RESPONSIBILITY, ACCOUNTABILITY, AND AUTHORITY

 

 

 

 

 

RESPONSIBILITY, ACCOUNTABILITY, AND AUTHORITY

 

 

 

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Introduction

All three aspects relate to the allocation of tasks and goals to be achieved. Now, responsibility is the compulsory requirement to perform various tasks. It is the list of tasks that a particular position is expected to achieve (Certo & Certo, 2015). Now, accountability entails the list of tasks, where failure to meet them might lead to penalties, and be answerable for failure. On the other hand, authority is the right given to give orders and rules on how tasks will be attainable or achieved. It is the continuous power of a position in executing orders.

Differentiate between Responsibility, Accountability, and Authority

Responsibility	Accountability	Authority
Responsibilities are the flip side of the authority coin.	The mechanisms through which responsibility and authority are brought into alignments is known as the accountabilities.	Authorities are not vested in people but on organizational positions.
It is the duty of performing the tasks or activities that the employees have been allocated.	Accountability implies that individuals with responsibilities and authority are subject to justifying and reporting activity results to people above them in the command chain.	Authorities are the legitimate and official rights of managers to allocate resources, make decisions, and issue orders to accomplish results desirable by the company.
Managers are assigned authority commensurate with their responsibilities.	Employees need to understand that they are accountable for tasks and accept the author’s responsibilities for carrying them out.	Authorities flow down the vertical hierarchies.
Managers may become tyrants if their authorities exceed responsibilities using the powers to accomplish results.		The senior managers to junior officers can delegate authority.

Responsibilities are the obligations of seeing tasks through to completion. They can be voluntarily assumed or may be contractual obligations (Certo & Certo, 2015). Responsibility can never be given away. Duties can be shared with another individual or team, but they cannot be transferred downwards without further obligation. The duties remain undiluted with their originators.

The right to force actions or command by another is known as the authority. Authority enables instructions to be provided to other people with the expectations that they shall be performed explicitly. Because power must originate from the ultimate responsibility source, it is a derivative of responsibility.

Accountabilities involve being accountable to another individual for performances. Related to accountability is the viewpoint of penalties for unacceptable results or rewards for acceptable behaviors. Accountability is also a derivative of responsibility.

The formal organizational structures of companies define authority and responsibility, and delineate who is accountable for them. Traditionally, the bigger the businesses, the more structured and formalized their organizational structures are likely to be. It is common for professionals in organizational developments to continually review the corporate structures with an intention towards transformations that can improve productivity and facilitate the complete management processes in huge companies. Today’s trends are to flatten these organizational charts even among big companies in attempts to keep the administration costs as low as possible and facilitate responsibilities and communications from top to bottom.

Establishing organizational charts that are managed responsibility and accountability, afford growth opportunities of employees, respond to the markets, and flexibly is a significant challenge (Certo & Certo, 2015). As managers seek to manage and motivate employees to maximize productivity, accountability, responsibility, and accountability are essential. Managing employees effectively need a comprehension of the fundamental leadership and supervision ideas and charismatic personality.

References

Certo, S. C., & Certo, S. T. (2015). Modern management: Concepts and skills. Pearson Higher Ed.

Samuel, C., Certo, C., & Trevis, S. (2015). Modern Management: Concepts and Skills with Mymanagementlab. Pearson Education Limited.