"It's a management problem..." "It's a big company problem..." No! It's YOUR problem if you are starting a company, building a brand, or serving customers.

"It's a management problem..." "It's a big company problem..." No! It's YOUR problem if you are starting a company, building a brand, or serving customers. It's not necessary a big company issue - it's a "mentality". I've worked for a Fortune 500 where employees were too proud of the culture to ever "pass the buck" and a startup where employees had a "big company" mentality and thought it was okay to leave features broken for customers for months (to the ultimate peril of the company). If you're a founder coming out of a big company beware of this potential blind spot. Good company culture, good brand, happy employees - those things aren't accidental or simply the result of a lot of money and freedom, you have to cultivate it - and brand destruction or toxic culture starts with the little things, like saying, "I just work here". In my opinion, employees who contribute nothing more than "punching the clock" should be the best at towing the company line, because let's face it - if you just punch the clock your are easily replaced, especially in today's job market.