Business Communication Leadership

Crucial Accountability: Tools for Resolving Violated Expectations, Broken Commitments, and Bad Behavior (Summary)

by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillan, Al Switzler

A nurse consistently fails to scan a patient's wristband before giving medication, a clear violation of safety protocols. Her manager's first instinct is to label her as careless or defiant. But when the manager investigates, she discovers the scanner is kept in a locked room down the hall, and finding the key takes five minutes. The problem wasn't the nurse's bad attitude; it was a broken system. The secret to fixing bad behavior isn't to confront the person, but to first diagnose the hidden forces—personal, social, or systemic—that are truly driving the problem.

You're Angry at the Story, Not the Behavior

The gap between what you expect and what you observe is just a fact. Your anger, frustration, or disappointment comes from the story you tell yourself about why it happened. Before you speak, change your story from a villain-victim narrative to one of curiosity.

Your colleague misses a deadline. Your immediate story is, 'He's lazy and doesn't respect my time.' This makes you furious. If you challenge that story and ask, 'What if he was given conflicting priorities by another manager?' you can approach the conversation with a desire to understand rather than a desire to accuse.

Diagnose Before You Prescribe

Don't jump to conclusions about someone's intent. Most performance gaps are not caused by a lack of motivation, but by an unseen ability problem. You must uncover whether the person is unmotivated or unable, and what social or structural forces are at play.

A sales team isn't using the new CRM software. Instead of threatening them (a motivation solution), a manager asks questions and learns the software is slow and crashes frequently (a structural ability problem). The solution isn't a motivational speech; it's fixing the technology.

Make It Safe to Be Candid

People can't hear your message if they feel attacked. To hold someone accountable, you must first create safety by establishing mutual respect and a mutual purpose. Frame the conversation as a joint problem-solving effort, not a personal indictment.

Instead of starting a conversation with, 'You completely botched the presentation,' which triggers defensiveness, start by establishing a shared goal: 'I'd like to talk about the client presentation. My goal is to figure out how we can make sure our next one is a home run. Can we walk through what happened?'

End with a 'Who Does What by When'

A successful accountability conversation doesn't end with an apology; it ends with a clear, documented plan. This ensures the problem is truly resolved, clarifies future expectations, and creates a simple way to follow up.

After discussing an employee's habit of interrupting colleagues, the conversation concludes not just with 'I'll try to be better,' but with a specific plan: 'So, for the next two weeks, you'll make a note of your thought and wait for a pause. I'll give you a subtle hand signal if I notice you jumping in. How does that sound?'

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