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By Irina Sergeeva
March 11, 2021 - 12 min read
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What is responsibility? What is accountability? Accountability vs. responsibility What are accountability and responsibility in the workplace? How to build a culture of accountability Tips for managers to develop accountability and responsibility Final thoughts on accountability vs. responsibility Accountability vs. responsibility: what are they, how are they different, and what are some examples? This article will explore these characteristics and provide tips to develop them. Consider a time when everyone at your company was working toward a big goal that required cross-functional collaboration. Perhaps you were rolling out a new product, undergoing a rebrand, or expanding into a new geographic area or market segment. Each team member has their own responsibilities and deadlines in order to meet the company goal. For instance, the marketing team may be working on a new website. That could mean one person is responsible for website copywriting, another for design, and yet another for technical implementation. The team may hit a snag when another department fails to furnish the required information for the new website. Now, the entire project is at risk of falling off track. Who’s ultimately accountable? Leaders. Leaders must take a proactive approach to ensure that cross-functional collaboration is effective, tasks are completed adequately, and deadlines are met. They must support their teams in whatever ways they need to meet their responsibilities. This could mean opening better lines of communication with other teams, hiring additional support staff, or reprioritizing tasks. The difference between accountability and responsibility is ever so slight, which is perhaps the reason these terms are often used interchangeably. Responsibility is the ability to respond to situations and events in our lives, as well as to perform or complete assigned tasks. Paradoxically, responsibility is often associated with blame, fault, or guilt which could be one of the reasons people are quite resistant to taking responsibility. In reality, it is a personal, mature, and conscious choice. Accountability is the recognition and acknowledgment of our responsibilities, and being answerable for the outcomes of our actions, decisions, and mistakes. Accountability includes: In a nutshell, the difference between these two concepts is: you are responsible for things and you’re accountable to people, but both are a conscious choice that comes from within. Although these terms are often used as synonyms, several characteristics separate them. Responsibility vs. accountability comes down to effort vs. results. That is, a team member may be responsible for completing a task or project, and accountable for ensuring it’s done correctly. This can apply to leaders and individual contributors alike. Let’s look at a few examples of accountability in the workplace: These accountability examples represent proactive accountability. This is far better than reactive accountability, in which team members and leaders hold themselves accountable for failures without taking adequate steps to prevent them. For instance, a leader may hold themselves accountable and accept blame when a deadline is missed, a customer is lost, or another mistake is discovered. This type of leadership accountability isn’t quite as useful. A culture of accountability encourages all leaders and individual contributors to assume control over their own outcomes. When accountability is a way of life for all employees, companies can benefit from: Build a culture of accountability by applying the three Cs: While accountability ultimately lies with company leaders, each team member can still be individually accountable for their own role in reaching team goals. Here are some tips to encourage accountability and responsibility: Going back to the basics of accountability and responsibility in our daily life and work is vital. It’s vital for being aware of ourselves, and our thoughts, emotions, and feelings. It’s vital for how and why we take actions and make decisions. It’s vital for changing ourselves and our environment. And it’s vital for our reputation and how we are seen by others. Leadership cannot be successful without accountability. Each team member and leader has a job to do to ensure company goals are achieved—but leaders must own the overall result. A leader’s ability to understand and assume accountability is critical for business success.
Jump to sectionWhat is responsibility?
What is accountability?
Accountability vs. responsibility
What are accountability and responsibility in the workplace?
How to build a culture of accountability
Tips for managers to develop accountability and responsibility
Final thoughts on accountability vs. responsibility
Lead with confidence and authenticity
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Published March 11, 2021
Irina Sergeeva
BetterUp Fellow Coach
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