{"id":5738,"date":"2025-09-22T18:53:55","date_gmt":"2025-09-22T08:53:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lsre.com.au\/granville\/leadership-and-the-accountability-gap\/"},"modified":"2025-09-22T18:53:55","modified_gmt":"2025-09-22T08:53:55","slug":"leadership-and-the-accountability-gap","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lsre.com.au\/granville\/lsre-news\/leadership-and-the-accountability-gap\/","title":{"rendered":"Leadership and the accountability gap"},"content":{"rendered":"

Leaders know they need to be accountable and they need their people to be accountable too. But many confuse accountability with micromanagement. This creates a narrow view of success, defined by growth in numbers and not by talent developed. When this happens, an accountability gap emerges, says Laing+Simmons head of people and growth Jacqui Barnes<\/a>, and the core purpose of leadership is lost.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Business owners understand the importance of leadership but too often misunderstand their core responsibility as a leader.<\/p>\n

Many think tracking key performance indicators (KPI) is the same as developing talent. But focusing on today\u2019s tasks and numbers is managing. Coaching is about tomorrow and beyond. This demands building talented performers through feedback, questioning, mentoring and real accountability.<\/p>\n

Leaders may view talent development as HR\u2019s job or the franchiser\u2019s role but without it, their business stagnates. The reality is, talent development is actually the core responsibility of a leader.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s because in real estate, your results will always reflect the depth of your talent bench. And talent doesn\u2019t just walk in the door ready-made. It is built by leaders who step up and own the accountability of developing it.<\/p>\n

Accountability: it\u2019s hard because it\u2019s necessary<\/h3>\n

It is hard to hold people accountable. Some leaders avoid accountability conversations because they feel like nagging or they want to avoid conflict.<\/p>\n

Leaders are not immune to a fear of conflict. Most real estate leaders come from a sales background and while they\u2019re comfortable in listing presentations, tough conversations with their own team can be another story.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s natural, especially among sales people, to want to be liked. Many therefore revert to micromanagement, which creates a barrier to talent development.<\/p>\n

Accountability done well isn\u2019t about comparing numbers with KPIs. It\u2019s about clarity and growth, and this requires clear standards and expectations. You can\u2019t hold people accountable to something that is not defined. If behaviours, expectations or KPIs are vague, accountability feels unfair and inconsistent.<\/p>\n

The best leaders use a defined accountability framework. This helps them remained focused on the priorities of talent development instead of being bogged down with the day-to-day, like listings, vendor calls and exchanges.<\/p>\n

Without a structure, encompassing regular one-on-ones, development plans and mentoring rhythms, accountability becomes reactive and ad hoc. That inconsistency erodes trust and follow-through. True accountability becomes elusive.<\/p>\n

Coaching v managing for long-term performance<\/h3>\n

At Laing+Simmons, we challenge our leaders to do a one-week audit to understand how much of their week is spent developing their team versus chasing their numbers. If less than 20 per cent is invested in one-on-ones, training or mentoring, then they\u2019re not leading. They\u2019re managing output and while this produces compliance, it does not enhance capability.<\/p>\n

So, the question for today\u2019s real estate leaders is, when was the last time you coached someone on their career and not just their call sheet? There are powerful pay-offs to focusing on the former.<\/p>\n

Leaders who prioritise talent development build stronger pipelines, more resilient teams and better culture. Prioritising talent development means leaving nothing to chance.<\/p>\n

At Laing+Simmons, we work with our office leaders to build a development playbook for their teams. These encompass developing a 90-day onboarding program, mentoring rhythms and clear pathways from associate to lead agent to business owner.<\/p>\n

Of course, underpinning the talent development process is accountability. Shifting the way leaders take on accountability conversations can help.<\/p>\n

For instance, instead of a leader asking, \u201cHow many calls did you make?\u201d, they can ask, \u201cWhat skill or strategy did you improve this week?\u201d<\/p>\n

Instead of an accountability meeting focused on pipeline growth, reframe this meeting to focus on capability growth.<\/p>\n

Leaders must be accountable too<\/h3>\n

Leaders, too, must also hold themselves to account. Strategies might include adding a talent score to leadership KPIs, taking into account retention rate, promotion from within or percentage of the team with a 90-day growth plan.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s one critical question leaders can ask themselves to understand if they\u2019re developing talent in line with their core responsibility long-term or simply managing for the short-term.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf a member of my team left tomorrow, have I developed their talent enough to replace their value?\u201d<\/p>\n

If the answer is no, you\u2019ve found your accountability gap.<\/p>\n

\n

As seen on Real Estate Business.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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