A Culture of Ownership

I have a client who is an extremely large freight company with an amazing delivery-on-time ratio of over 99%. But, it is not just getting the merchandise there on time that makes them so good, it’s getting it there on-time, and undamaged. They concentrate on getting their employees to think like an owner, to try and recognize problems and take ownership of the problem rather than leave the problem for someone else to fix. (In most cases, fixing a problem after-the-fact, costs more and results in a seriously upset customer.)

Killing Ideas Can Hurt Your Future

So, you have called a meeting and there they all sit; Bias, opinionated, have favorites, scared of senior management, narrow-minded, open-minded, power seekers, egotists, young, old, seasoned veterans, inexperienced rookies, risk takers, and others who always play it safe. Then someone makes a suggestion and the games begin. The idea doesn’t stand on its own. Oh, no … quite the contrary. Unfortunately, most people “size up” the person who shared it. The definition of “sizing up” is, to examine something or someone carefully and decide what you think about it, him, or her.”

Culture Eats Strategy for Breakfast

Excessive advertising is the price companies have to pay when they lack an exceptional corporate culture. “Corporate Culture” is the distinctive fundamental character or spirit of an organization that influences the general behavior of employees. Most of us have heard the statement, “As you treat you employees, they will in turn treat your customers the same way.” For some companies, that should be a chilling, scary, disastrous statement.