Employee Mindset Shift: Becoming Business Partners

Based on insights from the ‘Exit Like a Boss Podcast – 21-Step Challenge‘, this blog covers Step 13 – Ownership Mindset.

Imagine the impact on your organization if every team member approached their role with the same dedication and strategic thinking as a business owner. It’s not just a utopian vision – it’s an achievable reality, and employees tend to genuinely enjoy this perspective shift.

The Vision: Employee as a Business Owner

Most employees want to excel in their roles and contribute to a successful company. They yearn to look back at their week and feel a sense of accomplishment, knowing they’ve met targets and delivered outstanding outcomes. However, many employees lack the necessary tools and understanding to think and act like business owners. They were initially hired for their specific expertise – be it in air conditioning maintenance or any other field – not for their entrepreneurial skills.

Equipping Your Team: The Essential Tools

To instill an ownership mindset within your team, it starts with education. Ensuring you have the right people in the right positions is crucial. Next, it’s vital to educate them about the critical factors that drive the success of their role and the business as a whole. This might involve enlightening them about key performance indicators (KPIs), leading indicators, and the financial aspects of your enterprise that impact its success.

In a professional services firm, this education could revolve around billable percentages, time-based billing, and how their individual efforts contribute to the business’s financial health. For an air conditioning maintenance team, it could mean understanding the components that drive profitability and efficiency in their operations.

Tapping into Employee Insights: Maximizing Potential

In addition to education, involving your employees in identifying areas of inefficiency and wastage within the business is invaluable. Employees often possess keen insights into daily operations and customer interactions, making them a rich source of actionable suggestions for improving processes and reducing unnecessary expenses. Creating an environment where employees feel comfortable providing feedback and ideas can lead to remarkable improvements.

Incentivizing Proactive Behavior: The Power of Rewards

Creating a well-structured incentive plan is crucial. This plan should reward the desired behavioral changes that align with the business’s goals. Choosing appropriate KPIs and matching them with suitable incentives is key to encouraging employees to go the extra mile and think proactively about their roles and the business’s success.

Fostering an ownership mindset among your employees involves assembling the right team, providing them with the right education and tools, and incentivizing the right behavior. Employees are more than just the tasks they perform – they are potential partners in growing and improving your business. By empowering them to think and act like business owners, you not only enhance their engagement and satisfaction but also boost your business’s value and set the stage for a successful exit strategy.

This article was originally published on capitaliz.com.

Dr Craig West

Founder & Chairman | Succession Plus

Dr Craig West is a strategic accountant who has over 20 years of experience advising business owners.

With a background as an accountant in practice and two master’s degrees, Craig formed a strong view that the majority of business owners (and often their advisers) were unprepared and unaware of the steps required to prepare for exit. He then designed and documented a unique 21-Step Business Succession and Exit Planning process to assist owners and their advisers in navigating this process.

Craig now acts as a strategic business and financial mentor for mid-market business owners. Craig has written four critically acclaimed books educating business owners on employee incentives, succession planning, asset protection, and exit strategies. Additionally, he has completed doctoral research on Employee Share Ownership Plans (ESOPs) for succession.

Craig is a Member of the Forbes Business Council where he leverages his extensive experience to contribute valuable insights on helping business leaders navigate the complexities of growing and exiting their businesses.

In April 2024, the Exit Planning Institute admitted Craig to the International Exit Planning Circle of Excellence.