Psychology at Work | Career Success, Leadership, Communication Skills 94. How to Hold People Accountable (Without Them Hating You) with Ashley Herd of The Manager Method
Mar 25, 2026
Ashley Herd, employment lawyer turned HR leader and CEO of Manager Method, shares practical leadership tools. She discusses how to set clear expectations, negotiate priorities up the chain, and make accountability a team conversation. Short, actionable takes on delegation, following up without micromanaging, and tailoring oversight to context.
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Turn Assignments Into Concrete Milestones
- Do convert vague assignments into concrete plans by asking when you'll be at a specific milestone and what will get in the way.
- Ashley Herd recommends asking “Where will you be on Wednesday?” and “What’s going to get in the way?” to surface obstacles early.
Agreement Is Not Accountability
- Insight: Accountability must be managed both down the team and up to your boss; agreement isn't accountability.
- Ashley Herd and Melody Wilding stress negotiating priorities upward so you don't overpromise to your team and create impossible timelines.
Create Team Rules For Handling Competing Priorities
- Do make accountability a team conversation by asking how people want to handle conflicts between priorities.
- Ashley Herd suggests running a team discussion: “How would you tell me if you can't do this?” and codify the approach.
