Introducing accountability. (Accountability)

Accountability has come to mean a lot more than just reporting on the profitability of an enterprise.

"Accountability." The term generated a wide variety of reactions from my colleagues at the University of Waterloo.

I was discussing with them the opportunity to write a column for CMA magazine. Their reactions ranged from "That's just ROI stuff" to "Boy, that's interesting--what are you going to focus on first?"

My colleagues at the university accurately reflected my experience in firms that I visited. Accountability has come to have different meanings for different people. For some, it has a rigid, narrow definition. For others, who have followed the …