Personal accountability is not only an important skill to possess, but it is also in high demand.  In over 95% of the jobs we studied, we found personal accountability to be one of the top seven personal skills that are required for superior performance on the job.  Most companies would agree that responsibility for actions is a major component to success on the job and will look for this skill in any employee review or selection situation.  Unfortunately, personal accountability can be difficult to gauge and is often times not genuine until you can scratch through the surface.

If personal accountability is so important to success on the job, yet difficult to find, how can we look for this skill in today’s talent?

To help you identify the skill of personal accountability, consider using the following interview questions in your selection process or employee evaluation.

• What person from history do you most admire for taking the blame for a failure? What did taking the blame do for that person?
• Give me an example of someone you know whose personal actions led to disastrous results. How answerable is that person for what happened? What advice would you give to that person?
• What is the worst business decision you ever made? What made it the worst? What would have helped you to avoid making that decision?

While questions like this might help you take a guess at the level of personal accountability an individual has, it is best to get a truly accurate picture of the skills they have through a individual assessment process.  This will eliminate all bias and give you statistical results that will easily help you take the next step in talent management.  Soft skills assessments and 360 degree surveys are commonly used in business practices today to accurately assess personal accountability and the many other skills that make each person unique.