March 2002
Public Services Productivity Panel
Accountability for results
This information is being maintained for archive/historical purposes only. It will not be updated.
Clarifying accountability relationships at all levels in an organisation is vital to delivering high performance. This is because effective delivery requires everyone involved to know who is responsible, what they are responsible for and what powers and freedoms they actually have to deliver. However, ensuring effective accountability relationships are in place is an issue with which both public and private sector organisations struggle. Good accountability requires all parties involved to invest time and effort in making the relationship work better in practice and needs frequent clarification when circumstances and personalities change.
The report - published March 2002 - identifies a number of critical questions which should form the basis for discussion for all parties involved in the accountability relationship to ensure mutual understanding of what they are accountable for delivering and how this will take place. Principals and agents need to ask themselves:
- Have we addressed these questions?
- Have we a shared understanding about the answers?
Contacts
The Panel members leading this project are:
- Keith Burgess, Executive Chairman of QA Plc, former Global Managing Partner, Andersen Consulting and Director of Skills Group
- Caroline Burton, former Executive Director, Guardian Royal Exchange
- Greg Parston, Chief Executive, Office for Public Management
Project contact point:
Gill Fraser
PSPPU
HM Treasury
Parliament Street
London SW1P 3AG
Tel: 020 7270 4882
Fax: 020 7451 7603
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