Empowerment Has Many Meanings, but in the End, Everyone Wins
Part 3 of our Empowerment series looks at what empowerment means at different levels of an organization -- including business leaders, line managers, employees
Earlier this week I wrote about the business benefits of empowering your people. When it comes to driving revenue and profits, while at the same time responding to growing employee disenchantment with today’s stressful economic landscape, empowerment can be the perfect fuel for that particular engine.
Empowerment, of course, is also good for the entire organization, but it does mean different things for different workforce levels – including business leaders, line managers, employees.
Empowerment for Business Leaders
For business leaders, having an empowered workforce has many benefits, most of all it can:
- Increase revenue and profit
- Create more innovation
- Offer improved customer service
- Increase productivity
- Lower turnover
- Build a stronger organization
- Create “employer of choice” status
While those results are excellent, senior leadership must set the empowerment agenda. That means developing high-level business objectives (and cascading them down through the ranks) and identifying critical roles and competencies that will end up defining the very nature of the empowered workforce.
To develop an empowered employee culture, business leaders also must:
- Align and manage goals - Define objectives at the highest levels, then connect these goals to the everyday employee actions.
- Identify critical roles - Certain positions drive maximum value, so it’s important to recognize these value-laden roles and focus empowerment opportunities on them.
- Develop talent internally - You can’t count on talent at your fingertips, learning and development tools must be in place to develop key skills and foster empowerment and improved performance.
- Keep talent pipelines flowing - Today’s top performers could be tomorrow’s senior leaders. Even at the top, mastery is never a given. It’s more an ongoing journey, and leadership development and coaching never ends.
Empowerment for Line Managers
Empowerment may arguably be more important than execution in business today, but that doesn’t mean that middle management is obsolete. On the contrary, line managers are more important than ever. They must empower employees by helping them structure development plans and foster professional growth. When it comes to empowerment, managers must be catalysts for collaboration, not to serve as taskmasters.
So how can line managers benefit from empowerment? The top benefits include:
- Easier to manage people
- Lower turnover
- High productivity
- Increased departmental revenue/profit
- Improved customer service
- Happier, more collegial workplace
- A shared sense of accountability with employees
Empowered employees often provide innovation, but the best managers turn those dreams and ideas into realistic project plans. They also motivate teams and facilitate “collective creativity.” Of course, managers today are often asked to do more with less, so this is where an integrated talent management platform can automate tasks that provide even the most overburdened manager with more time and insight to unlock empowerment.
To develop empowered employees, line managers must be able to:
- Connect work activities to business goals. The more employees understand about why their work matters, the more they will care about their work.
- Get employees to give their best. Be a mentor and a coach to his or her employees.
- Schedule the right training at the right time. Be aware of an employee’s growth and schedule training to support that person’s development plans.
- Be the connection to the culture. Building these values through development activities reinforces the culture you are trying to create.
- Keep employees in touch with pay and performance. Employees who are compensated based on data-driven goals are more likely to be clear about this connection.
- Help employees find new opportunities within the organization. Encourage employees to advance within the company – and be rewarded for their efforts.
Empowerment for General Employees
To say the past few years have been difficult for the average employee would be an understatement. Many employees are disillusioned after years of workforce reductions (though most are still happy to have a job) along with wage and benefits cuts. It’s not that they don’t care. It’s more they are waiting for something to care about. Empowerment is the driver to make that happen.
Making empowerment happen requires clear communication and open collaboration. Empowerment also means helping them build and develop their career goals and participate in active development plans and engage with the organization.
How do employees benefit from empowerment? For the most part, they are much happier when they are at work, and are more productive, innovative, passionate about their work, and willing to roll up their sleeves and solve problems. Empowerment also gives employees a strong sense of loyalty, a willingness to serve customers in a more positive way, and overall, be more excited about being part of a positive workplace culture.
In short, empowerment makes employees happier to be at work and clarifies the critical notion that they are vested in the organization’s success.
Yes, empowerment does mean different things to different layers within an organization. By pursuing empowerment and fostering a vibrant work culture, any employer can build a strong organization filled with empowered employees who are ready to take on the world.
In Part 4 of this 5-part series, I'll share how companies can leverage their learning and talent management strategies -- along with their technology solutions -- to foster a culture of empowerment.
In the meantime, if you’re interested in reading more about this topic, download the white paper, “From Employment to Empowerment: Why Business Execution is Not Enough” and “The Empowered Workforce: Crucial to Success in the New Economy.”