When a colleague lets you down, misses a deadline or agreed target or gives you less in their performance than you were expecting, what do you do?

• Say nothing – the poor performance carries on
• Speak up, holding them to account and possibly create a conflict

Having this accountability conversation isn’t easy – it’s awkward, uncertain, uncomfortable and most people are not willing to tackle the issue head on…

​Ken Blanchard (world-renowned business author and trainer) suggests: “The greatest test of a relationship is what happens when someone lets you down. Yet these are the moments of greatest opportunity”

The Business Dictionary Definition of accountability is:

“The obligation of an individual or organisation to account for its activities, accept responsibility for them and to disclose the results in a transparent manner”.

The words obligation and responsibility can be intimidating and scary if accountability is defined like this and it’s no wonder that people think of it as a punishment when something goes wrong…​

However, when you tackle below-par performance early and have a well-structured accountability conversation to solve the issue you will strengthen the relationship.