>> MIM Speaks
TO EMPOWER OR NOT, IS THE QUESTION
DEC 22, 1996 -
NEW STRAITS TIMES
EMPOWERMENT is the new management buzzword for "delegation".
By definition or in practice, empowerment, which means the
granting of power to a subordinate, is no different from
delegation, which is the act of granting formal authority (or
legitimest power) and accountability to subordinates to carry
out certain tasks.
Empowerment or delegation has not taken place unless the
subordinates accept the delegated tasks and thereby
establishing a pyschological contract between him and his
superior.
In other words, when superiors force subordinates to carry out
certain tasks, no empowerment has taken place. In Malaysia, it
is rather common to find subordinates having to carry out the
tasks without the corresponding authority or power to do so.
Worse still, when something goes wrong, the delegating
managers put the blame on their subordinates. It is crucial
to note that in empoweringldelegating, the ultimate
responsibility remains with the delegating superior.
In other words, while tasks, authority and accountability can
be assigned downwards, the responsibility stays with the
delegating manager.
Managers who do not take responsibility for their subordinates
performance have in reality, abdicated their duty as a
manager.
Empowerment & Trust
THE underlying face in the process of empowerment/delegation
is trust. Empowerment without trust is ineffective.
Imagine your boss assigning some tasks to you with the
corresponding authority and resource to carry them out.
But every few hours he gets his secretary or who so-ever to
check on you . This may be an extreme example.
But how do you feel, when you are under constant surveillance?
You feel that your bos doesn't trust you, right?
Experience tells us that trust from the top enables
subordinates to learn to be responsible and exercise
self-discipline. He is aware that he is answerable to his
superior. More importantly because of the psychological
contract, he is committed to put in his per sonal best. In
this way empowerment based on trust reduces operating cost
control systems, procedures and supervisory activities not
only cost money but also demoralises its staff.
This brings us to the next point, called risk. Because trust
can easily be abused, totally unpoliced empowerment is very
risky and therefore costly. The optimal amount of trust versus
control is an equation which individual organisation or
superior has to work out on a case-to case basis.
Another point worth noting is that trust is a rather fragile
thing. Once it is broken, the relation ship is never the same
again. The element of doubt will always be there.
Unfortunately, few people appreciate the longer-term value of
keeping to one's commitment or psychological contract. But
those who have worked hard and climbed the corporate ladder
and reached the top know the value of reliability-and
commitment.
In the management of human resources in business
organisations, issues such as trust commitment and loyalty and
so on, are extremely complex and difficult to handle. This is
the main reason why it is rare to find a truly empowered
organisation anywhere in the world. Highly empowered
workforce in organisations such as Microsoft or Mary Kay
Cosmetics USA are the exceptions to the rule. As mentiolled
earlier, true empowerment is based on trust. And since trust
can easily be abused, it is more convenient for organisations
to keep a tight rein on power and maintain a comprehensive
system of control.
Two Barriers to Empowerment
THE act of empowerment in some sense is a rather personal
matter. Imagine yourself as the manager who has to empower a
very important assign ment to your subordinates who happen to
be new in the company. After studying each one of them
carefully in terms of work experience, capabilities,
individual strengths and weaknesses, you end up with the need
to make a judgemental choice, and that is, 'Who can I best
rely upon to carry out this task?' ' The moment you empower
the chosen subordinate to carry out the task, you have, in a
sense, relinguish control over to the subordinate and become
dependent on him to successfully do the job, or make a mess
out of it. This phenomenon explains why superiors delegating
task downwards for the very first time, experience a sense of
loss or "nakedness". Out of this sense of loss come the two
common barriers to empowerment:
1. Fear: Fear manifests itself in many ways. Some superiors
are afraid that the subordinate can't carry out the task
properly. Others are afraid of losing control over their
subordinates or activities. Whatever the fears may be, it is
often a reflection of the individual delegator's self
confidence level.
Managers or superiors who have strong confi dence in
themselves and in their jobs tend to have little problem in
empowering their subordinates.
2. Refusal to let go: This has something to do with an
individual's desire to hold onto power. Though not all
managers or superiors have the same desire for power, it is
not uncommon to find managers who are afraid to exercise the
legitimate power bestowed upon them. Such managers are
ineffective leaders. But for those managers whose desire for
power is strong, they tend to be reluctant to let go of that
hold over their subordinates. As a result, they won't empower,
or grant the power or authority, to their subordinates.
Why Empowerment is Necessary
ORGANISATIONS today need to empower their employees because a
well-orchestrated empowerment programrne will produce a highly
motivated workforce. Other factors being equal, such cessful
organisations of the future will be those which are able to
increase the energyslevels of their human resource and channel
them into good use.
The business environment. throughout the world have become
more and more competitive. As markets become more Global and
more trade barriers disappear in the future, only the fittest
corporations and companies will survive.
Intensified global competition forces organisations large or
small, to be highly productive, know very flexible, nimble and
innovative. Unless companies are able to respond speedily to
work changes in the market more place, show flexibility to
lise, meet customers demands, defend their market shares from
aggressive rivals, many of them won't be able to survive.
In addition to a highly motivated workplace, empowerment can
benefit organisations as follows:-
1. Increases Competitive Capabilities: Welltrained sales staff
empowered with authority to make price adjustments out-perform
their competitors. No sales staff or production people treat
like to see their companies being taken over by the
competitors. If they are not empowered to act, they either sit
back and ' watch their sales turn over shrinking, adopt a
couldn't-case-less attitude or resign to join in a more
exciting company.
2. Increase Customer satisfaction: Empowered employees dealing
directly with customers are better able to meet customer needs
or requests. Though front-line staff must be well-trained in
communication, skills, selling and interpersonal skills, they
must also be very familiar with competitor activities, their
own company policies as well as having the intelligence to
make discretionary decision on the spot.
3. Flexibility and Speed: Gone are the days when decisions can
travel from front-line staff to top management and back
without adverse consequences. In a highly competitive market,
decisions must be made on the spot, otherwise customers or
sales turnovers will be lost. In terms of flexibility,
because customer needs are becoming more and more discerning
and diverse, only organisations whose employees are empowered
have a better chance of satisfying the needs of the customers.
4. Innovation: Organisations are innovates because of
brain-power. It is not only technology that gives an
organisation its competitive edge. Case examples of US
companies such as Hewlett Packard, Microsoft; Japanese
companies such as Sony, Kyocer Corporation of Kyoto, and
Malaysian companies such as Art wright lvurniture and P.K.
Electronics show that innovative products and process are
possible from empowered work teams. And in a recent study
carried out in the US, it was found that pro auction
flexibilities de pends more on human creativity than on
technical factors.
How Empowerment Brings Success
PROPER empowerment is a win-win situation for both management
and staff.
Many activities are in fact better doe by empowered employees
as they know the work better than their superior. Empowerments
also frees the superiors from routine work so that they have
more time to conceptualise, innovative and so on.
From the point of view of employees, more and more of them are
willing to work hard, learn new skills, accept more
responsibilities. They prefer to work in organisations where
they can take part in decision-making, contribute their ideas
and be treated as human beings, that is, with respect, as
opposed how many companies today in Malaysia still continue to
treat their human resources as "robots".
As mentioned earlier, empowerment results in a highly
motivated workplace. In one of his books, Prof John Kotter of
Harvard Business School cited the case of Mary Kay Cosmetics
as an example of a highly-motivated workforce through
empowerment. The simple formula of empowerment provides its
people self-confidence, a sense of achievement, self-easteam,
a sense of belonging, some control over their lives and so on.
And from that, enormous human energy is released.
Conclusion
EMPOWERMENT is only a theoretical concept if managers or
organisations cannot find some ways to operationalise it.
Granted that the process of empowerment is extremely
challenging as it goes right into the heart of dealing with an
organisation's human problems, but the benefit to be gained is
enormous.
And because few organisations are successful at empowering its
workforce, the challenge to succeed at it should be even more
exciting.
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