The Ownership Gap™ Assessment
A 25-question executive diagnostic that scores your organization 0–100 on how effectively it owns business outcomes across operations, AI, customer experience, and organizational alignment.
Ownership Gap™ Executive Report
- • Overall Ownership Maturity Score (0–100)
- • Maturity tier and executive summary
- • Radar view across 15 categories
- • Top three improvement priorities
- • Personalized frameworks, articles, and case studies
- • Printable / downloadable executive report
Most organizations optimize activities. Very few own outcomes.
Departments hit their KPIs. Dashboards stay green. And yet customer experience, workforce sustainability, and AI initiatives quietly underperform. That space between activities that departments own and outcomes that no one owns is The Ownership Gap™. This assessment measures how wide yours is — and what to do about it.
It is not a quiz. It is not a lead form. It is a structured executive diagnostic used by CEOs, COOs, CIOs, CX, healthcare, workforce, product marketing, and AI leaders to make a fast, honest read on operating maturity before scaling their next major initiative.
- • 25 executive questions across 15 categories
- • Scored 0–100 (higher = stronger ownership)
- • Radar view of category strengths and gaps
- • Personalized recommendations mapped to your weakest categories
- • Printable executive report
- • About 2–4 minutes
Who should take this assessment
Categories measured
Fifteen categories, mapped to the operating disciplines Donna has led across her career.
Scoring & maturity tiers
Ownership Leader
Enterprise ownership is a competitive advantage. Institutionalize governance so it survives leadership change.
Advanced
You are near Ownership Leader — the last gaps typically live in AI governance and cross-functional seams.
Strong Foundation
The foundation is in place. The operating model needs to catch up to the ambition.
Emerging
Fragmentation is materially eroding execution. AI and CX programs likely amplify rather than close seams.
High Risk
Accountability is fractured. AI will scale dysfunction rather than performance without intervention.
Definitions
- The Ownership Gap™
- The distance between activities departments own and outcomes no one owns.
- Operational Intelligence™
- Turning operational signal into cross-functional foresight leaders can act on.
- Outcome ownership
- A named executive who owns a measurable business outcome — not just a budget, headcount, or project.
- The KPI War™
- The pattern where local KPIs are met while enterprise outcomes deteriorate.
- Accelerated Dysfunction™
- What happens when AI and automation are deployed onto fragmented operations.
Frequently asked questions
What is The Ownership Gap™ Assessment?
A free 25-question executive diagnostic that measures how effectively your organization owns business outcomes across leadership, operations, AI strategy, customer experience, healthcare operations, product marketing, and technology adoption. It scores your organization 0–100 and maps you to one of five ownership maturity tiers.
Who should take this assessment?
CEOs, COOs, CIOs, CX leaders, healthcare executives, workforce and operations leaders, product marketing and competitive intelligence leaders, and AI strategy owners. Executive recruiters and board members also use it as a diagnostic lens when evaluating operating maturity.
How long does it take?
About 2–4 minutes for 25 questions. Progress is saved to your device automatically, so you can pause and return.
What will I receive?
An Ownership Gap™ Executive Report with an overall maturity score, category radar, strengths, top three improvement priorities, and personalized recommendations — including articles, frameworks, and case studies mapped to your specific gaps. Printable and downloadable.
How is the score calculated?
Twenty-five questions across fifteen categories. Each answer is worth 0–4 points (No, Partially, Yes). Category scores are normalized to 0–100. Overall score is the sum of question points, capped at 100.
What is The Ownership Gap™?
The Ownership Gap™ is Donna Lightfoot's original operational framework describing the space between activities that departments own and outcomes that no one owns. It is the reason most AI, CX, and workforce initiatives underperform.
Is my data shared?
Your submission is stored securely for executive follow-up and to improve recommendations. It is not sold or shared with third parties.
Ready to see your Ownership Gap™?
25 questions · about 3 minutes · immediate executive report