The 3 Accountability Factors

After orchestrating one of the biggest cheating scandals in recent sports history, the Houston Astros hardly merit tons of feel-good stories and flattery as they play in the World Series. But to simply dismiss them as cheaters and liars would mean missing out on what’s actually a valuable lesson in team culture.

As leaders, we recognize that accountability largely centers around holding team members responsible for their decisions, activities and production. We do this by ensuring there are processes for feedback and improvement.

But accountability isn’t one-sided. Team members can hold each other to standards and expectations as well. That’s what ultimately allows true chemistry to develop and a collective goal to become even more attainable.

This is what the Astros’ core of Carlos Correa, Jose Altuve, Yuli Gurriel and Alex Bregman pride themselves on.

“Why do we keep showing up and getting it done?” Correa asked recently.

“We came to the conclusion that it's because we hold each other accountable. And what I mean by that is we expect everybody to be better than [the] previous year, and we expect everybody to show up in great shape... We make sure that they prepare every single day to help us win because we know that the four of us can't get it done by ourselves."

The fundamental question we as leaders must routinely ask is: How do we create a culture of premium accountability?

The answer really lies in having team members committed to the following three principles:

One Common Goal

All team members should be working toward a common purpose. For the Astros, that’s winning the World Series, not focusing on individual honors. The good of the team far outweighs the good of the individual.

Define and Preach Roles and Responsibilities — EVERY DAY

It is crucial to clarify roles and responsibilities within a team. But defining them once or twice is never enough. These need to be reinforced relentlessly to make everyone understand individual and team expectations.

Eliminate Contentment

The No. 1 killer of accountability is contentment. When team members feel satisfied with their level of performance, they tend to rest on their laurels. Core leadership must take over and demonstrate a never-ending commitment to improving each day. This is what separates the Astros from their competitors — their four leaders are never content.

These three categories are the cornerstone of any high-performance organization. As leaders, we must emphasize these every day and make sure anyone new to our team is willing to buy into these non-negotiable principles. Over time, when these skills become ingrained, our teams can reach the very top.