The Definition of Employee Empowerment

"Employee empowerment" is a term that is used to express the ways in which nonmanagerial staff members can make decisions without consulting their bosses or
managers. These decisions can be small or large, depending upon the degree of
power with which the company wishes to invest employees. Employee
empowerment can begin with training and converting a whole company to an
empowerment model. Conversely, it might merely mean giving employees the
ability to make some decisions on their own.
Another definition
Employee empowerment is creating a working environment where an
employee is allowed to make his own decisions in specific work-related
situations. The decisions can be big or small, and the size and effect of the
decision is up to the employer. The logic behind employee empowerment is
to increase the employee's responsibility, to build employee morale and to
improve the quality of your employee's work life. Ideally, when an employee
feels vested in an organisation, he will be more productive, loyal and more
confident.
Importance of Employee Empowerment in Organizations
Organizations today understand that in a knowledge-driven economy, speed in taking decisions,
efficient methods of functioning and innovative ideas help them gain an edge over competitors. It
is with this view point that organizations are adopting a strategy of employee empowerment. The
important factors that drive organizations towards employee empowerment are to:

Encourage creativity and innovation: By empowering their employees, organizations

value their contribution. This encourages employees to work towards meeting
organizational objectives. They develop creative and innovative ideas that might improve
the systems and processes. Employee initiation and creativity helps organizations to
innovate and improve their processes.

Increase productivity: It is true that empowered employees are more productive as they
are free to make decisions, act quickly without wasting time and work as a part of selfmanaged teams. Naturally, a team of empowered employees working collectively are
more successful in improving the productivity of the organization.

Align goals of employees with those of the organization: Empowerment provides

employees a clearer view of organizational goals and strategies. They understand their

role and value the autonomy given to them. Employees are satisfied and display
enthusiasm towards their jobs and align their goals with organizational goals.

Help in employee retention: Being part of an organization, where employees are given
autonomy in the way they work and function, is fulfilling. It also helps them in
developing their skills and knowledge as they need to shoulder increased responsibilities.
Employees see value in being part of such an organization and remain loyal towards it.

Organizations need employees who take initiatives and function as partners working towards
achieving organizational goals. Employee empowerment is one of the ways for organizations to
ensure employee engagement and commitment towards meeting mutual objectives.
https://www.commlabuniversity.com/blog/importance-employee-empowerment/

Importance of Empowerment in Organizational Environment

Empowered Organizations Can Beat the Competition to Success
Empowerment, which passes on the responsibility and the autonomy of the work to
the employees, can be a major contributor to the successful performance within an
organization. This allows employees to make decisions, solve problems, and be
accountable for the work they do. Such autonomy and ability make decisions
create an empowered environment in which motivation can be nurtured. This is
now becoming an increasingly popular management focus as empowered
employees are seen as a major asset to a business that can place them ahead the
competition.
Results of Empowerment
Empowerment of employees results in increased initiative, involvement,
enthusiasm & innovation. From large corporate giants to a small business
operation, this concept holds true. This is because; empowerment caters to an
important human need which is common to any employee, regardless of work
setting. This is the need for recognition and self actualization. In some people, this
quality is high while you may find other with a limited level of these needs.
Sometimes, the need may exist yet, overshadowed by other more pressing needs or
hides deliberately to suit organizational culture. Yet, it is important for managers to
realize that each employee can be given responsibility, decision making rights, and
resource allocation powers so that they can complete an assigned task successfully

with minimum management intervention. This in fact creates mini managers

who are self directed across all levels of the business.
Empower and Relieve yourself
When a manager or a leader trains themselves to empower their down line, it also
benefits the manager or the leader as well. Employee empowerment changes the
managers mind-set & leaves them more time for company-wide improvements.
The leader has more time and thinking time to engage in overall visionary
strategizing than be embroiled in day to day fire fighting within functional
activities. This helps organizations a better and stronger growth potential.
What makes Business Empowerment a success?
Job satisfaction and a sense of meaning in the work you do can be the most
powerful reward the employee can get.
Motivates employees to put more effort to achieve higher wages or performance
bonuses given.
Task-specific knowledge is the best way to identify and solve problems to
increase productivity through better decisions taken by persons on the job rather
than the management.
Encouraging & getting the employees involved to play an active role in their
work place gives them the feeling of responsibility to perform better. (Sense of
belonging in the work place).
Empowerment also points towards a career development path, motivating people
to work harder and perform as managers, even if they are currently not holding
managerial positions.
By delegating authority to run the day to day business to those who are involved
in the task, people become energized and interested to forge ahead.
Minimizing the layers of supervision, reducing costs and creating agility within a
business that is so important in todays fast phased global environment.
When an organization taps on to these benefits from empowerment, the managers
must make sure to reward and recognize the achievements of those who are
empowered. This boost the morale of the work force further while encouraging
those who are lagging behind to seize the opportunities to be empowered.

http://businessempowering.wordpress.com/2011/04/06/importance-ofempowerment-in-organisational-environment/
A Culture of Empowerment
An organization's culture is a complex thing, not easily described. Yet it is upon
this foundation that empowerment is built. The organizations which successfully
implement employee empowerment will have certain values at their core from
which the process of empowerment can flow. Among these values are respect and
appreciation for individuals and the value they bring to the organization. Values
alone do not make up an organization's culture, and respect for individuals is only
one of the outward signs of an empowered culture.
Edgar Schein defines organizational culture as,
a pattern of basic assumptionsinvented, discovered, or developed by a given
group as it learns to cope with its problems of external adaptation and internal
integrationthat has worked well enough to be considered valid and, therefore, to
be taught to new members as the correct way to perceive, think, and feel in relation
to those problems
Employee Empowerment Culture:
According to James R. Maxwell's 2005 "Journal of Organizational Culture,
Communications and Conflict" article, "an organization must offer education
programs, let employees be involved with decision-making and have adequate
reward systems" to foster an employee empowerment culture. In other words,
organizations with employee empowerment cultures recognize the importance of
their workers and pride themselves on seeing employees and their contributions as
important business assets.
Benefits:
By empowering employees to speak up and be heard, Maxwell notes that
companies are "using their greatest asset to its highest potential and, in return, are
becoming more competitive in the emerging global economy." In companies
without employee empowerment cultures, it may be inappropriate for employees to
offer feedback or suggestions to management. This means that companies never
hear what might be good, company-advancing suggestions from those who are
often closest to the customers, clients or problems--the employees.

Drawbacks :
Installing an employee empowerment culture in a company that currently has a
strict, top-down management system can be challenging. It requires assessment of
the current culture, committees or task forces devoted to culture change, new
training, and, above all, managers who'll embrace empowering employees. When
companies choose an employee empowerment structure, they also change their
decision-making processes, so employees and management alike must get used to
the new structure. Further, the "Management Skills Advisor" website notes that an
employee empowerment culture is based on trust--and it takes time for trust to
develop--so organizations in which there is little trust may face even more
challenges. Finally, when employees can make their own decisions with more
freedom, there's always the chance that something will go wrong that may have
been prevented with stricter management.
Implementation :
According to Carolee Colter of "Cooperative Grocer," you can't change workplace
culture without first assessing your current culture. Colter suggests using employee
survey data alongside more measurable data on issues such as turnover and
productivity. You can use this report not only to determine area in your current
workplace culture that must be fixed, but also as a benchmark for the new data you
collect when you've successfully changed your workplace's culture. Next, work
with management to implement employee feedback mechanisms, such as
suggestion boxes, employee awards and talk-back sessions. Finally, develop
training to model ways in which employees can effectively use their ideas to make
a difference in the organization. For instance, you might include training in which
each employee discusses an interest or hobby and how that hobby can help him
make recommendations for the company.
Assessment :
While it's important to assess your culture before you attempt to change it, you
must also periodically assess your definition of "employee empowerment culture"
to ensure that your company's actions are really empowering employees. For
example, you may want to periodically ask employees to complete anonymous
surveys that detail how they feel their opinions are received at work. Managers
might also be challenged to describe ways in which they've involved employees in
their decision making. After you collect this data, you can compare it to your
"before" data, as well as analyze it for any issues that still need to be challenged.

The Advantages of Employee Empowerment

Empowered employees have an increased sense of ownership in their organization.

Happier than employees in other companies, empowered personnel tend to be more
proactive and willing to embrace change. A team full of workers feeling in control
of their destinies is far more enthusiastic about their roles and passionate about
achievement, which is all good for the company.
Improved Communication
Employees dislike feeling as though they're the last to know about important
changes within their organizations. To combat this, managers must be willing and
able to communicate within the bounds of appropriateness with staff, keeping them
honestly informed about their jobs and environment. Management must also be
receptive to employee input, giving them a sense of control over important
financial and strategic decisions. Once this culture of communication successfully
takes root, employees will feel more comfortable sharing their ideas with
management, improving not only workplace morale, but work processes as well. In
turn, employees become more receptive to positive coaching from managers.
Reduced Turnover
It's a fairly well understood maxim in the business world that people tend to leave
their bosses, not their companies. Key reasons for this are micromanagers who
focus on process over results. This trait possibly more than any other stifles

empowerment. Employees should not feel handcuffed in their decisions or be

afraid to make bold moves. The more employees feel their actions positively
impact their organizations directly, the more connected these employees feel to
their companies. This starts with management, serving as the face and voice of
those organizations. The more freely a smart manager delegates important tasks
and decisions to her staff, she can focus less on operations and more on strategy
and business planning. In turn, employees feel they're steering the ship.
Happier Clients
The better employees do their jobs -- and certainly if those jobs are done with
increased enthusiasm and attention to detail -- clients can only benefit. This is a
key area where direct financial improvements are realized from empowering
employees. Clients love communicating with friendly and attentive staff,
regardless of the enterprise. Empowered personnel tend to take a more personal
approach with clients, focusing on creative ways to solve problems that appear less
tied to company policy. In turn, clients feel an increased level of personal concern,
improving customer retention and loyalty.
Resilience
Every organization goes through large and small changes. The way employees
respond to those changes is key to maintaining morale. By allowing employees to
make important decisions that affect the company even in small ways, changes are
less likely to be seen as uncaring edicts from above. Once the culture of loyalty
and employee concern is established, even large changes are accepted and often
embraced. Staff must feel management at all levels makes decisions with their
concerns in mind.
http://everydaylife.globalpost.com/advantages-employee-empowerment-4894.html

EMPLOYEE EMPOWERMENT ADVANTAGES

Better Customer Service
Empowered employees provide better customer service because they can handle
most issues that arise on their own. Because they can make most of their own
decisions, they can directly respond to customer issues without needing to send the
customer to a different department or get assistance from a supervisor.

Improved Productivity
Because empowerment gives employees a say in work processes, productivity
usually rises. Rather than working in an environment where everyone does a task a
certain way because "that's how we've always done it," empowered employees can
make suggestions and improve workflows.
Better Employee Morale
Companies that empower their workers end up with improved employee morale.
Instead of working in a setting where upper management hands down every
decision to the working mass, regular employees are given a voice and are able to
give their input on decisions that affect them. Some companies allow employees to
vote on benefits and take part in hiring decisions.
Greater Freedom for Managers
When employees are empowered to work independently, they do not need constant
supervision. Managers have more time to devote to more important, "big picture"
issues, rather than constantly monitoring day-to-day tasks. With empowered
employees, the manager can step back to provide general oversight and assistance
when needed.
http://www.livestrong.com/article/205950-employee-empowerment-advantages/
Disadvantages of Employee Empowerment:Employee empowerment entails giving employees the authority to make critical
business decisions on their own with little to no supervision. When done right,
having empowered employees can be great. However, when done wrong, it can be

devastating for both the business and its workforce. Before making the decision to
empower employees, businesses should first weigh the advantages and
disadvantages.
Increased Arrogance:When employees are empowered, their confidence levels tend to increase. This
additional confidence is a good thing because it creates happier workers and
productivity levels soar. However, in some situations, confidence levels can be
taken too far and end up crossing the line into arrogance. Arrogant employees are
difficult to deal with, don't take direction well and can become insubordinate.
Working in this type of work environment takes its toll on employees and they
once again become dissatisfied with their job and productivity levels decrease.
Confidentiality and Security Risks:One way that employers empower their employees is by sharing important
information with them. This free exchange of ideas and information makes the
employees feel appreciated and important, which ends up empowering them.
However, when information is freely exchanged with people throughout the
company, there is an increased risk of confidential and security-related data being
leaked to parties that shouldn't have access to that type of information. For
competitive businesses, these potential leaks could prove devastating to their
operations.
Lack of Experience:A benefit of having empowered employees is that they take on more responsibility
within the company. As they take on more responsibility, they begin working
independently with little to no supervision. Businesses like this because it saves
them money by decreasing their managerial workforce. However, unlike managers
and supervisors who are educated and trained in making sound decisions,
empowered employees often lack this type of experience. This lack of experience
lends to an increase in mistakes and unnecessary company risks.
Interpersonal Relations Suffer:Some employees confuse empowerment and being able to make their own
decisions with having the authority to do whatever they want. As employees are
allowed to take on additional responsibilities, some may end up taking things too
far. If this happens, interpersonal relations within the company will suffer and
incidents involving conflict will rise. Over time, tensions increase and a hostile
work environment may surface. This type of situation is bad for both the business
and the workforce.

http://smallbusiness.chron.com/negative-effects-employee-empowerment18691.html
Abuse of Power:Empowered employees are able to make more decisions on their own, but there's a
possibility of the employees taking advantage of the empowerment for personal
gain. This also means employees may become less responsible or efficient based
on decisions they've made. For example, an employee may take to spending more
time on non-work-related activities such as long breaks or employee committee
meetings as a result of his empowerment.
Interpersonal Relations:Implementing employee empowerment may bring about misunderstanding
between managers and employees. In an organizational culture with a rigid
hierarchy, managers may have a difficult time accepting a new culture of employee
empowerment. These conflicts can result to an environment in which the
management and employees can't have productive working relations. While
empowerment may provide subordinate employees with job satisfaction, it might
deprive managers of the same job satisfaction.
Additional Training Costs:Empowerment of employees may require a training program to educate employees
about leadership skills, assertiveness and group dynamics. Even though this
training may be beneficial, extra costs and time have to be incurred by the business
to make it happen. Additionally, no training program can guarantee that employee
empowerment will yield positive results.
Insufficient Knowledge:While the capacity to make more decisions is laudable, it can also have negative
effects. Employees who don't have sufficient knowledge about various business
decisions can undermine the company's success or cause interrelation conflicts.
Insufficient knowledge may be as a result of lack of training or a simply that an
employee isn't competent at a task he's been assigned. For example, a team leader
in charge of sales who feels the need to contribute to how the IT department
operates may make poor decisions in that arena. This sales team leader may also
conflict with the IT department employees.
http://www.ehow.com/info_8464969_disadvantages-empoweringemployees.html#ixzz2Rs0asI4x
How to Empower Employees

Employee empowerment is a term used to describe an employee mindset of

responsibility, accountability, capability, and autonomy. In terms of business,
empowerment is the opposite of micromanagement. For this reason, it may be very
beneficial for managers to empower employees, thus fostering employee reliability
and an environment of team-work. If you are interested in knowing what it takes to
promote employee empowerment in the workplace, you do not have to be a college
business major to learn how. Just follow these guidelines for how to empower
employees.
1 Adopt the traits of a good leader who promotes employee
empowerment.
Show respect for yourself and for your employees.
Be accountable for the things you say and do, and expect the same from
your employees.
Listen to what your employees have to say.
Show sincerity in your dealings with employees.
Be a good example of discipline in the work place.
Avoid taking credit for team accomplishments.
Communicate regularly and effectively.
Focus on having a positive, winning attitude.
Keep asking "What are the key traits of highly effective leaders?" Make a
list and build on it, then develop those skills
2 Delegate tasks clearly and concisely. See to it that there are no gray areas
when it comes to assigning specific duties to specific employees. That way,
employees will know exactly what is expected of them and there will be no
room for passing the buck. Additionally, when you show employees that you
are entrusting them to complete responsibility for a task, it improves their
confidence and boosts pride in their work.
3 Acknowledge employee achievements. Making it a point to cite successes
at board meetings and to verbally congratulate employees on a job well done
is a great way to create an office atmosphere focused on success and to
empower employees to keep up the good work.
4 Open your door to employees. An important part of empowering
employees is letting them know their opinions are valuable to you. Adopting
an open door policy lets employees know you care about what they have to
say and enables them to give their input and play an active role in the well-

being of the business. Any employee who feels involved is an employee who
is empowered.
Become BRILLIANT at coaching employees to be all they can be in the
role they have, not sure about being a coach, go searching for info and
learn the skills fast.
Promote employee education. Provide a means for employees to get
whatever training is necessary to their optimal performance so that they can
truly master their job responsibilities. Also, show that you are invested in
their professional success by arranging for them to attend career
development seminars and courses. Not only does this provide for employee
empowerment, but it is a great way to gain employee loyalty and improve
employee performance.
Give up some of your power in favor of employee autonomy. As you feel
more and more certain that your employees are skilled and dedicated enough
to take responsibility for their own tasks, allow them more freedom in
defining the methods by which they will accomplish those tasks. For
example, if your ace marketing exec insists that telecommuting part-time
would aid creative flow and ultimate productivity, provide for that
flexibility.
Invite feedback from your employees. You can go a long way in
empowering employees by asking them how you could best aid their
empowerment. Put out a suggestions box and ask for opinions at meetings
and one to one. Take well-intentioned suggestions into consideration and let
your employees see that they really do have a role in the overall success of
the business. Then acknowledge their ideas have been looked at and or
implemented.
Be willing to do what you ask them to do. Then stand 'shoulder to
shoulder' with them assisting them with the task, this helps to build your
respect as a leader. At times you might need to 'take the lead' and take over
the task for a while as you coach them along the way.

http://www.wikihow.com/Empower-Employees

Implementing Employee Empowerment

There are three principal areas where empowered employees

can contribute significantly to improved club operations.
1 Resolving member issues.
2 Helping improve work processes as part of Continual Process Improvement.
3 Taking on certain delegated management functions.
Resolving Member Issues
Employees who deal most directly with members on a day-to-day basis are in the
best position to solve service issues and resolve member complaints in a timely
fashion or before they escalate into larger issues. Unfortunately, in some clubs
front line employees are seen as the first line of defense in saying no to
members. Only when the member gets sufficiently angry and demands to see the
manager, can the problem be solved. Yet this approach sends two very wrong
messages one to the member that says we dont trust you and we dont mind
wasting more of your time as you explain the problem again to a manager; and the
other to employees that says that we wont let you say yes, but we, the managers,
often will, thereby contradicting you and making you look bad.
Since the bottom line in all our dealings with members is to say yes, there is no
reason to put either the member or the employee in the situation described above.
A far better solution is to provide useful guidance to employees and give them both
the responsibility and the resources to solve service issues. A good start would be
to allow employees to decide on their own how to resolve any issue by spending
up to a certain amount to fix the problem either by comping a meal, sending a
token of apology, or doing something special for the member.
Without a doubt the cost is insignificant compared to the loss of member goodwill
and patronage and is a small price to pay if a lesson can be learned or a work
process improved.

And herein is the important point, every time employees use their authority and
spend money to solve a problem, they must fill out a Service Issue Resolution, CRI
Form 180, explaining in detail what went wrong and what could be done
differently in the future.
When employees gain more confidence in their abilities to resolve issues and as
management continually improves work processes based upon reports of problems,
a culture of quality service will gain momentum. Employees will feed off each
others successes and take the initiative to solve a host of little service issues as
they take more pride in their work and their contribution to the overall effort.
Helping Improve Work Processes

Part of your clubs culture should be to foster a process of

Continual Improvement in all aspects of your operations. This means that you
should review systems, standards, policies, procedures, programming, training, and
work processes to continually improve the way you do business and provide
service. While managers typically have broad industry experience and the big
picture of what is necessary to succeed, it is the line employee who is most closely
connected with the member and the details of service. Who, then, would be in a
better position to recommend improved work processes than the person who works
most closely with service and service delivery?
As we have often said before, in our business the devil is in the detail. When you
make a commitment to involve your employees in designing and improving work
processes, they become energized by the involvement and look for more and more
ways to contribute. The more involved they become in contributing to the success
of the organization, the more responsibility they will assume for ensuring that
success.
Taking on Delegated Functions
As empowered employees take on more responsibility, managers can select
individuals, who show both the motivation and aptitude, to take on some of the

management functions of the organization. An excellent example is provided again

by the Ritz-Carlton Company. They select and train certain individuals to conduct
initial screening interviews with prospective employees. These empowered
employees relish the task and see themselves as the gatekeepers in keeping the
companys hiring standards as high as possible. They get paid slightly more for
their additional duty and derive prestige in being given this important task.
Necessities for Empowerment
Having reviewed the benefits of empowering employees, we again state what is
necessary for a club to provide this empowerment.
First and foremost, strong leadership is an absolute necessity. Leaders must:
Embrace the principles of Service-Based Leadership.
Be open with their employees.
Be trusting and trusted.
Be secure in themselves, their position, and their knowledge; not threatened
by knowledgeable employees or those who show initiative.
Be willing to share praise and shoulder blame.
Be good communicators.
Intrinsically understand and value the important role of line employees in
the organization.
Place a positive emphasis on problem discovery and solution.
Allow their employees to demonstrate initiative and innovation, while giving
them the freedom to fail without repercussions.
Secondly, the necessary disciplines and systems must be established to continually
review work processes while involving employees. Its also important that
procedures be in place to keep the General Manager and other Department Heads
fully informed of any resulting changes.

Next, the club must be committed to and deliver extensive, ongoing training to its
employees. Untrained employees cause confusion and the resulting chaos will
drive good employees away.
Employees must also be recognized for their accomplishments and contributions.
This recognition will further cement the partnership.
There must be opportunities for employees to grow personally and professionally.
When employees know that the club is also committed to their advancement, they
will more willingly participate in making it successful.
Lastly, employees must respect their leaders and willingly follow them. They will
only do this when they see their leaders passion for excellence and personal
commitment to success. There can be no substitute for this example.
How to increase Employee Empowerment:1 Prepare the employee's current performance metrics and compare their
actual performance to the desired results. Identify the employees strengths
and weaknesses, and prepare a plan to help the employee improve upon his
weaknesses. The plan needs to consist of actionable and measurable tasks.
2 Schedule an appointment time with your employee and make sure the time
allows full focus without interruptions for both of you. Have the employee
give you a few meeting times that would be ideal for her, and schedule the
meeting with one of those times.
3 Meet with the employee during the set time. Go over employee results and
talk about areas that need improvement. Ask the employee how he will
achieve the said tasks. This step is crucial. Employees will take ownership
and feel empowered when they have created their own action plan. Ask
open-ended questions that require thought and response from your
employee. Offer suggestions to enhance the employee's plan. A good
example of an open-ended question might be "How would you feel if you
were able to make critical decisions on your own?" Or, "What impact would
doing task ABC have on our team and the company?" Questions like these
allow an open dialogue and foster a team environment. Build on the answers
the employee provides and ask how he feels about your suggestions.
4 Reiterate the employee's plan and ask if it sounds workable, or if anything
needs to be added or omitted. This allows you get her commitment a second
time, with her acknowledging her plan out loud. Also, set a time frame for
the completion of the plan; or if the plan is an ongoing change such as the
empowerment of decision-making, set a followup meeting time. Ask the

employee when she feels the followup meeting should take place and set the
time accordingly, for example two weeks from the initial planning session.
The followup meeting should entail coaching the employee through
motivation and feedback.
5 Monitor the employees progress and offer encouragement and recognition
along the way. Employees feel empowered when they are given room to
correct their own deficiencies but still need to be monitored and mentored.
Offer weekly progress sessions; this session should be short and informal.
Your employee will respect you knowing you are invested in his success.
6 Meet with the employee to review the outcome of her plan at the time
designated in the first meeting. This time should include recognition of the
employees plan success, along with constructive suggestions for
improvement. All meeting sessions need to remain positive to foster a
friendly and empowering culture.
http://www.ehow.com/how_6246992_develop-employee-empowermentplan.html
These are the ten most important principles for managing people in a way that
reinforces employee empowerment, accomplishment, and contribution. These
management actions enable both the people who work with you and the people
who report to you to soar.
1-Demonstrate That You Value People:Your regard for people shines through in all of your actions and words. Your facial
expression, your body language, and your words express what you are thinking
about the people who report to you. Your goal is to demonstrate your appreciation
for each person's unique value. No matter how an employee is performing on his or
her current task, your value for the employee as a human being should never falter
and always be visible.
2. Share Leadership Vision:Help people feel that they are part of something bigger than themselves and their
individual job. Do this by making sure they know and have access to the
organization's overall mission, vision, and strategic plans.
3. Share Goals and Direction:Share the most important goals and direction for your group. Where possible,
either make progress on goals measurable and observable, or ascertain that you

have shared your picture of a positive outcome with the people responsible for
accomplishing the results. If you share a picture and share meaning, you have
agreed upon what constitutes a successful and acceptable deliverable. Empowered
employees can then chart their course without close supervision.
4. Trust People:Trust the intentions of people to do the right thing, make the right decision, and
make choices that, while maybe not exactly what you would decide, still work.
When employees receive clear expectationsfrom their manager, they relax and trust
you. They focus their energy on accomplishing, not on wondering, worrying, and
second-guessing.
5. Provide Information for Decision Making:Make certain that you have given people, or made sure that they have access to, all
of the information they need to make thoughtful decisions.
6. Delegate Authority and Impact Opportunities, Not Just More Work:Don't just delegate the drudge work; delegate some of the fun stuff, too. You know,
delegate the important meetings, the committee memberships that influence
product development and decision making, and the projects that people and
customers notice. The employee will grow and develop new skills. Your plate will
be less full so you can concentrate on contribution. Your reporting staff will
gratefully shine - and so will you.
7. Provide Frequent Feedback:Provide frequent feedback so that people know how they are doing. Sometimes,
the purpose of feedback is reward and recognition as well as improvement
coaching. People deserve your constructive feedback, too, so they can continue to
develop their knowledge and skills.
8. Solve Problems: Don't Pinpoint Problem People:When a problem occurs, ask what is wrong with the work system that caused the
people to fail, not what is wrong with the people. Worst case response to problems?
Seek to identify and punish the guilty.

9. Listen to Learn and Ask Questions to Provide Guidance:Provide a space in which people will communicate by listening to them and asking
them questions. Guide by asking questions, not by telling grown up people what to
do. People generally know the right answers if they have the opportunity to
produce them. When an employee brings you a problem to solve, ask, "what do
you think you should do to solve this problem?" Or, ask, "what action steps do you
recommend?" Employees can demonstrate what they know and grow in the
process. Eventually, you will feel comfortable telling the employee that he or she
need not ask you about similar situations. You trust their judgment.
10. Help Employees Feel Rewarded and Recognized for Empowered Behavior:When employees feel under-compensated, under-titled for the responsibilities they
take on, under-noticed, under-praised, and under-appreciated, dont expect results
from employee empowerment. The basic needs of employees must feel met for
employees to give you their discretionary energy, that extra effort that people
voluntarily invest in work. For successful employee empowerment, recognition
plays a significant role.
http://humanresources.about.com/od/managementandleadership/tp/empowerment.h
tm
HOW TO MEASURE EMPLOYEE EMPOWERMENT
1.Demonstrate That You Value People:
Your regard for people shines through in all of your actions and words. Your facial
expression, your body language, and your words express what you are thinking
about the people who report to you. Your goal is to demonstrate your appreciation
for each person's unique value. No matter how an employee is performing on his or
her current task, your value for the employee as a human being should never falter
and always be visible.
2. Share Leadership Vision:
Help people feel that they are part of something bigger than themselves and their
individual job. Do this by making sure they know and have access to the
organization's overall mission, vision, and strategic plans.

3. Share Goals and Direction:

Share the most important goals and direction for your group. Where possible,
either make progress on goals measurable and observable, or ascertain that you
have shared your picture of a positive outcome with the people responsible for
accomplishing the results. If you share a picture and share meaning, you have
agreed upon what constitutes a successful and acceptable deliverable. Empowered
employees can then chart their course without close supervision.
4. Trust People :
Trust the intentions of people to do the right thing, make the right decision, and
make choices that, while maybe not exactly what you would decide, still work.
When employees receive clear expectations from their manager, they relax and
trust you. They focus their energy on accomplishing, not on wondering, worrying,
and second-guessing.
. Provide Information for Decision Making :
Make certain that you have given people, or made sure that they have access to, all
of the information they need to make thoughtful decisions.
6. Delegate Authority and Impact Opportunities, Not Just More Work :
Don't just delegate the drudge work; delegate some of the fun stuff, too. You know,
delegate the important meetings, the committee memberships that influence
product development and decision making, and the projects that people and
customers notice. The employee will grow and develop new skills. Your plate will
be less full so you can concentrate on contribution. Your reporting staff will
gratefully shine - and so will you.

7. Provide Frequent Feedback

Provide frequent feedback so that people know how they are doing. Sometimes,
the purpose of feedback is reward and recognition as well as improvement
coaching. People deserve your constructive feedback, too, so they can continue to
develop their knowledge and skills.

8. Solve Problems: Don't Pinpoint Problem People:

When a problem occurs, ask what is wrong with the work system that caused the
people to fail, not what is wrong with the people. Worst case response to problems?
Seek to identify and punish the guilty. (Thank you, Dr. Deming.)
9. Listen to Learn and Ask Questions to Provide Guidance :
Provide a space in which people will communicate by listening to them and asking
them questions. Guide by asking questions, not by telling grown up people what to
do. People generally know the right answers if they have the opportunity to
produce them. When an employee brings you a problem to solve, ask, "what do
you think you should do to solve this problem?" Or, ask, "what action steps do you
recommend?" Employees can demonstrate what they know and grow in the
process. Eventually, you will feel comfortable telling the employee that he or she
need not ask you about similar situations. You trust their judgment.
10. Help Employees Feel Rewarded and Recognized for Empowered
Behavior:
When employees feel under-compensated, under-titled for the responsibilities they
take on, under-noticed, under-praised, and under-appreciated, dont expect results
from employee empowerment. The basic needs of employees must feel met for
employees to give you their discretionary energy, that extra effort that people
voluntarily invest in work. For successful employee empowerment, recognition
plays a significant role.