Battlecard: I Thought They Owned It
Respond constructively when someone says they thought another person owned the work.
A teammate says they thought another team owned the missed task. Use this when the work has slipped and the room is close to blaming instead of clarifying. I thought they owned it. I thought Support owned that. I can see how the role was ambiguous. Let's fix the ownership now: I am Accountable for customer closure, Support is Responsible for the macro update by 3:00, Product is Consulted if the workaround changes, and I will update the handoff template today. The response lowers defensiveness, uses RACI to clarify roles, and ends with a commitment to prevent repeat ambiguity. It…
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