Once authority has been delegated and responsibility accepted, one cannot deny..................

Accountability

The correct answer is option 2- accountability.

Accountability empowers an employee to act for his superior but the superior would still be accountable for the outcome. Accountability implies being answerable for the final outcome. Once authority has been delegated and responsibility accepted, one cannot deny accountability. It cannot be delegated and flows upwards, i.e., a subordinate will be accountable to a superior for satisfactory performance of work.