There’s been a lot written encouraging business owners to empower their employees. Empowerment usually refers to the process of allowing employees to have input and some control over their work, including the ability to make suggestions regarding their work and the company as a whole.
The benefits of empowering employees can be many. Improved productivity and reduced cost is a key benefit often mentioned. Simon Sinek claims empowered employees are more apt to provide exceptional service: ‘Empowered employees have the power to make decisions without a supervisor. They are entitled to go off script, bend the rules, do what they see fit if they believe it is the right thing to do for the customer.’ My one caveat is that business owners need to first get their head around the possibility that their people have the potential to provide valuable input — they have to trust them.
5 Ways to Support Empowerment
- Teach your employees a formal problem-solving process so they can handle challenges independently.
- Share financial information — being more transparent gives people greater context about the business.
- Start the dialogue. Engage with your people regularly, ask for their input, listen hard, discuss their ideas and follow through.
- Make sure all your senior leaders are aligned around the idea that greater employee empowerment is valuable.
- Teach employees about your business and industry — share your view of the future and ask for their thoughts.
It is obvious that the degree of employee empowerment in a company is a key dimension of the culture of that organization. Efforts to increase the level of empowerment often take a while to become part of the cultural fabric — but the return on investment can be significant.