Clarity is Key
When you hear someone say, I’m accountable for this, do you think it means something different than, I’m responsible for this? What about authority; who has the authority? Is it the accountable party or the responsible party? And exactly what does this have to do with leadership?
Leaders who provide the most clarity on accountabilities, responsibilities, and authority are more successful than those who do not. Understanding these three concepts and applying them with your team will help you build trust while executing more effectively. First, let’s break down each of the three concepts with a working definition.
Accountability: You own the results. You are the person who will be evaluated on the finished product. Being accountable for something means you’re assessed on that thing. In the workplace, this means your performance is a direct reflection of what you’re accountable for achieving.
Responsibility: You are in charge of getting something done. You are the person doing the action that will lead to the results. It doesn’t mean the outcome is on you; it means the action or the process is on you. In the workplace, you are responsible for completing certain tasks and processes, but your manager is accountable for the result.
Authority: You have the power to make a decision or take an action. Authority rests with accountability, not responsibility. The only person who has the authority to act or decide is the one who is being evaluated for the outcomes of the action/decision (unless they delegate their authority).
As a leader, you can delegate decision-making authority to one of your responsible employees. But if they fail, you’re still accountable. If they made a bad decision with the authority you gave them, that’s on you. You have to take that authority away or provide better training & guidance so they can make better decisions on their own. And that’s leadership in a nutshell. Giving away authority to your employees who have proven they can handle it.
Most leaders fail before the task even begins because they fail to provide clarity around accountability, responsibility, and authority when they assign a task. You have to clearly state what is expected of your employee to do (what they are responsible for), how they will be evaluated (what they are accountable for), and what power they have to do what is expected of them (their level of authority). Failing to provide this level of clarity leads to unknowns for employees. They think, Do I have the authority to make this decision? If I make this decision, will I be held accountable for the results?
You don’t want your employees questioning their actions all day. You want to provide them with the clarity they need to operate autonomously. Let’s take a look at a quick example of how this could play out in the workplace.
Pretend you’re the front-desk manager at a hotel for a minute. You're accountable for customer satisfaction during the check-in & check-out process. You’re measured on customer surveys and random observations done by senior management. You don’t handle many guest interactions; that’s what your employees do. Your job is to coordinate staffing, reduce wait times, and ensure the process is efficient for everyone.
Your employees are responsible for interacting with your customers and answering their questions during check-in and check-out. As a leader, you can either give them the authority to deliver satisfaction or retain it for yourself. You can choose to give your employees the authority to compensate customers with a voucher for the spa or restaurant up to $150 in value. You could also allow your employees to provide free upgrades, late check-outs, or early check-ins as available.
You could also tell your employees they need to ask you for vouchers, upgrades, late check-outs, early check-ins, and other guest requests. One method increases customer satisfaction while the other decreases it. Your employees are responsible for interacting with customers, but only you can empower them with the authority they need to actually do their job.
Giving away authority is not an abdication of accountability. You’re still accountable for the results, even if your employee is the one with the authority making the decisions. If they wrongly exercise their authority, your job as their leader is to provide additional training and guidance so they can correctly exercise the authority you’ve given them.
Imagine trying to do a task you have no authority to complete? Frustrating would be an understatement. You have to give away authority within clearly defined job tasks or responsibilities. Your employees want to operate autonomously, but they need you to give them clarity.
The key to making this all stick is telling stories that show the principles working in action. Now, when you tell your new employees, the key to success at the front desk is going above and beyond the customer’s expectations. You’ll even have the story of Ethan to tell, the front desk associate, who provided an overwhelmed single mom a free room upgrade to enjoy a bedroom to herself. Or Sarah, the front desk associate who helped a woman visiting her grandkids by providing them with free tickets to a local attraction.
Your employees want to execute well. They need clarity on what you expect and the power to deliver on those tasks. These front desk associates needed to know their job was providing exceptional customer service in every interaction, and they needed the authority to act using their own judgment to deliver exceptional customer service.
Before you assign your employees a new task or project, think about what you’re accountable for, what your employee is responsible for doing, and what authority they need to execute successfully on their own.
Do you assign work with clarity every time?
Until next time,
Rick
P.S. You should check this out if you want to learn more about structuring work effectively within an organization to drive clarity around accountabilities, responsibilities, and authorities.
P.P.S. Check out Beehiiv and be sure to reach out to me if you have any questions about starting your own newsletter. It’s a great way to build a writing habit in 2026!
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