1. Accountability: A Core Leadership Value
Association of Government Accountants
Richmond - Shenandoah Valley - Virginia - Peninsula - Roanoke
Facilitated by
Patrick Patrong, BSE, MCRP
Patrong Enterprises, Inc.

2. Objectives
After this session participants will understand the culture of accountability in the following areas:
Accountability Culture
Clearly Defined Results
Organizational Alignment
Eliminating the Blame Game
Sustaining Change

3. Activity Connect like symbols, with a single continuous line.
Lines must not cross each other, go through the small boxes, or outside the large box
Lines must only touch the box that they are connecting.

4. Connecting the Boxes

5. The Culture of Accountability
Most organizations link results with the level of accountability
The challenge is knowing how to create and sustain a culture of accountability

6. High Accountability
Organizations operating with a high level of accountability have been able to:
Clearly define results
Create alignment around results
Instill accountability to deliver results
Sustain positive changes

7. Joint Accountability
How do successful organizations enable their people to take ownership for delivering on their intended results?
To be effective today, supervisors must create higher levels of ownership and joint accountability to achieve results

8.  Key Shifts Externalizing Internalizing the Need for Change
Blaming Others
Taking Accountability
Doing the Job
Achieving the Result
Working In Silos
Collaborating
Telling People What To Do
Engaging Hearts and Minds

9. The Old View
Most people view accountability as something demeaning that happens when performance declines, when problems develop, or in failure
Many think accountability arises when something goes wrong or when someone wants to isolate the cause - to blame or point fingers

10. The Alternative View
Consider the following alternative definition of accountability:
“A personal choice to rise above one’s circumstances and demonstrate the ownership necessary for achieving desired results.”

11. Clearly Defined Results

12. The Job vs. The Result
There is a doing difference between - Doing the Job and Achieving the Result
The first step towards Creating a Culture of Accountability is to define clear results

13. Creating Alignment
The targeted result must be clear to everyone on the team and then the results must be shared
Each team member must share accountability for achieving the result

14. Eliminating Blame
Creating clarity around results and alignment around delivery reduces time spent playing the Blame Game
This is a crucial step in creating higher levels of accountability

15. Promoting Decisions
Supervisors can promote a particular decision in three important ways:
• Advocating a decision translates to more vigorous and proactive support
• Sponsoring a decision vocally and linking your success to it success
• Championing a decision by actively leading people in efforts to make it a success - keeping it on the daily agenda

16. The Line
Above The Line is where attention focuses on things that can be controlled by taking the initiative to identify and implement solutions
Below The Line is where one sees the Blame Game, where the focus is on why results are unachievable

18. The Journey
The transition to accountability is not an event, but a process
What are some things that you will do differently or be more aware of, based on our discussion

19. The Beginning
Thought Comments questions