Accountability and Responsibility in Project Management: A Report

This report delves into the critical concepts of accountability and responsibility within the context of project management. It examines the various elements and key individuals involved, including the project sponsor, project manager, and project team, and their respective duties in ensuring project success. The report highlights the importance of accountability for project performance, emphasizing the project manager's role in upholding transparency and the project sponsor's role in legitimizing project objectives. It explores how different stakeholders, such as the project manager, client, and project team, coordinate to deliver project objectives. The report further analyzes how these elements work together to overcome challenges, using the example of Mawson Zoo. It also emphasizes the importance of effective communication, feedback, and a shared understanding of the project's vision to foster accountability across all levels of the organization. The report concludes by underscoring the need for organizations to adopt a culture of shared responsibility and provide thorough training to project managers and their teams to ensure successful project outcomes.

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ACCOUNTABILITY AND RESPONSIBILITY
By (Name)
Course
Instructor’s Name
Institutional Affiliation
The City and State
The Date

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Executive summary
In this paper, the focus will be put on the analysis of the concept of accountability and
responsibility in regard to project management. Elements of accountability and responsibility
such as the people accountable for project organization are examined. The paper will also
explore the various duties designated to various people in the delivery of project duties. The
paper explains how different people within an organization project such as the project sponsor,
the client and manager coordinate to ensure the success of the project. The paper also examines
how all the major elements fit together in terms of their responsibilities as well as
accountabilities and how these can be used to overcome the challenges faced at Mawson zoo.

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Table of Contents
Executive summary..................................................................................................................2
Introduction..............................................................................................................................3
Accountability for project performance...................................................................................3
Responsibility for project delivery within an organization......................................................5
The project sponsor..................................................................................................................5
The Project Manager................................................................................................................6
Project Team.............................................................................................................................6
Conclusion................................................................................................................................7

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Introduction
Project management can be defined as a variety of tasks as well as activities that make up
specific objectives. These are arranged in such a manner that they must be accomplished in a
given period of time. It was also defined as the characteristics by which activities are classified
as projects centered its complexity, unfamiliarity, uniqueness, the purpose and temporary nature
and life cycle of the activity according to Olivier (2017). For an organization like Mawson zoo to
accomplish their work, the organization should put in place a mechanism necessary for the
measurement of the magnitude of effort, the number of groups as well as the organizations which
have to be coordinated with to accomplish given an undertaking (Lock 2007).
Accountability for project performance
Accountability is one the key factors that are critically significant towards the success of
any project in the organization. The failure to have proper reporting relationships and
transparency in the organization often tantamount to accountability challenges (Joseph 2003). In
the various phases of project management like the implementation phase, it is critically important
for accountability to be effectively upheld in Mawson zoo organization by all stakeholders in the
different organization departments (Young and Kwak 2005).
. Without accountability, it is difficult for team members to be held liable for the
committed mistakes and draft the necessary steps to effectively address them. The role of
uplifting the level of accountability in the project rests in the hands of the project manager
(David, Cleland and Gareis, 2006). The project manager is supposed to be prudent enough and
ensure that accountability is implemented right from the start and end of the project. It should be
noted that whatever takes place in the project is accounted to the project manager; there he needs

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to be effectively empowered for purposes maintaining accountability in an organization such as
Mawson zoo. The other person who plays a fundamental role in upholding accountability in the
organization is the project sponsor (Stellman and Greene 2005).
The project manager is supposed to effective ensure that there is involvement of team
members in the overall project management process (Paul and Dinsmore 2005). This is
effectively done through prudently explaining the impact of each and every assignment towards
the overall project success (Metz & Bartley 2013). Through the above strategies, all employees
can be made accountable in an organization such as Mawson zoo. Important to note is that the
project manager is supposed to effectively provide a deeper overview of the various tasks and
objectives in a project and also at the same time admit there might be some bottlenecks in the
project management process (Wysocki 2013). In Mawson zoo, the project is supposed to be
honest with the various team members, it important for every team member to embrace the
accountability aspect for purposes of effectively overcoming unforeseen challenges and at the
same time prepare for new experiences (Mesly 2017). The project manager is also supposed to
ensure that there effective and constructive utilization of feedback for purposes of holding
project members accountable (Dennis 2007). Feedback can't be a challenge in the organization if
there clear opportunities for measurements and well defined goals and objectives of the project
(Hass 2010). Moreover, it is vital for there to be better personal relationships in order to provide
solutions to challenges (Halle Metz &Beck 2013)
There is a strong personal element in accountability which can effectively be exploited by
project managers to ensure that the overall goals and objectives of the project succeed. Lastly the
aspect of accountability in a project flows across the company levels (Ferriani Frederiksen and

PRINCIPLES OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT 6
Florian 2011). Every individual is supposed in the project is supposed to effectively gain an
understanding of the mission and vision of the project. Where there is focus on the good of the
project by team members and ownership of assignments by employees, accountability is upheld
in the organization. Lastly accountability is not in nay a threat to effectively wield employees by
project managers. Through having clear objectives, conflict resolution techniques, details of the
project, there is no doubt that effective accountability can be upheld by all project members in
the organization (Fixsen, Naoom, Blase,Friedman & Wallace 2005).
Responsibility for project delivery within an organization
The success of any project is dependent on how careful and well planned the project is.
This planning and project thought includes the manner of talent identification as well as
collaboration amongst the members of the project team. It is impossible for a project to move
forward without the through the participation of all the team members. Membership on a given
project team comes with certain accountabilities as well as responsibilities (Velagapudi 2012).
The project sponsor
The sponsor of the project is usually the driver as well as an in-house champion of the
project. These are usually senior management members (Khazanchi 2005). They include those
with a stake in the outcome of the project. They work very closely with the manager of the
project. They legitimize the objectives of the project through engagement in high-level planning
for the project. Some of their major duties include making the key decisions for the business of
the project. They are also tasked with analyzing and approving the project budget. They are also
tasked with ensuring that resources are available for project success. They are also charged with
the communication of goals of the project within the organization.

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The Project Manager
The project manager is somebody tasked with the responsibility of providing leadership
to the project. It is the responsibility of the project manager to ensure that the project is
accomplished within a specified period of time. He also has to ensure that the project is delivered
to the client without any particular flaws. It is his duty to ensure that all the aspects of the project
ranging from initiation to delivery are worked upon (Abdou Yong and Othman 2016). It is the
responsibility of the project manager to ensure that the project is well planned, organized, led
and coordinated. It is also the duty of the manager to ensure that all the project activities are well
monitored and that the project is always on track. It is also his duty to ensure that there is
appropriate communication. This is a critical aspect since it ensures that everyone and every
activity within the team are right on track (Hass 2010).
Project Team
Members of the project management team also have certain duties and are accountable in
various ways. However, the priority for the project team is to perform the tasks as assigned to
them by the project manager. In addition, it is important for the members to ensure that they
communicate to the manager of the project in on the success and progress of the assigned tasks.
They are immediately expected to make communications to leader in the event that there are any
changes. Effective project management is critically significant towards the success of
organizations. The failure to effectively incorporate modern management principles and
practices in an organization can have a strong multiplier effect towards the success of the project,
especially during the project implementation stage (Cynthia and Frank 2006). Mawson zoo
needs to take the concept of accountability as well as responsibility more seriously. The

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organization should develop a culture where everyone within the organization shares the
responsibility for project success (Conforto et al, 2014). The entire team must be engaged. It is
important to note that the organization should retain the ultimate responsibility for project
success or failure (Dinsmore, 2005). The organization, therefore, needs to undertake thorough
training of project managers as well as their teams (Stellman et al, 2005). The training should
include coaching, support as well as mentoring as soon as a given project is undertaken. There
should also be a mechanism established to ensure continuous monitoring and implementation of
the necessary improvements (Mridula, 2012).
Conclusion
As noted, it is critically important that the project takes into consideration all the aspects
of accountability in project management. The organization also need to ensure that the project
manager accounts for the cost of quality, reserve analysis, vendor bid analysis and determination
of the resource cost rates to effectively estimate the cost and draft a proper project Budget. The
organization should also aim at taking advantage of implementation science as well as practice
that can enhance project accountability at all levels. Such an undertaking will help the
organization to move away from highly complex and difficult implementation accountability
frameworks. The organization should focus on the adoption of a more flexible as well as modular
approach to promoting project accountability and responsibility.

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