Is Accountability Lost in Leadership?

Ethics Matters

Q2 2025

Recently, I was out having dinner with my family at a locally owned restaurant. It was late afternoon, so there were just a handful of guests at the establishment. After being greeted by a gentleman that made us smile, the experience unfortunately went downhill. The food was delayed with no explanation – remember there were only six other tables with guests.  

My wife asked for garlic toast and by the time it arrived, her spaghetti was cold, and my son and I were finished with our meals. When she refused the toast, the server explained what happened to the owner who then looked up at our table and walked away presumably to remove the additional charge from our bill. When he emerged from the back of the restaurant, instead of stopping by the table to apologize and take accountability for the poor experience, he went to the hostess stand directly across from our table to tell the staff something and walked away without even making eye contact with my family and me.  

After settling our tab, we proceeded to leave when the gentleman who greeted us said, “thanks for coming and please come back to see us soon.” I responded, “that’s likely not going to happen based on the way we were treated by the owner. He never acknowledged us as he walked through the restaurant greeting other customers around our table. Then, after learning there was an issue, he didn’t bother to speak with us about it.” The host then asked if there was anything he could do to make things better, to which I replied, “yes, please tell the owner that he missed an opportunity to make things right by simply talking with us, and now he has lost our business.” 

Having worked in the service industry and owned businesses that depended on solving problems for customers, I have seen the importance of accountability in leadership. When you take ownership of the problems faced by customers, you gain their trust and earn repeat business and referrals. In business, there are situations you will not be able to solve. However, you can still demonstrate integrity by conveying empathy in your communication with the customer – even when the news you share is not what they want to hear. The customer will respect and appreciate your honesty and will likely consider you a trusted advisor. 

As leaders, it is important to be transparent in communication and take ownership of your actions and the actions of those around you and your organization. This is the essence of accountability in leading with integrity.