When Accountability Became Sholay

Accountability is generally a heavy word. It brings to mind ownership, responsibility, deadlines, consequences and, sometimes, a good amount of finger-pointing! So when we were asked to design an experiential intervention on Accountability for a cohort at WRI India, we decided to do something rather unusual. We took Sholay. Yes. Basanti, Gabbar, Thakur and the whole Ramgarh gang! The idea was not to make accountability “fun” for the sake of making it fun. The movie became a familiar context through which participants could look at something that otherwise tends to become a rather serious corporate conversation.

The session was part of a larger six-month learning journey for the core Finance and Legal team. We began with reflection. Where do we take ownership? Where do we conveniently explain away things? Where does accountability end and excuse-making begin? One of the interesting processes was our “Bingo of Excuses”. It was amusing initially, but very quickly participants started recognising some of the excuses they hear — and sometimes use — in their own workplace.

We then moved into BED vs OAR. The shift from Blame, Excuse and Denial to Ownership, Accountability and Responsibility sounds simple on paper. But when people see their own workplace situations through that lens, the conversation becomes quite different. The session eventually led to our DRIVE framework, helping participants look at accountability not as something that a manager demands, but as a behaviour that individuals can consciously demonstrate. And that, for us, is the important distinction. You cannot train people to “be accountable” by giving them a definition of accountability.

You create situations where they can experience the difference between avoiding ownership and taking it. Interestingly, the next intervention in the journey was designed for their managers and leaders. Because there is another side to accountability. You cannot keep telling teams to take ownership if the environment around them does not allow them to do so. After all… Jo darr gaya… woh accountability kya banayega!