A business analyst I spoke to ­considers ity based on compliance uses an appeal
­accountability to be more of an e ­ thical to an obligation to say yes, expecting the
choice, such as not taking credit for ­others’ receiver to understand the negative con-
accomplishments, work that the team sequences of not doing it. Some ­examples
­actually p ­ erformed. One supervisor views are the need to conform to a law, a policy,
­accountability as simply showing up to or a procedure. Gaining authority through
work on time. ­Another leader I interviewed compliance can be very effective in issues
­interprets a­ ccountability as ­being open and of employee probation, violation of legisla-
transparent about one’s a­ ctions, especially tion, lawsuits, or organizational ­inefficiency
when things go wrong. Yet another manager based on people not following policies con-
defines accountability as one’s ­willingness sistently. Although this ­approach can work
to put the organization and team ahead of well when it is explained clearly and dip-
one’s personal agenda. Further, an adminis- lomatically, when it is overused, it can be
trator summarizes accountability concisely: perceived negatively by the other person as
following through on your promises. him or her not being given a say or choice
This inconsistency in definition could in the matter.
be one reason why gaining accountability Accountability based on commitment
from others is so challenging: Using this typically results from one’s own personal
same word in a conversation with a­ nother decision to say yes. This motivation to take
does not guarantee that both agree on ownership is usually based on the perceived
­expectations and what it really means to benefits of doing so. For example, some
put them into action. So I like to advise personal motivators are safety, ­ security,
anyone planning a conversation about reputation, growth, quality, promotion, and
accountability to follow these two guide-
­ teamwork. Commitment usually involves
lines to ensure the best results: asking others to be accountable on the ­basis
of their own choice. This approach can
1. Do not assume that the other person be more compelling when the individual
views accountability the same way, just ­being asked has the opportunity to decide
because you both use the same word in whether or not to make the commitment.
a conversation.­ If one party expects accountability by
2. Be aware that your personal values, compliance and the other by commitment,
­beliefs, assumptions, and biases regarding this can result in misunderstanding and con-
accountability can differ from another’s. flict. Early in my career, I experienced both

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 Gaining Accountability from Others

during a conversation with my boss about I created a useful checklist of eight winning
accountability for a deadline. I  wanted my strategies for gaining accountability from
boss to alter the deadline to preserve quality; others successfully that works well for me
she wanted me to adhere to the deadline on and the countless others I have trained and
the basis of the board of directors’ ­mandate. coached through the years.
I assumed that ­ asking for a ­ deadline
extension to reduce ­
­ quality risks demon- Eight Winning Strategies for Gaining
strated a­ ccountability; she a­ ssumed that my Accountability
­resisting to conform to the required ­deadline The following eight winning strategies
showed a total lack of accountability. work well when asking others to accept
Confused, I explained calmly that I thought ­accountability, either through compliance
that I was already being ­accountable by ­caring or commitment, in union and ­ nonunion
enough to alert ­senior ­management that ­environments, and with and without ­formal
more time was needed to avoid a risk in qual- authority:
ity. I pointed out the negative impacts and
­repeated once again that I was challenging 1. Plan your message using ROBA
the deadline because I was being account- 2. Appeal to self-motivations
able by providing my expertise, which was 3. Choose objective, neutral language
part of my job. My boss was not in a position 4. Understand without judgment
of full authority, and the decision about the 5. Ask Probing Questions
final deadline could not be altered. So she 6. Think and say and instead of but
chose to influence me to accept account- 7. Self-Manage conflict triggers
ability based on my acceptance of decisions 8. Be proactive with an action plan
that were already made. The more I tried to
negotiate a different deadline, the more my Strategy 1: Plan Your Message
boss perceived me as lacking in accountabil- Using ROBA
ity. I wanted more of a say in the decision; The ROBA model is a deliberate, ­sequential
she wanted me just to say yes so she could thinking process for planning a conver-
keep the board happy. sation with the goal of gaining a­nother’s
It became very clear to each of us in ­accountability. It is an efficient and ­effective
that conversation that we were both using way to organize one’s thoughts in four easy
the same word, accountability, but we were steps to be concise and convincing to the
­actually speaking very different languages. receiver. Each letter of this acronym repre-
Fortunately, we had built a trusting work sents important details that the other person
relationship over the previous few years, so should be aware of to take accountability.
we were able to express our views and reach These four steps for ROBA are as follows:
agreement. I communicated to my boss that
I felt as if she were telling me what to do, 1. Request: Make the request in specific
without a choice in the matter. She shared terms that identify who, what, when,
that she did not have a say in the choice and where. This can be in the form of a
either and felt that she had to comply with statement for compliance or a question
the board’s decision due to her lower level for commitment.
of seniority. We finally agreed to a compro- 2. Outcomes: Discuss the end results and
mise by extending some internal deadlines measurements of success for the request
while still complying with the final date. and get agreement that the outcomes
Because of this tough conversation with are important.
my boss, I realized that I needed more 3. Benefits and Obstacles: Address both the
training and development in how to gain benefits and obstacles involved for each
accountability from others. Eventually, party for mutual understanding.

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