Get your people to OWN the achievement (the outcomes), and not just the activities.
There’s a great story that highlights the power of your people taking an outcomes and ownership mindset to their work versus an activities mindset.
Many years ago, General Bill Creech took over the TAC – Tactical Air Command in the U.S. Air Force, an organization then of about 170,000 people spread around the world and focused on repairing and maintaining airplanes. When General Creech took over the organization, the organization was very slow at maintaining airplanes.
He understood the power of teamwork, and re-organized the entire organization into teams, and assigned teams airplanes to maintain (to keep flying). He made all the team’s performance visible and drove the teams to share best practices with each other. After, performance for the whole organization increased dramatically.
General Creech went around visiting all the locations, and was always asking his people “how they liked the new way of working” (in the teams). One team member replied with a question back to the general: When is the last time you washed a rental car?
This team member was saying to the General… Before…They were activity-focused – on their own individual activity. Now…They are OUTCOME focused – is the plane flying?
There’s a huge difference when your people are OUTCOMES versus activities focused. With an outcomes focus they are taking OWNERSHIP for the achievement (the results), and not just their activities!
Do you create an environment (your culture) that drives your people to own achievement, and not just the activities within their responsibilities?
When you have a problem with a rental car, do you take a taxi to the local hardware and auto parts stores and then go back and repair your rental car…or do you just give it back? You get to know if your people OWN their job (and the achievement) when they want to try and solve problems on their own before bringing them to you.
Do your people solve problems on their own?
You’ll enjoy your leadership when your people take ownership for achievement.
When people take ownership for behaviors and results…nothing is impossible.
The more orders you give, the less ownership your people take in the outcome.
You have now taken over an organization that had a micro-manager as their previous manager. The manager didn’t trust the people, wanted to be involved in everything, and ended up just telling the people what to do. You have now taken over the organization and don’t know the technology or processes as well as the previous manager. You cannot tell the people what to do.
How would you encourage your people to take more ownership of the outcomes and decide what to do more on their own?
Get your people to OWN the achievement (the Outcomes), and not just the activities.
This is a sample lesson similar to the more than a hundred ones you will find inside Ownership Leader. Buy your subscription today and you will be able to have access to them as long as the hundreds of resources and scenarios and personalised support from Mark Fritz.
