ation

Quintessential Thought

Accountability. We often shudder when we hear the word. We might think of blame, shame, and tense conversations. It’s not pretty, and most of us would rather avoid anything that even smells like this.

But accountability is really important. Without it, our team culture disintegrates quickly, as it morphs to anything that is allowed to happen, and performance degrades just as quickly.

And Scrum is built on accountability. Some key accountability quotes from the Scrum Guide include:

• “The Developers are…accountable for…holding each other accountable as professionals.”

• “The Product Owner is accountable for maximizing the value of the product resulting from the work of the Scrum Team.”

• “The Scrum Master is accountable for the Scrum Team’s effectiveness.”

Accountability is critical to effective product development.

So, what’s a healthy way to look at accountability?

Let’s break down the word into two parts: account and ability. Said another way, accountability is the ability to give an account.

A Scrum Master can give an account by explaining the actions they took to protect or improve the team’s effectiveness, describing the observable impacts, and identifying their next step. Likewise, a Product Owner can explain the actions they took to maximize the value of the product, describe the measured impacts, and identify their next step.

Healthy accountability is empirical, providing transparency of the actions taken, inspection of the results, and adaptation to identify next steps.

Quotes

"Accountability separates the wishers in life from the action-takers that care enough about their future to account for their daily actions." – John Lemme

"Accountability, the ability of people to understand what is expected of them, exercise authority, and take responsibility for delivering results, is an important dimension of organizational health." – Michael Bazigos

“The first and foremost responsibility of a leader is to create an environment in which everyone can take accountability for their actions.” – Jocko Willink

Quick Step

Lead the way in accountability: give an account of an action you took, the observable impacts, and the next step you plan to take.

Question

How is accountability broken in your team? What’s it costing your team, your product, and your organization?

Professional Product Discovery and Validation, Jan 24

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