RESPONSABILITY VS ACCOUNTABILITY

Responsibility?and accountability are two terms that are often considered synonymous and are used interchangeably. However, they actually have very distinct meanings. It is important to understand the differences between?responsibility?vs?accountability?in order to assess who fits where in the office structure and / or when clarifying assignment to a given project.?

What is?responsibility?in the workplace?

What are some aspects of?responsibility?in the workplace??

• Responsibility?is essentially the duty to respond to and complete tasks.??
• It can be shared among a team – multiple people can be?responsible for achieving a specific outcome by working on the same task, or have different tasks they are?responsible for that lead to the same goal.?
• Responsibility?cannot technically be assigned to someone. A person must choose to take?responsibility?for something themselves.?
• It is specifically task-focused – it can include: who has what role, what that entails, and what must be done in order to be successful.?

?What is accountability in the workplace?

How is accountability in the workplace defined??

• Accountability is literally the ability and/or duty to report (or give account of) on events, tasks, and experiences.?
• Accountability for a specific task, process, service, etc. should be assigned to just one person?
• If more than one person is accountable for the result of a task, there is a much higher risk that each person will think the others are taking charge, leading to no one taking accountability.?
• Tasks should be assigned based on an individual’s?skills and competencies .?
• Whereas?responsibility?is an ongoing duty to complete the task at hand, accountability is what happens after a situation occurs.?
• It is how a person responds and takes ownership of the results of a task.?
• Being accountable often means that the person is liable to face consequences from some authority if the task isn’t completed successfully?
• However, not always – sometimes the accountability can also be at play when the “accountable” person communicates the objective isn’t being reached.?

Key Differences of?Responsibility?vs?Accountability

Now that we have defined both responsibility and accountability, let’s summarize the key differences.?

Responsibility?in the Workplace?Accountability in the Workplace?The duty to complete tasks; not doing so is a failure of?responsibility?The duty to give an account of tasks after they are completed?Ongoing while final goal is being worked towards?Happens after a situation occurs ( or in the form of status update)?Can be shared among a team; many people can have the same task, or different tasks that work towards the same goal?Should be assigned to just one person to avoid thinking someone else will be doing the job?Specifically task-focused?Specifically results-focused?Cannot be assigned to someone. Each person must take?responsibility?on their own (more?behavioral)?Is assigned (ideally to one person) – they are held accountable for results and potential consequences of not reaching desired results. #accountexecutives #accountabilty #leadership