Accountability

Accountability

In the army there are many important attributes for soldiers, one of the most important of these is accountability. There are many reasons that accountability is important, I will explain three of these. The three reason I will explain are responsibility, trust, and unit readiness. All three of these are integral parts of accountability.

Responsibility is an important part or accountability. When you are accountable for soldiers you are responsible for them. That means that you are accountable for their safety, finances, and overall wellbeing. When you are accountable for them you have the responsibility to make sure that they are trained and prepared to lead when they are in your position. You are responsible to make sure that they are on time and accounted for. If one of your soldiers goes missing and you have not accounted for them then you have failed your mission as their leader. Responsibility goes beyond just soldiers but to their families. If you or your soldiers lose accountability of an item you become responsible to find it or to replace it. Teaching your soldiers responsibility can keep them from having to replace items with their own money, this could affect their families and could also cause the units readiness to be degraded. The in ability to remain responsible for your items affecting the unit can also cause the unit to become non mission capable. This could cause leaders, peers, and subordinates to lose trust in you, the unit, and the army. This brings us to the next pillar of accountability.

The next pillar and important attribute to accountability is trust. This builds on the first part, responsibility. If you do not show responsibility how can you be trusted to do what is needed when the time comes. If you don’t have the trust of your soldiers then you cannot be able to complete the mission when you are called upon to do what is required of you. When you are accountable for property the unit, and your leadership,...