Ownership is a Two-way Street

Ownership at work isn’t just about who owns the organization or the top dog who delegates all duties and responsibilities.

Ownership is about owning up to responsibilities, expectations, and actions that both leaders and employees have to take to create a culture of accountability. However, only 21% of employees feel that their performance metrics are within their control.

When employees do not feel in power, they experience low engagement, burnout, and fatigue as they also do not get to hold others accountable.

As a result, internal conflicts and slow progress are bound to happen. This becomes a common problem as organizations begin to grow or a new employee joins an already established business.

However, Netflix being a famous and relatively large organization, is doing things differently.

“Pick up the trash” is the motto that employees follow at Netflix. Instead of forcing anyone to take accountability, they instill the value as it is predominantly set in the company.

Not only do employees take responsibility because of this motto, but they also experience greater freedom as they exhibit self-discipline.

There’s a lot to gain from setting up an accountable work culture where people take ownership of their actions. Leaders are far between and few who have to micromanage and employees are too many who stay motivated and engaged to produce quality work.

The question is, how can an ownership mindset be instilled in the workplace? ?

Provide authority

Only delegating responsibilities isn’t enough when you’re looking to increase accountability and ownership. Providing employees with the authority to take certain decisions yields better results.

All employees should have decision-making rights for themselves, which means that they’d have to own up to the consequences of it.

Employees take work and their decisions a lot more seriously when they have a sense of authority attached to their actions.

Encourage with reward

Acknowledgment is essential to rewarding the desired behavior. Most people do not own up to their actions and decisions due to the fear of punishment.

Instead of punishing or negatively impacting the employees, spot and reward accountable behavior through appreciation and recognition.

Focus on the result

Allowing employees to take ownership of the outcomes helps them understand how they can improve the quality of work.

Since they’re not just focusing on meeting deadlines, they get to redirect their energy and creativity to the quality of their work.

Do not disregard lack of accountability

When organizations disregard or overlook those who do not take ownership of their actions, they make an unfair judgment. Others can feel disrespected which can cause internal conflict.

It is crucial for organizations to hold everyone accountable regardless of their titles.

Disregard metrics

Instead of focusing on metrics that are vague and alien to employees, allowing them to take ownership helps employees set their own goals and standards.

Once they set their standards, recognition and accountability help them surpass their expectations and improve the quality of their work.

Moreover, once employees receive recognition, they feel motivated to achieve more success at work.

It’s a win-win situation

Ownership in the workplace can only lead to win-win situations. Most interpersonal conflicts occur due to blame games and taking credit for the work done by other colleagues.

Leaders are also more prone to losing the trust of their employees if they do not take ownership of their actions.

Once both leaders and employees take individual ownership, they foster a culture that never blames others or ignores their inaction.