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E - Empowering - Giving Responsibility


E—Empowering—Giving Responsibility

The rung of a ladder was never meant to rest upon, but only to hold a person's foot long enough to enable him to put the other somewhat higher.
ALDOUS HUXLEY

The staff of an organization should be regarded as an asset to protect and develop, rather than a liability to decrease as much as possible. If you are in a supervisory position, you will find that you get the best results when you treat people as partners , increasing their level of authority as their skills and responsibilities increase. Here is what you can do:

  1. Realize that you are not knowledgeable about everything, and that there is always an opportunity to learn from others — especially about the specifics of their particular jobs. Giving or sharing power is an act of generosity, courage, and leadership.

  2. Assess each individual's willingness to be empowered. Each person has a different level of need. The best employees see the additional power as a vote of confidence and become increasingly motivated.

  3. Avoid failure by assessing the person's ability to exercise the new power. Make sure that he is properly trained beforehand.

  4. Make sure that people know the limits of their authority. When they show confidence and ability within those limits, consider increasing their power.

  5. Give people a chance to find their own ways to attain objectives.

  6. Don't fix other people's mistakes without first giving them a chance to do it themselves . They will learn to be responsible for their own decisions if they have an opportunity to learn from their own errors.

  7. Monitor your management systems (decision-making, information flow, selection authority, accountability) frequently to make sure they encourage staff performance rather than present obstacles to it.

  8. Increase the skills and confidence of your work group by making training an ongoing activity.

  9. Follow this golden rule: treat other people as you would like to be treated. Develop personal relationships with your staff that are based on respect and trust.

  10. If people are reluctant to assume new responsibilities, be patient. Try to make it clear to them that they, as well as you and the organization, will benefit from their increased effort and skills.

  11. Be consistently supportive of your colleagues. As you win their trust, your people will be more willing to take on new challenges.



Empowerment—Taking Responsibility

There are two ways of exerting one's strength: One is pushing down, the other is pulling up.
BOOKER T. WASHINGTON

Most employees have found the concept of empowerment hollow and without meaning. While the idea raises the expectations of people to the possibilities of being treated like responsible adults, the reality is that most front-line people can't buy a three-hole punch for thirty-five dollars without approval. If your organization is proclaiming the new religion of empowerment, here's how you can benefit:

  1. Meet with your boss. Ask him or her:

    • What will be different as a result of this new management philosophy. Press for specifics. If these are not forthcoming, provide some examples. "May I now settle clients ' claims for up to one hundred dollars without authorization?"

    • To identify specific barriers that prevent more decisions being made at your level. If training is an issue, ask when the training might take place.

    • What the consequences are for mistakes.

  2. If you are a team-based organization, there will be an expectation that you and your team will become increasingly self-managed . This presents exciting possibilities. You should encourage your team to meet to identify

    • existing boundaries and parameters;

    • new boundaries;

    • increased responsibilities for such things as who will run team meetings, who will decide on allocating work, who will schedule holidays, who will deal with conflict, who will be responsible for hiring decisions, and how these decisions will be made.

  3. If you are in a unionized organization and are part of the bargaining unit, you may be discouraged from doing things that are deemed to be managerial in nature. If you are in doubt, discuss the issue with your boss and your shop steward.

  4. Some increased responsibilities may change the nature of your job. Your job classification could be impacted too, enabling you to earn more. If this is the case, consult your boss and people from human resources for advice.