As a business owner, it is important to create a culture for your business and nurture that culture each and every day you are in operation. Your employees will work and live in that culture and become a full part of the living entity that is your business. It's vital to decide what type of culture will fit your business best and foster the growth of your culture each and every day you are in operation.
Accountability Culture
Traditional businesses tend to create and foster a culture of accountability and, on the surface, this may seem like a good idea. Each person is accountable and responsible for their own actions. No matter what role an employee plays, they are part of this type of culture, creating a sense of equality among employees.
However, in practice this rarely lives up to expectations. An accountability culture becomes much more authority driven in practice with employees often operating in fear of making a mistake. This fear can lead to your workers playing it safe and not taking chances or sharing their next big idea.
Culture Of Ownership
To combat this, why not consider instead a culture of ownership of the business? In contrast to the authority driven accountability culture, ownership hands the responsibility to the employee. You move your business from a "You will" attitude to an "I will" type of attitude. This type of culture fosters the responsibility and accountability you were hoping for in the first place while it empowers employees to go out of their way for your business and demonstrates to them that you trust and have complete faith in them.
Ownership versus Accountability
Employees operating in a culture of ownership begin to feel a sense of pride for the business and can even become some of the best marketers of your brand as they go about their daily lives outside of the business environment. They feel empowered by their employer to take control of their work as they feel they are working to accomplish something greater than themselves.
In an accountability culture, workers tend to hide problems and not ask for help because by doing so they would be admitting they can't do the task at hand and they are afraid of getting into trouble for admitting they need help. However, in an ownership culture, workers feel they are free to admit when they need help and will seek out other problems to solve while they work.
Move in a Direction of Ownership
It can be difficult for traditional managers and owners to let go of the micromanaging and allow a culture of ownership to grow. But there are things you can do as an owner to encourage this type of growth and change.
1. Communication
It is important in any ownership culture to maintain good communication at all times. Admit to your employees that you don't know how to do something and need their help. Tell them what you want to accomplish and follow that by asking them what they need to accomplish it. Practice this style of openness each and every day and you will breed an environment of collaborative thought and work and gain the trust of your employees.
2. Make the right hire.
Going forward, always try to hire employees that you believe will thrive under in ownership culture. Not everyone thrives in this type of culture and it is important to make the right hire to foster a culture of ownership in your business.
Moving your business into a direction of ownership is one of the best ways you can improve the working conditions of your business. Empowering your employees with ownership is one of the best ways you can nurture your business and create a positive working environment that is both fun and productive, allowing you to grow your business faster than you could possibly imagine.
