Purpose: Management is normally held accountable to stakeholders because it enters into long-term relationships with them. However, managers which are planning on departing the organisation can take advantage of stakeholders’ trust for their own personal benefit. This paper examines how accountability mechanisms can preserve organisation-stakeholder relationships in the face of high management turnover.

Design/methodology/approach: A case study of student-managed non-profit organisation in which the management team is replaced annually. Representatives of all (internal and external) stakeholders are interviewed.

Findings: While stakeholders and management work towards mutually agreed upon objectives, at times they also work against each other and pursue their own self-interests. The organisation has, however, been able to survive due to the introduction of accountability mechanisms.

Originality/value: Drawing on stakeholder-agency theory, this paper shows how accountability mechanisms can preserve organisational memory and organisation-stakeholder relationships.