It is a common discussion by leaders in employee owned companies that employee owners do not appreciate what ownership gives them, they do not act like owners, and they will never understand employee ownership.
In the book Outliers, Malcom Gladwell suggests that to gain perfection in an activity an individual must spend 10,000 hours practicing it. He gives examples of Bill Gates, Tiger Woods, and others, where the data supports this thinking. Mr. Gladwell clearly articulates this is not the only factor that leads to perfection of an activity, but it is an important one.
Taking this thought, and applying it to the scenario stated earlier about employee ownership, it makes sense why leaders get frustrated. How many employees or leaders have spent 10,000 hours practicing being an owner in a company? Here in lies a fundamental issue that many leaders and employee owners overlook.
Every company has it's own set of expected behaviors and attitudes that surround employee ownership. The issue is that when, where, and how can 10,000 hours of practice occur in an organization? The key is to start today. Practice through training, company meetings, sharing financial information, and defining the behaviors that are expected from all employee owners. Do not let excuses get in the way. Start small - 10 hours, then 100, a 1000, and if and when 10,000 hours of practice occurs...Incredible success will follow!
Flickr photo by einmaleins.olympia
