The Oz Principle Blog

Most people define the various facets of their circumstances as either within or outside their control. In fact, many people feel victimized when they are held accountable for things they perceive as outside their control—i.e., things they cannot change. However, in our experience, people who demonstrate high levels of accountability tend to define more of their circumstantial facets as “within” rather than “outside” their control. Would it surprise you if we said, “There are very few things that are entirely outside your control, especially if you think in terms of “influence” rather than “control?”

The process of taking greater accountability includes transferring the elements of our circumstances from “outside our control” to “within our ability to influence.” This is the very same process whereby companies create competitive advantage and people create opportunity—by beginning to influence the things they previously viewed as entirely outside their control. Nestle Purina illustrates this process nicely. A few years ago, the company began planning the systematic introduction of an easy-to-open dog food can, until preliminary market tests convinced the marketing department to attempt a dramatic acceleration of the new product’s introduction. So the Alpo EZ-Open Can team went to work, continually asking, “What else can we do to get the results we want?” They coordinated the activities at three different plant locations and assembled people from across several functions to accomplish the impossible. They cut market introduction by more than a year, something that had, at first, seemed impossible.

The way people take greater accountability for their circumstances and exert more influence is by asking the question, “What else can I do?” The repeated asking of this question makes it possible for people to formulate new and creative solutions that make progress possible. As Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “That which we persist in doing becomes easier for us to do; not that the nature of the thing itself is changed, but that our power to do is increased.” And stay engaged. When pesky problems persist, don’t give up and stop trying—or wait and see if things will get better on their own. You will never make progress by focusing on what can’t be done. Think differently, as Albert Einstein advised, “The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them.” Always solicit and strive to understand perspectives other than your own.

Yes, taking greater accountability to redefine the “uncontrollables” and exercise more influence upon the factors that affect your ability to succeed requires personal stretching and a willingness to see reality. But the benefits are more than worth it. To assess your own level of personal accountability, go to http://www.ozprinciple.com/ and click on “Individual and Team Assessments.”

Is there a difference between Key Results and Visionary Goals?  Yes, but they’re both part of the same family. Key Results are what must be achieved to steadily sustain and grow a business or organization. Visionary Goals are what must be pursued to continually renew and transform a business or organization. Visionary Goals are “crucial aspirations.” Key Results are “must deliverables.” Both are needed to create healthy and sustainable Cultures of Accountability^®. We frequently tell clients that accountability begins with well-defined Key Results, but we also remind them that accountability deepens and expands with dynamic and inspirational Visionary Goals. Our definition of accountability captures both.

Accountability: “A personal choice to rise above one’s circumstances and demonstrate the ownership necessary for achieving desired results—to See It, Own It, Solve It , Do It^®.”

Inherent in this definition of accountability is a mind-set or attitude for continually asking, “What else can I do to rise above my circumstances and achieve the results I desire?” It involves a sequential process of seeing it, owning it, solving it, and doing it, and requires a level of ownership that includes making, keeping, and answering for personal commitments. Such a perspective not only embraces a focus on Key Results that will sustain people and organizations but also an emphasis on Visionary Goals that can continually transform them. Consistently applying the Steps To Accountability^®—See It, Own It, Solve It , Do It^®—allows you to achieve both Key Results and Visionary Goals, which, in turn, revitalizes business character, strengthens global competitiveness, heightens innovation, improves quality, increases customer satisfaction, and drives sustainability.

Accountability for results rests at the very core of every organizational issue, initiative, goal, or vision. And it always boils down to getting people to rise above their circumstances to do whatever it takes (of course, within the bounds of ethical behavior) to get the results they want. Creating this sort of individual and collective accountability is one of the top managerial and leadership challenges facing organizations today. To learn more about how to meet this challenge by creating greater accountability in your organization, go to www.ozprinciple.com.

For effective organizations, accountability is the strongest thread that runs through the complex fabric of the organization, as it defines and shapes all of your working relationships. Think about it, every interaction you have with others includes a transaction of accountability. You are either asking them to do something for you or you are delivering something for them—hundreds of times a day. How you transact your business each day establishes the accountability connection you have with others and defines the kind of accountability you are seeking to create—positive and productive or negative and destructive.

Everyone in your organization is connected by these accountabilities we have to one another. When your accountability connections are working properly, people feel good and accomplish more for you. The telltale signs of strong, effective accountability connections are:

• High levels of trust
• Openness and transparency
• Lots of feedback that flows freely in all directions
• People getting things done

In contrast, when your accountability connections are not working, people feel frustrated and accomplish less. They immediately begin to actively or passively disengage. Signs of weak, ineffective accountability connections are:

• Low morale
• Cautiousness and self-protection
• Missed deadlines and unachieved results
• People languishing Below the Line, finger pointing and blaming others

Want more trust in your organization? Then create greater accountability and see how people operate Above the Line and establish expectations and accountability connections that work. Want better communication and more open conversations? Then create greater accountability and see the level of feedback and dialogue increase dramatically because accountable people seek feedback. Want better execution? Then create greater accountability and watch how people take the four Steps to Accountability—See It, Own It, Solve It, and Do it and get things done.

Accountability has a pervasive influence and decisive effect on the transactional nature of the relationships we have with one another in organizations. When accountability is missing, things don’t get done. When accountability is misapplied, things may get done, but not well, because people don’t have the necessary ownership. When accountability is managed properly, things not only get done, they get done well—often better than you expected. Accountability can do more to liberate, engage, energize, and drive people toward ever improving results than any other single leadership or organizational principle. The first thing you need to get right in your organization is accountability. To create the kind of accountability we’re talking about, go to http://www.ozprinciple.com/.