Are You Leading Your Team or just getting in their way?

30 June 2026

One of the things I hear managers say most often is, "My people just don't take ownership."

I understand the frustration. But I also think we've been asking the wrong question.

 

Perhaps the issue isn't that people won't take ownership.

Perhaps it's that ownership isn't available to take.

 

Think about your own morning. Before you arrived at work, you probably made dozens of decisions without even thinking about them.

 

You got yourself ready for the day. Perhaps you organised breakfast, got the children moving, found a missing school shoe, answered a dozen questions and somehow managed to get everyone out of the house on time.

 

Nobody supervised you.

Nobody told you what to do next.

Nobody measured your performance.

 

You simply did what needed to be done.

 

Why? Because the outcome belonged to you. You owned it.

 

Now think about what often happens when that same capable person walks into work.

 

Someone else has already decided what success looks like.

Someone else decides how the work must be done.

Someone else makes the important decisions.

Someone else solves the difficult problems.

Someone else checks every step along the way.

 

In other words, someone else owns the outcome.

 

The employee simply helps move the work along.

 

Then we wonder why people don't think like owners.

 

Ownership Can't Be Demanded

 

Managers often ask people to "take ownership." But ownership isn't something you can demand. It has to be available.

 

If I retain every meaningful decision, every important conversation and every difficult problem because I want to stay in control, then I still own the work. And my team doesn't.

 

People don't take ownership unless there is ownership to take!

 

So What Does a Good Manager Do?

 

Good managers don't abdicate responsibility.

 

They create ownership.

They are clear about the outcome that needs to be achieved.

They provide the resources and support their people need.

They coach when necessary.

They remove obstacles.

 

But they resist the temptation to take the work back every time something becomes uncomfortable. And that's often the hardest part of management.

 

Why This Matters

 

Every business exists to achieve results.

 

Every activity should contribute in one of three ways:

 

• Make money.

• Save money.

• Manage risk.

 

Managers cannot achieve those outcomes on their own.

 

They achieve them through people. And people contribute their very best when they own the outcome, not merely the task.

 

The next time you find yourself saying,

 

"My people don't take ownership,"  ..pause for a moment and ask a different question:

 

"Have I actually made ownership available?"

 

The answer may tell you far more about your team than you expected.

 

And perhaps even more about your management.

 

If you would like to talk to me, please call me on +27 82 465 5481 or email me on mark@meritbusiness.com

 

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