CEO Coaching: Collaboration Without Accountability Is Just a Group Hug

Successful teams—whether on the court or in the boardroom—are great at collaboration. Even the stars pass the ball. Just look at the assist numbers for Caitlin Clark or LeBron James. In basketball, racking up assists is almost as valued as scoring. Almost. It’s easy to spot the ball hogs too—those players who want the glory without the give.

In business, unfortunately, the ball hogs can fly under the radar. We don’t get performance metrics flashing on a scoreboard every 60 seconds. There’s no ESPN breakdown showing who made the smart play and who tanked the quarter. Business gets done behind closed doors, and that opacity lets a lot of people take credit they didn’t earn—or dodge blame they should be shouldering.

But here’s the thing: at some point, someone has to take the shot. And in business, that means delivering results that actually move your P&L. Collaboration without impact is like passing the ball for 24 seconds and forgetting to shoot. It’s just… cardio.

Basketball teams don’t confuse collaboration with success. They track every assist, rebound, turnover, and shot. In business? Too often, we let frauds and fakes run wild because there’s no scoreboard—and no one’s willing to blow the whistle.

Let’s fix that.

Collaboration only works when it’s joined at the hip with accountability. That means visibility. That means consequences. That means measurable goals. It also means some folks get rewarded—and others get benched.

Backslapping and meandering meetings won’t get you to the playoffs. Without real metrics and real accountability, all you’ve got is theater. If no one knows who did what, how do you reward the high-performers—or course-correct the underachievers?

You don’t need Fox Sports to televise your Tuesday morning ops meeting, but you do need transparency. Only when performance is visible can teammates support each other. Only when it’s visible can you hold people accountable—or better yet, give them a high-five for actually hitting the mark.

So, no—collaboration alone won’t win the game. But collaboration plus visibility plus accountability? That’s your game plan.