Flight Planning: The Key to Building a Culture of Healthy Accountability

Have you ever boarded a plane and wondered, “Did they actually plan this flight?” Of course not. We trust there’s a flight plan: a destination, a route, a well-trained crew, and a system that keeps us safe and on time. But imagine if half of all flights took off without one. Just fuel in the tank and a vague sense of where they’re headed. That would be chaos, and none of us would fly. 

And yet… that’s exactly how a surprising number of corporate projects take off every day. 

Since launching the Healthy Accountability research, we’ve facilitated planning workshops across industries. Over and over, teams are saying what’s missing: clear, coordinated planning on the front end. Roughly half of workshop participants admit they lack a reliable model for starting projects well.  

The definition of healthy accountability: 

• When people win together in an environment where individuals take personal ownership, and embrace the support of the team, to deliver quality work on time.  

The term I’ve started using is “Flight Planning”, a simple and memorable way to describe what should happen before the work begins. 

One Pilot Lands the Plane 

Stephen Covey made famous the idea that airplanes are off course 90% of the time, and that constant course correction is what keeps the plane on track. But here’s the kicker: course correction only works if you have a flight plan to begin with. You can’t land a plane if you haven’t agreed where and when it’s supposed to land.  

You may have heard me say this phrase, or read it on this blog: “Only one pilot lands the plane”. Not five. Not a committee.  Some things have to be shared, like values, but not accountability. Every successful project needs one person clearly accountable, with a plan, and checkpoints to steer the team back on course when things inevitably drift. 

Planning Isn’t a Luxury, It Is the Work 

Throughout the research, we frequently heard about how projects began with enthusiastic meetings. But no one stepped in to create a plan, and then, when things veered off course, people got upset. And felt threatened. 

Here are the basic items in a flight plan: 

The Destination = Agreeing on what success looks like, by when. And who decides when the work is done—Customer  

The Weather = The forces of momentum affecting the work: inside and outside of your organization—both positives to leverage and negatives to overcome 

The Route = The organizational departments, internal and external partners, and specific people who need to be involved—in what sequence 

The Plane = The delivery channels—technology and people—required to meet Customer expectations 

The Fuel = What resources of time, energy and money are required—including contingencies when things go off course 

The Crew = Who is the Pilot, who is the co-pilot, and what are the roles of everyone else involved in the plan

The Passengers = The people directly and indirectly impacted, whose satisfaction needs to be monitored 

The Monitoring Systems = The experts who will inspect the work at timely intervals to ensure effective mid-course corrections  

The Landing Sequence = The consultation with the customer, to ensure quality work is delivered within the conditions and constraints of the deadline 

The Post Flight Evaluation = Project debrief: In reviewing the work, what will we Start, Stop, and Continue to be better next time

If you are interested in healthy accountability, first build a culture where planning is considered part of the work. When people are involved in building and monitoring the plan, they will know how they fit and why they matter, which is the key to personal ownership. That’s when accountability starts to become healthy.