Learn how to fix the Entitlement Culture in your Workplace

In today’s business world, entitlement culture can creep into organisations almost unnoticed, but the effects are very visible once it takes hold. Morale drops, productivity dips, and profitability is at risk. This is particularly true in fast-growing companies and startups, where speed and growth often take priority over structure and consistency. Without strong leadership, clear expectations, and accountability, employees can begin to expect promotions, perks or flexibility without demonstrating the effort, skills or results to match.

The good news is that entitlement culture is not permanent. With the right approach, leaders can shift the culture away from entitlement and towards accountability, growth and high performance. This article explores why entitlement culture develops, what the risks are, and most importantly, what CEOs and senior leaders can do to fix it.

What is Entitlement Culture?

Entitlement culture is a mindset where people believe they deserve certain benefits, rewards or recognition without necessarily earning them.

It can look like:

• Expecting promotion without delivering results

• Refusing feedback or taking it as criticism instead of development

• Complaining about workload without offering solutions

• Demanding perks without contributing to wider company goals

While entitlement can show up in individuals, it’s often a reflection of culture and leadership. If leaders don’t set clear standards, communicate fairly, or role model accountability, these behaviours spread.

Why Does Entitlement Culture Develop?

There are several reasons why entitlement culture emerges, and often they combine:

1. Rapid growth without structure
When companies scale quickly, roles blur and communication gets messy. Staff can form unrealistic expectations if responsibilities aren’t made clear.

2. Rewards not aligned with performance
If recognition and perks are handed out inconsistently, or based on favouritism or tenure, people learn they don’t need to perform to be rewarded.

3. Lack of transparency from leaders
When messages are inconsistent, or decisions are made without explanation, it creates confusion. That confusion often fuels entitlement.

4. Cultural or past experiences
Employees may carry expectations from past roles or societal norms that don’t fit your business model. If left unchallenged, they can shape workplace behaviours.

The Impact of Entitlement on the Business

Entitlement culture doesn’t just cause grumbles. It creates measurable risks to performance and results:

• Productivity falls when staff focus more on what they feel owed than on their responsibilities

• Morale drops when hardworking team members see others rewarded without merit

• Innovation slows down when personal gain is prioritised over collaboration

• Top performers leave, frustrated by the lack of fairness or clarity

Put simply: entitlement weakens teams, while accountability and strong leadership create high performance.

Five Ways to Fix an Entitlement Culture

Here are five real ways to fix an entitlement culture:

1. Set Clear Standards and Hold People to Them

Entitlement thrives in ambiguity. If employees don’t know what’s expected, they’ll set their own benchmarks — often lower.

• Write down what “good” looks like for each role.

• Make performance metrics transparent.

• Follow through: praise when standards are met, and act when they’re not.

👉 Real impact: People know the rules of the game. No more moving goalposts, no more excuses.

2. Reward Contribution, Not Just Presence

One of the biggest causes of entitlement is when people get the same perks, pay rises, or recognition regardless of performance.

• Link promotions, bonuses, and recognition to clear results and behaviours.

• Celebrate wins tied to team/company goals, not just effort.

• Remove blanket perks that everyone expects without accountability.

👉 Real impact: The team sees that hard work and results pay off, not entitlement.

3. Normalise Feedback as Growth, Not Criticism

Entitlement cultures are defensive cultures. If feedback is seen as personal attack, nobody improves.

• Train managers to give frequent, specific, constructive feedback.

• Encourage employees to ask for feedback proactively.

• Create a culture where feedback is about development, not punishment.

👉 Real impact: Instead of “I deserve more,” people start saying, “How can I grow?”

4. Lead by Example (No Double Standards)

If leaders cut corners, show favouritism, or avoid accountability, staff will too. Entitlement starts at the top.

• Be transparent in decision-making.

• Admit mistakes and show how you’re fixing them.

• Treat people consistently, regardless of who they are.

👉 Real impact: Leaders model accountability, and employees follow suit.

5. Shift the Focus from “What Do I Get?” to “How Can I Contribute?”

The ultimate cure for entitlement is empowerment. When people see they’re growing and making a difference, they stop chasing unearned rewards.

• Invest in development (training, mentoring, stretch projects).

• Show how each role contributes to the bigger mission.

• Involve people in problem-solving rather than just serving up solutions.

👉 Real impact: Teams move from entitlement to ownership, building a high-performance culture.

How To Get Started Driving Culture Change

Fixing entitlement culture is not about clamping down on individuals; it’s about reshaping the environment. That requires a deliberate cultural shift.

Step 1: Assess the culture

Gather honest feedback through surveys, interviews or focus groups. Identify where entitlement shows up most strongly.

Step 2: Create & implement an action plan

Set out clear priorities such as redesigning reward systems, refreshing policies, or training managers. Assign accountability and timelines. Use the steps suggested above. Explain to employees why changes are happening, what benefits they’ll bring, and how they’ll be rolled out. Keep messages regular and consistent.

Step 3: Monitor progress

Track key metrics such as employee engagement, performance scores, sickness absence, or retention. Adjust your approach if needed.

From Entitlement to Empowerment

Entitlement culture is damaging, but it isn’t permanent. With strong leadership, clarity and consistent behaviours, organisations can shift the focus from entitlement to accountability.

The aim is to build a culture where people don’t ask, “What am I owed?” but instead, “How can I contribute?” That’s the hallmark of a high-performing, resilient and sustainable organisation.

For CEOs and senior leaders, the challenge is to show the way. By setting expectations, aligning rewards with results, giving regular feedback, modelling accountability, and investing in development, you can transform entitlement into empowerment.

The result is a team that is more engaged, more productive, and more innovative and a business that is stronger and better prepared for the future.