"Hold everybody accountable? Ridiculous!"

W. Edwards Deming’s assertion, "Hold everybody accountable? Ridiculous!" strikes at the heart of traditional management practices that emphasize individual accountability as a route to organizational success. Deming, a pioneer of quality management and statistical process control, often challenged the prevalent belief that performance problems stem chiefly from the shortcomings or lack of effort of individual employees. His perspective directs attention away from blaming people and instead toward scrutinizing the systems, processes, and structures that guide their actions.

The expectation to hold all individuals equally accountable assumes a level playing field, that everyone works under identical conditions, resources, knowledge, and support. Deming understood that this is rarely the case. Variations in workflow, managerial support, training, and even uncontrollable external factors deeply influence individual outcomes. When accountability frameworks fail to accommodate these systemic influences, they create frustration, fear, and cynicism among workers, undermining genuine improvement efforts and stifling innovation.

Rather than targeting individuals, Deming advocated for the analysis and redesign of the system as the most effective path to improvement. He estimated that the majority of performance issues, often up to 94%, have their origins in system flaws rather than personal failings. When management focuses on "holding everyone accountable", it distracts from exploring how work flows, how processes can be optimized, and how collective understanding can be deepened. Such practices can foster a culture of surveillance and blame, rather than learning and trust.

Deming’s stance encourages leaders to reassess their priorities: investing in better systems, engaging workers collaboratively in problem-solving, and acknowledging uncertainty intrinsic to complex organizations. Accountability, reframed in this light, is not about catching individuals in error, but about growing organizations where people have the best possible chance to succeed within a reliable, continually improving system.