Ask Coach: How Do I Get My IT Solutions Provider's Employees To Take Ownership Of Responsibilities?

By Hardin Byars, executive coach with HTG Peer Groups

Question: How do I get people to step up and take ownership of responsibilities so I can get out of the middle of things?

Coach: That’s a great question, and worth answering because it will free you up to focus on your highest priorities. However, to provide an enduring solution requires that we focus on the root cause and not just on a symptom. So, let’s dig in.

If employees are not stepping up to take on responsibility and be accountable for their actions, it is most often a result of the culture in which they operate. 

A wise mentor of mine once suggested that “We cultivate what we celebrate.” Accordingly, the first question I would ask is, what does your company culture teach about taking initiative? Said differently, how do you respond when someone takes a calculated risk? How do you respond when they do so … and are wrong? Do we say that mistakes are an acceptable part of the learning process yet our behavior indicates we expect more?

A safe environment for taking appropriate risk is essential for people to feel comfortable accepting personal ownership of new undertakings. We have to be especially careful that our actions don’t inadvertently contradict the values we are trying to promote.

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