There is a widespread belief that employees would gladly take more responsibility if only those “bad” leaders would finally let them. Leaders, however, often report the opposite: many employees tend to shift responsibility upward and protect themselves against risk.

The result is overloaded leaders and employees who spend more and more time on execution instead of weighing options, thinking, and acting for themselves. We can wish for more personal responsibility – but it only works under certain conditions.

Leaders are often responsible for their own overload. They let themselves be driven by the expectations of their employees – the opposite of leadership.

Personal responsibility works when the leader has a clear idea of leadership. The leader communicates a Coach role built around self-regulation, stabilizes that role, and acts consistently in line with it.

Personal responsibility needs the right conditions. If self-motivation, competence, and sufficient freedom to act are missing, the result is costly underregulation: correction loops, escalations, and, in the end, a leader who takes over again after all.

Executives, leaders, leadership development professionals, management consultants