Ray Klaassens at INTOS on ownership: the key to human and team growth

What is ownership?

Ownership is a term we often hear but what does it really mean? Ownership goes beyond taking responsibility for tasks. It is about the choices you make, even under pressure or in difficult circumstances. It is about committing yourself to a bigger picture, your colleagues and the team, even when circumstances come under pressure.

As Ray explains: “Ownership is the willingness, even when things are tough, to still put energy into an assignment or a buddy next to you.” It is a choice you make every day, no matter what challenges come your way.

Ownership in three questions

Over three intensive hours, we explored this essential topic with Ray using three key questions:

💡 What does ownership mean to yourself?
💡 How do you take this into your team every day?
💡 What does ownership mean to us as INTOS and how do we all contribute to this?

Ray shared recognisable real-life examples about cooperation and connection just when the going gets tough, based on his experiences with intensive training programmes such as Kamp van Due to the valuable questions and open attitude of all INTOSSERS, it became a session full of insights and real conversations with concrete situations from our daily reality.

The power of difficult moments

One of the most valuable insights: difficult moments are not only challenges but also opportunities.

“The harder it gets, the more opportunities there are for growth,” Ray said. “It is not only your character that is shaped in difficulty, also the resilience of the whole team.”

The moment when things go too fast, communication falters or things almost threaten to go wrong is precisely the moment when we can learn and become stronger - individually and as a team.

Discussing: The basis of ownership

A recurring theme during the session was the importance of discussability. Whether it is changing priorities, external factors influencing urgency, or ‘flaws’ in the system, it kept coming back that starting the conversation is essential.

“Say what you do and do what you say”, a simple principle with great impact. Because when plans change or priorities shift, explanation is crucial. Otherwise, the team loses confidence and motivation.

Ray emphasised: “If you say what you do and do what you say, you understand each other much faster. That applies to all layers and to everyone in the organisation.”

Character building in reality

Ray makes an important distinction between concrete performance and character. Performance is measurable: what someone can do, knows or delivers. Character, on the other hand, is less tangible. It is about who someone is, how reliable and loyal someone is and whether you can build on someone.

Character is not easily expressed in numbers but it is crucial for true ownership. It determines how someone acts in difficult situations and how they contribute to the team.

Stronger together

At INTOS, we believe that personal leadership starts with yourself and that growth gains real power only when you do it together. This session with Ray Klaassens showed us again how valuable it is to stop, reflect and engage with each other.

Ray's advice to also connect with each other outside the work context such as at a team activity, helping out at a company party decorating or other moments that might seem uncomfortable, this is golden. “However small, that's where things happen that make you stronger as a company.”

An inspiring afternoon

With his stories, practical insights and direct approach, Ray managed to inspire and make the whole group think. The entertainment level was high, but the inspirational level was even much higher. We look back on a valuable afternoon that helps us to not only understand ownership, but above all to live it, individually and company-wide.

At INTOS, we are constantly working on our development as an organisation and as professionals. This session with Ray Klaassens is part of our INTOS 4.0 trajectory, in which together we are building an even stronger, more beautiful and better-structured company where growth is central.