EMPLOYEE EMPOWERMENT

Empowerment is the process of enabling or authorizing an individual to

think, behaves, take action, and control work and decision making in
autonomous ways. It is the state of feeling self-empowered to take control of
one's own destiny.

When thinking about empowerment in human relations terms, try to avoid

thinking of it as something that one individual does for another. This is one of
the problems organizations have experienced with the concept of
empowerment. People think that "someone," usually the manager, has to
bestow empowerment on the people who report to him.

Consequently, the reporting staff members "wait" for the bestowing of

empowerment, and the manager asks why people won't act in empowered
ways. This led to a general unhappiness, mostly undeserved, with the
concept of empowerment in many organizations.

Think of empowerment, instead, as the process of an individual enabling

himself to take action and control work and decision making in autonomous
ways. Empowerment comes from the individual.

The organization has the responsibility to create a work environment which

helps foster the ability and desire of employees to act in empowered ways.
The work organization has the responsibility to remove barriers that limit the
ability of staff to act in empowered ways.

Also Known As:

Employee involvement and participative management are often used to

mean empowerment. They are not really interchangeable.

Examples

The manager of the Human Resources department added weeks to the

process of hiring new employees by requiring his supposedly "empowered"
staff members to obtain his signature on every document related to the
hiring of a new employee.

John empowered himself to discuss the career objectives he wished to

pursue with his supervisor. He told his supervisor, frankly, that if the
opportunities were not available in his current company, he would move on
to another company.
Employee involvement is creating an environment in which people have an
impact on decisions and actions that affect their jobs.

Employee involvement is not the goal nor is it a tool, as practiced in many

organizations. Rather, it is a management and leadership philosophy about
how people are most enabled to contribute to continuous improvement and
the ongoing success of their work organization.

My bias, from working with people for 40+ years, is to involve people as
much as possible in all aspects of work decisions and planning. This
involvement increases ownership and commitment, retains your best
employees, and fosters an environment in which people choose to be
motivated and contributing.

How to involve employees in decisionmaking and continuous improvement

activities is the strategic aspect of involvement and can include such
methods as suggestion systems, manufacturing cells, work teams,
continuous improvement meetings, Kaizen (continuous improvement)
events, corrective action processes, and periodic discussions with the
supervisor.

Intrinsic to most employee involvement processes is training in team

effectiveness, communication, and problem solving; the development of
reward and recognition systems; and frequently, the sharing of gains made
through employee involvement efforts.

Employee Involvement Model

For people and organizations who desire a model to apply, the best I have
discovered was developed from work by Tannenbaum and Schmidt (1958)
and Sadler (1970). They provide a continuum for leadership and involvement
that includes an increasing role for employees and a decreasing role for
supervisors in the decision process. The continuum includes this progression.

• Tell: the supervisor makes the decision and announces it to staff. The
supervisor provides complete direction.

• Sell: the supervisor makes the decision and then attempts to gain
commitment from staff by "selling" the positive aspects of the decision.
• Consult: the supervisor invites input into a decision while retaining
authority to make the final decision herself.

• Join: the supervisor invites employees to make the decision with the
supervisor. The supervisor considers her voice equal in the decision
process.

To round out the model, I add the following.

• Delegate: the supervisor turns the decision over to another party.

Read on to see how the supervisor's employee involvement style impacts
employee satisfaction.

Employee Satisfaction Research

In a study, The Impact of Perceptions of Leadership Style, Use of Power, and

Conflict Management Style on Organizational Outcomes by Virginia P.
Richmond, John P. Wagner, and James McCroskey, the researchers developed
an instrument to measure employee satisfaction using this continuum (tell,
sell, consult, join).

Their research discovered that, "the supervisor who wishes to generate

positive impact on satisfaction with supervision, satisfaction with work, and
solidarity and to reduce communication anxiety should strive to get her/his
subordinates to perceive her/him as using a more employee-centered
(consult-join) leadership style." At the same time, however, the supervisor
cannot be seen by employees as abdicating responsibility for
decisionmaking.

The authors further concluded, "we believe there is a relatively

straightforward explanation of this finding. Leadership styles which approach
the employee-centered (join) end of the continuum greatly increase the
degree to which subordinates are asked to participate in making decisions
and/or make the decision themselves. When this approach becomes
excessive, the supervisor may be seen as abdicating her/his responsibilities-
the laissez faire leader-or even deserting the subordinate. The subordinate
may feel that they are given more responsibility than their positions should
require and, thus, are overworked or underpaid for the work expected. Such
reactions could be expected to be reflected in negative outcomes of the type
observed in this study. We conclude, therefore, that while the supervisor
should attempt to be perceived as employing an employee-centered
leadership style (consult-join), he/she must maintain a supervisory role and
avoid being perceived as abdicating responsibility."

Reference: Tannenbaum, R. and Schmidt, W. "How to choose a leadership

pattern". Harvard Business Review, 1958, 36, 95-101.

Also Known As:

Employee Participation and Participative Management

Examples:

Tell: Useful when communicating about safety issues, government

regulations, decisions that neither require nor ask for employee input.

Sell: Useful when employee commitment is needed, but the decision is not
open to employee influence.

Consult: The key to a successful consultation is to inform employees, on the

front end of the discussion, that their input is needed, but that the supervisor
is retaining the authority to make the final decision. This is the level of
involvement that can create employee dissatisfaction most readily when this
is not clear to the people providing input.

Join: The key to a successful join is when the supervisor truly builds
consensus around a decision and is willing to keep her influence equal to
that of the others providing input.

Employee empowerment is an absolute business essential today. It involves the

expressions and avenues through which the non-managerial staff members are
conditioned to be able to make certain important company decisions, with the support
and backing of a well planned empowerment program. The self-willed decision making
capacity is generated from the amount of the power vested by the management within
the employees, during the training provided. Employee empowerment training actually
culminates in the whole set-up becoming an empowerment model. The guided ability to
take some decisions empowers the employees and also adds to the retaining module
adopted by the company.

Employee empowerment can be attempted via dedicated virtual courses, special

employee empowerment workshops by management gurus, dedicated books and
articles and even software packages. There are a myriad of dedicated magazines that
companies can subscribe to and convert effectively to employee driven decision-
making. The basic concept behind the employee empowerment program is to give
power to the individual, which in turn gives the company happier employees, who feel
important! The delegated choice and participation and subsequently responsibility
makes the employees feel like first hand representatives of the business.

Employee empowerment can only work if the management team believes in it. The
issuing of authority to the employees could be graded, but it needs to be a rippling
activity within the organization and consistent in nature. The entrepreneur or
management should be completely committed to allowing the employees to make
decisions and execute them, also taking responsibility. The management could pre-
determine and define the scope of decisions made and work towards effectively building
decision-making teams. This model used in employee empowerment is very effective
because it enables the staff to contribute toward efficient steering of the company
profits, in a way that benefits all.

The implementation of employee empowerment involves managers willing to give up

control in certain areas of work production. The system must have scope for
improvement of the strategy and flexibility within teams. The ability of the employees to
contribute to a choice and direct decisions, leads to an alleviated feeling of self-worth
and dedication. The sense of self and the retaining of some power is a deadly
combination that works wonders on the psyche of the employee. The elimination of the
hawk’s eye and the regular criticism creates a more positive environment.

The strategy of implementing a suggestion box, where the suggestions are made
without fear of retribution is a great management tool. However, it is important that the
managers read and consider the suggestions. The management could also attempt
establishing a monthly forum like a symposium or monthly newsletter. It is very essential
to ensure that the employee suggestions are addressed and discussed, especially if the
management sees potential. The points or rewarding system will give you a competitive
work force.

The employee empowerment program is designed to work only with the support of at
least some suggestions being approved for some impact on the company, failing which
the same empowerment program only re-confirms to the employees that the strategy is
a farce and real power continues to be exercised only by the managers. The
empowered work force moves front-stage and is matched by action. The anecdotal
reports and management surveys all recede inot the peripheral, once effective
empowerment is executed. The age old concept that the work force is more efficient
using their brains and not just their hands is proven true with the various case studies
on employee empowerment.

The concept of employee management is designed to act as a practical guide to

leadership in liberated organizations. The empowerment ripples on to the manager-
managed relationship and becomes deeply organizational in good time. Empowerment
does not only include delegating job authority, it also means job enhancement via
decision making. The traditional bureaucracy, and the age old emphasis on control and
standardisation are now things of the past. The new vistas involve innovation, flexibility
and commitment and consistent improvement.
The elements critical for safety committee success are: Trust, communication, commitment,
teamwork, training, awareness, positive attitude, ownership and recognition.

To explain the significance of each element lets begin with Trust:

• Trust from management involves demonstrating to the safety committee that they are empowered
or have the authority to make decisions and get things done. The committee will not be a figurehead
so to speak with no authority.

• Communication is critical because everyone (management, safety committee, and employees)

needs to be informed regarding safety issues and concerns on a continual basis. Communication is
to be a two way street where listening and response for input is available.

• Teamwork provides the foundation for success. The commonality exists when everyone involved
works together to have a safe environment. Contribution from each team member gives the
uniqueness of different points views and ideas to get the job done successfully.

• Training cannot be overlooked. Having accurate information through training to care for safety
concerns provides the safety committee expertise, credibility, and consistency to deal effectively with
safety concerns.

• Awareness of safety concerns and how it will be cared for is essential. An awareness campaign
can include safety posters, newsletters and safety magazines. When hazards can be identified and
eliminated this will bring about a proactive safety program when it comes to reducing or eliminating
incidents, accidents and injuries.

• Positive Attitude - A positive attitude is a strength management as well as for the safety committee.
Concentrating on what’s going right, what progress have been made, and what can be done to make
it better, will assist the everyone involved to stay motivated.

• Ownership is an important element because all employees including the safety committee needs to
feel part of the process as owners. Getting employees involved in sub-groups to care for safety
concerns, or listening to their suggestions will go a long way for employee participation and
involvement.

• Recognition gives the safety committee a pat on the back for a job well done. When management
shows in a way of something tangible (certificates, lunches, dinners, gifts, etc.) this sends a
message to the committee and employees that their efforts and actions are appreciated.

Empowering employees by means of safety committees can have a very big impact in reducing and
eliminating incidents, accidents, and injuries. Management support and commitment is very crucial
for the success of safety committees.