Whether you’re talking about life at home, the office, or social gatherings, the concepts of responsibility and accountability are often used interchangeably. Make no mistake. The two go hand-in-hand for the most part, but they are different. So, what is the difference between responsibility and accountability?
Before explaining the distinctions and similarities, it’s essential to define each concept clearly. After all, you’ll run into them throughout your life, especially in the workplace.
- Understanding Responsibility
- Understanding Accountability
- Examples of Responsibility and Accountability
- The Differences Between Responsibility and Accountability
- Key Steps for Fostering Responsibility and Accountability in the Workplace
- Accountable People vs. Accountability Partners
- How to Be More Responsible and Accountable
- Know the Distinctions by Heart
Understanding Responsibility
Being responsible for something or someone implies a duty to perform specific tasks. Responsibility relates to tasks people carry out at home, work, and social settings. But responsibility isn’t always assigned only to individuals.
Groups can share responsibilities. For example, teams can be collectively responsible for managing or delivering projects in the workplace.
Generally, responsibility isn’t forced on someone. Instead, it’s self-managed, and people take it upon themselves to be responsible for certain actions tied to specific outcomes.
Understanding Accountability
Unlike responsibility, which refers to a duty to perform a task, accountability comes after. Accountability refers to the consequences of taking or not taking action to complete a goal. It has nothing to do with the initial duty of a person but with their actions, or lack thereof, after assuming responsibility for them.
Unlike responsibility, accountability often concerns individuals rather than groups or teams. That’s because it’s more about owning up to the consequences of your own actions.
Shared accountability is rarely used. But that doesn’t mean more individuals can’t be responsible for completing the same task. Even if that’s the case, a single person is often held accountable. For instance, business owners may hold team leaders or project managers accountable for their team’s failure to reach a goal.
Accountability is managed differently depending on the situation. But in the workplace, people held accountable usually explain what went wrong. They may have to make restitution, face disciplinary action, or carry out specific tasks to fix the issues following failing their responsibilities.
Examples of Responsibility and Accountability
Take a look at the following examples to further understand the two concepts.
Customer Service Tasks
Imagine the usual customer service department. People contact it through an online portal and speak to customer service representatives. The representatives are responsible for answering questions and aim to resolve the customer’s issues in a specific timeframe.
That is a shared responsibility. However, the accountability doesn’t lie with more than one customer service representative, despite performing the same task. Usually, one person is held accountable, such as a supervisor, manager, or team leader.
If representatives don’t meet their timeframe goals, their immediate superior may have to explain why that happened to a higher authority in the company.
Chores
Everyone does chores at home to maintain a clean, safe, and comfy household. But while you can feel responsible for doing your chores, you don’t have to be held accountable to take on the responsibility.
For instance, people who live alone are responsible for doing their laundry, vacuuming, and washing the dishes. No one will hold them accountable if they don’t do those chores. No higher authority can take disciplinary action or force them to redress the situation.
But family households are different. Parents often hold kids accountable for not doing chores. Children can explain why they didn’t carry out their duties and face potential consequences.
The Differences Between Responsibility and Accountability
Responsibility refers to the actions taken toward completing a task or reaching a goal. Accountability refers to examining the actions taken and the potential success, process, or failure to meet a set goal.
Depending on the circumstances, people can be responsible and accountable simultaneously or face only responsibility or accountability. However, accountability is often reserved for people in positions of authority.
- Managers
- Team leaders
- Business owners
- Supervisors
- Inspectors
- Parents
- Teachers
Interestingly, accountability isn’t always necessary. The best example of this kind of scenario is a repetitive, ongoing task. Imagine a person responsible for resupplying the office with toner and paper or someone tasked to water the plants.
Those individuals don’t need to be held accountable unless they stop performing their tasks. Similarly, team leaders and supervisors aren’t held accountable for every small job not done by their teams. However, they will have to be accountable should the team fail to finish a project within a set deadline or achieve a specific result.
Key Responsibility Characteristics
- A duty to finish a task or take a specific action
- Sharable among team members with similar or different tasks yet working toward the same overarching goal
- Primarily task-focused
- Ongoing until reaching the final goal
- Behavioral, as in it’s never assigned but rather self-managed and assumed
Key Accountability Characteristics
- A duty to provide an account or explanation for tasks and actions after completion
- Assigned to a specific individual
- Primarily results-focused
- Not ongoing, instead occurring after something happens or a status update
- Subject to potential consequences like disciplinary action, financial restitution, and others upon failing to deliver the desired results
A Person With Accountability Is Also Responsible
Responsibility and accountability often go hand-in-hand, especially when dealing with groups of people. For instance, imagine someone in the role of a team leader. That person is accountable for their team’s performance and may suffer consequences if they fail to deliver, such as not getting a performance bonus.
Accountability automatically makes the team leader responsible for their team. It instills a duty to report the project resolution process, tasks, and overall experience.
Benefits of Responsibility in the Workplace
Although responsibility isn’t enforced, it’s still crucial to success in the workplace. It’s even more vital to take responsibility when working with a team. A single underperforming individual can negatively impact everyone’s performance and delay achieving the desired goals.
That’s why wanting to take responsibility is key.
Taking personal responsibility for performing tasks as expected isn’t always easy. Sometimes employees need extra inspiration and motivation. This requires managers and team leaders to lead by example and be willing to take responsibility.
A responsible team leader must motivate, inspire, connect, and guide their team so they can complete their tasks.
Benefits of Accountability in the Workplace
A significant difference between responsibility and accountability is that one is enforced while the other isn’t. But that doesn’t mean both aren’t equally crucial to a successful and productive workplace environment.
For example, enforcing accountability should lead to less turnover and more productive employees. Making someone accountable may seem like giving them extra duties. However, it also empowers people to work harder and achieve better results.
Accountable people make their contributions known. They have added motivation to inspire their subordinates and help them work efficiently and productively.
Holding employees accountable can lead to better communication, customer service resolutions, etc. And as a bonus, it helps clarify workplace duties and responsibilities. Accountability lets everyone know who is in charge of particular tasks. Therefore, it eliminates confusion, prevents delays, and streamlines various processes and operations.
Key Steps for Fostering Responsibility and Accountability in the Workplace
Business owners, managers, and team leaders can do three things to develop a culture of responsibility and accountability at work.
1. Act on Feedback
Acting on feedback from others is one of the most important actions you can take to foster accountability and responsibility. Leading by example isn’t always enough if you don’t demonstrate the right qualities.
Individuals in positions of authority should take suggestions, ask for feedback, and constantly improve in-house procedures and interactions.
Doing these things shows that a leader is accountable and responsible. And when the procedures start generating better results, employees will feel empowered and motivated to do the same. They’ll try to take responsibility and hold themselves accountable.
2. Be Understanding
Fostering responsibility requires a deep understanding of various teams’ individual and shared responsibilities. It allows leaders to fairly determine expectations and identify the best methods to hold each team member accountable.
This step depends on good communication skills and maximizing every team interaction. For instance, you can use team meetings to discuss responsibilities and reassign duties based on peoples’ experiences, skills, beliefs, and perspectives.
3. Clarify Expectations
Another crucial step in fostering excellent responsibility and accountability procedures is to clarify expectations. Leaders are often disappointed and hold people accountable when they don’t deliver desirable results.
But that doesn’t mean people didn’t do their best or haven’t accepted responsibility. In many scenarios, it comes down to miscommunication. Leaders who fail to clarify goals, duties, and expectations can set teams up for failure.
That’s why fostering this company culture and in-house processes is not a one-and-done project. Instead, it’s an ongoing exercise in open communication and transparency with people up and down the company ladder.
Accountable People vs. Accountability Partners
The lines between responsibility and accountability are often blurred depending on the circumstances. There are also a few misunderstood aspects of accountability.
For example, what’s the difference between an accountable individual at work and an accountability partner?
An individual can be held accountable at work for under-delivering or failing to meet specific results. An accountability partner can help another individual stay focused on their tasks, analyze the progress, and offer guidance along the way.
In most cases, accountability partners aren’t empowered to take significant action against those who need them. They can intervene in scheduled meetings and communicate without punishing or forcing their will on the other person. They’re more of a cheerleader or champion to help keep someone on track to meet their responsibilities.
Simultaneously, accountability partners aren’t subject to disciplinary action, firing, or other punishments if the people they collaborate with don’t complete tasks or reach their goals.
How to Be More Responsible and Accountable
Accepting responsibility and accountability doesn’t come easily to everyone. But like most things, you can learn to develop and accept both in various aspects of your life.
Whether talking about personal, social, financial, or work-related topics, you can incorporate the following three key aspects into your daily interactions.
Honesty
Being honest can make you an ideal candidate for a position of accountability and greater responsibility. Likewise, it makes it easier to communicate and project a trustworthy personality.
Consistency
Doing what you say goes a long way toward developing responsibility and accountability in all walks of life. You can sometimes promise less to avoid overextending. Delivering more is great, if possible.
The only trick is to consistently show the ability to take charge of situations, overcome challenges, and meet objectives. Naturally, the more you do this, the easier it is to accept responsibility and accountability.
Communication
Depending on your role, you may need to involve other people besides yourself in a task or project. But even if you’re on your own, communication is still vital. If you haven’t clarified your responsibilities, you probably won’t meet them and will need to hold yourself accountable.
In a team setting, it’s essential to understand your team’s responsibilities, who is accountable for what, etc. At the same time, this ensures others understand your position and role.
Communication clears expectations, duties, and everything else so people can eliminate distractions and stay focused on delivering the best results. Excellent communication deepens your understanding of what everyone must do. It’s beneficial when you’re accountable for your team’s performance or actions.
Know the Distinctions by Heart
As an individual, you can take responsibility and be held accountable or not. Likewise, you can hold someone else accountable.
Although typically, responsibility isn’t enforced, it still relates to certain duties. Being assigned to a specific project or promoted to a particular role can make you feel like extra responsibilities were dropped on your lap.
But it’s important to understand that responsibilities are ongoing. Accountability only comes into play once various tasks are completed, and results are generated. The former always precedes the latter. And if you ever feel the line being blurred, open communication is essential to clarify the situation and understand where everyone fits in a particular system.
Regardless of which you take on, responsibility and accountability are beneficial and almost mandatory for achieving the best outcomes.