Accountability
Accountability is a sense that a person or an organization will be evaluated on how they performed or how they behaved concerning something for which they are responsible. If I am giving homework as a student, my teacher will make me give account on how I perform on the homework. If given a task at a workplace, I am accountable on how well I am giving a task at a workplace. If I am given some money to spend, I am accountable of how well I spend the money. Accountability has to do with responsibility. It is essentially about how well I handle something which I am responsible.
Reliability
Reliability is used to express how much you can depend on a person, organization, or a system. If I have a friend that is consistently good and helpful to me, I can say he or she is reliable. A friend that is good today, but bad tomorrow is not reliable. If my power company (organization) is always providing me with electricity, then I can say they have a high reliability. A power company (organization) that gives electricity today, but the light goes off for the next couple of days is not reliable. A mass transportation system (e.g., bus service) that is always operational is dependable or reliable. However, a bus service that serves today that works today, but does not work tomorrow is not reliable. If I am consistent with my character as a person, then I am reliable, otherwise, I am not.
The Difference
The difference between accountability and reliability is that accountability is the state of being:
- accountable for my actions
- responsible for my actions
- answerable for my actions
On the other hand, reliability is about:
- showing consistent character
- that the ability that one can be depended on always
