Everyone wants to be a leader. However, few are prepared to accept the accountability that goes with it. But you can't have one without the other. They are two sides of the same coin.
But what does accountability look like? First and foremost, it means that you accept responsibility for the outcomes expected of you—both good and bad. You don’t blame others. And you don’t blame the external environment. There are always things you could have done—or still can do—to change the outcome.
Until you take responsibility, you are a victim. And being a victim is the exact opposite of being a leader. Victims are passive. They are acted upon. Leaders are active. They take initiative to influence the outcome.
Once a month, we require all of our divisional leaders to write a report, detailing what happened the previous month. They submit these to the Executive Leadership Team and then we meet with each leader face-to-face.
These reports provide a summary of what happened and a review of the key metrics that drive the business. We also ask each division head to describe how their leadership succeeded or failed. We ask, “What was it about your leadership that produced these results?” The underlying assumption is that it is all about their leadership. We do not allow them to blame anyone internally or externally.
Allen Arnold did a particularly good job of this in his report. I have asked his permission to include it here, because I believe it serves as a great model for others. By way of background, Allen leads our Fiction division. It is one of our fastest growing divisions and Allen has done a great job leading it to it’s current level of success.
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