Will Humphreys explains accountability in the workplace as a combination of support and balance rather than mere punishment. He contrasts corrective accountability for clear refusal to perform with accountable practices of curiosity, public acknowledgement for helpful actions, and framing accountability as safety that creates win-win outcomes.
Chapters
Now, so many times when people think of the word accountability, they have this image of a boss holding an employee accountable for their mistakes in the company. And that's not really how we approach accountability. I want you to think of accountability as support plus balance. So let's take the analogy of someone who's not performing well at work. What accountability would look like, ideally, would be someone bringing that up to their supervisor. And if that's not being done, then the supervisor brings it to them from a place of curiosity, like, how come you're not performing? Is there something you don't understand? Is there something else involved here? And then, yes, if someone's just refusing to get the product they were hired to do, it could look like correction. But on the other side of the coin, accountability looks like acknowledgement. If someone stepped in and helped us, how vital would it be to acknowledge them publicly for their great effort? In this place of balance, we can recognize that in our relationship, we should always be creating a win win. And that is ultimately what we're accountable to, creating a win win between us and in the black. So when you think about it from that perspective, it allows you to be free to realize that accountability is safety, support, balance. So as you continue to move forward in your journey in the black, just remember it's a safe place to hold yourself accountable. Not just to what you need to do better, but what you've done. That's great.
