Why Your Managers Keep Handing Problems Back to You (And How to Stop It)

I’ve learned this lesson the hard way. More than once.

Our accounts receivable were climbing.

Not in a good way, like we were growing and thriving. In the bad way, like money wasn’t coming in and clients were about to slip through the cracks.

So, I did what any well-meaning leader would do. I brought it up. I talked to the team about it. Nothing changed.

So, I brought it up again. And again. Still nothing.

At that point, I felt like I was the living example of insanity. I kept doing the same thing expecting a different result.

I’m not the only one who’s been here.

Most practice owners I talk to aren’t lacking metrics. They’ve got dashboards. They review the numbers in meetings. Some even talk about KPIs so often it feels like the culture is data-driven.

But talking about metrics isn’t the same as driving results. And this is where most leaders miss the mark.

There’s no accountability loop.

I watched one owner make a huge shift, not by adding more numbers, but by closing the loop.

Here’s what he did:

• He made sure people responsible actually understood the metric and why it mattered

• He created a rhythm with regular reporting that didn’t disappear when things got busy

• He made it personal. The people responsible could see their own performance, had tools to improve it, and understood what success looked like

The shift was dramatic. Not just in outcomes, but in energy. Ownership went up. Confusion went down. There was a sense of empowerment. They started making decisions in line with the desired outcome.

I did the same thing with accounts receivable.

It became a standing biweekly meeting.

We gave the person responsible a clear process, tools, and decision-making power.

And here’s what really made the difference. We built an actual accountability loop.

An effective accountability loop has five key components:

1. Clarity of expectation – What does success look like?

2. Agreement to own the result – Who is responsible?

3. Measurement and visibility – How are we tracking and seeing progress?

4. Follow-up with consequence – Are we reviewing, redirecting, or rewarding?

5. Adjustment or recognition – Are we learning from misses or celebrating wins?

Until I put these five pieces in place, no amount of dashboard talk changed the result.

So here’s your litmus test:

If you find yourself constantly talking about a metric and yet it never improves...

Ask yourself: Which of the five steps is missing?

I find it’s usually step 3 or 4. Visibility is muddy. Follow-up is weak. The number floats around like an orphan, but no one’s really owning the result.

The good news: Once the loop is built, change happens fast.

The team steps up. You stop repeating yourself.

Start small. Pick one key metric and walk through the five steps. You’ll know it’s working when you stop having the same conversation over and over again.