CORPORATE COLUMN : Own up Roles!

The joy of learning, growing, helping others grow and ultimately contributing to the organisation that you work for-engages you, transforms you, grows you and adds self-esteem. You would realise that by taking on true ownership, you provide scope to assimilate joy at work–so why wait further? Embrace ownership, as a companion at work and thereby for life!

One of the banes and therefore challenges that I encounter in my work, are employees lacking ownership of work roles. When disinterest, indifference, frustration, de-motivation and apathy prevails, resultant outcomes aren’t healthy for the individuals, teams, organisations and also in the larger sense, for other stakeholders, including ultimate service recipients and customers. Quite ironically, in my experience such employees exist at all levels, in most organisations that I’ve collaborated. Interesting pattern is, none of them wishes to acknowledge that the problem lies at their doorstep. Therefore instead of moving into externalisation and blame framing others— which happen to be a favourite pastime—take the bull by the horns by internalisation.

While several studies—including the one done by Gallup—pins down the responsibilities on immediate superiors for creating a working culture of ownership, amongst those who report to them (I do by and large subscribe to this evidence).

I for one would also like to take a different stance out here-to turn it around the head and raise pertinent questions to the “Employee, In You!” Here is a sample set of questions:

• How much are you in love with the role/profile?
• What do you love about the job?
• Are there aspects at work that you relish?
• What are determinants at work that give you fulfillment?
• Do you have clarity of purpose of your role?
• Are you connected with the mission of the company?
• Are you aware of the contributions that you are making to larger goals of the organisation?
• Do you derive pride in what you do?
• What value have you added to yourself and others at work, in recent months?
• What is that you have significantly learned on the job, in recent months?
• How passionate are you about all features of the job, including the routine tasks?
• How do you self-recognize yourself, for accomplishments?

If in all authenticity, you are able to reflect and provide responses to the above questions that satisfy your conscience, then obviously you are on an ideal wicket. If not, you ought to amend your story, going forward.

More the gap between current reality and desired levels, with respect to any or all of the above questions, it would clearly indicate how much distant are you from ownership in practice and what is the extra mile, that you need to travel.

Here are a few worthy recommendations that you may wish to consider, to enhance ownership at work:

• Be fully involved and focused in everything that you do
• Observe role models and emulate
• Experiment pilot initiatives and build on the tempo and success
• Proactively take on additional responsibilities voluntarily and not only when they are assigned to you
• Convert half opportunities into full, for growth to happen on the fly
• Upgrade competences by learning the craft for tomorrow and today
• Generate as many learning and teaching moments
• Mentor and coach others informally, even though you may not be in formal or designated roles, to do so
• Connect all that you do to the big picture and derive meaning

When disinterest, indifference, frustration, demotivation and apathy prevails-resultant outcomes aren’t healthy for the individuals, teams, organisations and also in the larger sense, for other stakeholders, including ultimate service recipients and customers

• Set up learning sessions with those who are more proficient than you
• Resolve problems which go beyond the scope of the allocated role, to evolve
• Claim your share of responsibility of failures and setbacks of peers and juniors and offer help
• Welcome feedback from seniors, peers and juniors constantly and act on it
• Lighten your senior’s load
• Radiate love and passion, in every facet of the job and role

Well, the joy of learning, growing, helping others grow and ultimately contributing to the organisation that you work for—engages you, transforms you, grows you and adds self-esteem. You would realise that by taking on true ownership, you provide scope to assimilate joy at work–so why wait further? Embrace ownership, as a companion at work and thereby for life.

Happy Role Taking and Happy Working!

By G Udayakumar