Accountability matters

Accountability matters, in all areas of our life, in all roles, and in all sectors, taking responsibility for your decisions, actions and the things you commit to deliver is, I believe, a key characteristic of successful individuals and organisations.

The Cambridge dictionary defines accountability as “a situation in which someone is responsible for things that happen and can give a satisfactory reason for them”. It also says accountability is “the fact of being responsible for what you do”.

Do you take accountability for your personal actions? The organisational decisions you and your team take? Do your team have autonomy within their roles, and if so do they embrace the accountability this bestows upon them. 

I’ve been thinking about accountability this week as our organisation, Flexible Childcare Services Scotland, is scaling faster and further than anticipated at this stage in its development.

We’ve had the opportunity to take on some fantastic new projects and we’re having to grow our team to keep up with the workload, until we achieve this I’m swamped. 

We’re a relatively young, third sector organisation and don’t have the budget to pull in costly agency cover to help us over this busy period. Instead, it’s all hands on deck, extended hours and task prioritisation (I love a good old Eisenhower Matrix to help identify my priorities).

I’m conscious of my responsibility to our team, to protect their jobs and provide them opportunities to develop their careers. 

I am aware of the impact our services have for the children, families and communities we work with, and am committed to maintaining, enhancing and extending that impact. 

I think often of our obligation to the funding bodies who support our work and I strive, along with my leadership team, management, and operational colleagues, to successfully deliver the objectives they funded. 

And I’m mindful of our Board, the support they provide, their governance and generous sharing of professional expertise. 

So this week accountability has come in to play and I’ve had to walk the talk, and prioritise my time to ensure I can focus on leading our team through this whirlwind of activity. 

I’ve had to rethink some of my external commitments and reduce my involvement with other third sector organisations and I’ve had to pause my regular personal training sessions until the New Year (I have gym space at home so this is definitely a first world problem). 

They say pressure creates diamonds, watch us sparkle at Team FCSS.