Published Online:March 2025
Product Name:The IUP Journal of Soft Skills
Product Type:Article
Product Code:IJSS030325
DOI:10.71329/IUPJSS/2025.19.1.37-45
Author Name:Revathi Turaga
Availability:YES
Subject/Domain:Management
Download Format:PDF
Pages:37-45
Accountability is the foundation for the success of any team or organization and serves as a vital driver of trust, performance, and collaboration. It is about taking ownership of one’s actions, decisions, and results at work. Accountability also fosters collaboration, develops shared responsibility, and increases efficiency in working. This paper delves into the essence of accountability, emphasizing the critical distinction between accountability and responsibility, and also self-blame. Through real-life examples and frameworks like the OARBED model and the accountability ladder, the paper offers a structured approach to build a culture of accountability within teams.
In simple terms, accountability is accepting responsibility for what one does, or has done, or can do, especially within a team or organization. When one is accountable, one accepts whatever comes out of one’s decision or action, positive or negative. Accountability is more than just accomplishing a task; it includes being answerable for the outcomes, being transparent, and having met expectations as agreed upon. When members of a team hold themselves accountable, they take ownership of their actions and their results. In fact, 71% of employees believe their managers do not hold them accountable (Gallup, 2015).