8
Be Clear
Creating a Culture of Ownership
Peak performance begins with your taking complete responsibility for your life and everything that happens to you.
—Brian Tracy
Accountability. As a manager you may think you are expected to hold employees accountable for their performance. But what does it really mean to be accountable? Will holding employees accountable really make them more effective? Painless performance conversations focus on creating a culture of ownership, which is an employee-driven outcome, rather than holding employees accountable, which is a manager-directed activity. The fourth critical mind-set of a painless performance conversation is to create a culture of ownership by being clear about who is responsible for resolving the issue. Enhanced levels of ownership naturally lead to enhanced levels of accountability in the workplace.
Moving Beyond Accountability
When employees lack accountability, it usually means they are:
Not meeting the performance expectations of the job Not recognizing or admitting their role in mistakes or problems Not demonstrating the organization's core values
