Empowered People

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Empowered People
Delegation and Empowerment
MTL Course Topics
Empowered People
DELEGATION AND
EMPOWERMENT

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Empowered People
MTL Course Topics
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MTL Course Topics
ARE YOU READY?
OK, LET’S START!

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Empowered People
MTL Course Topics
INTRODUCTION
When empowerment works, a remarkable change comes
over individuals, teams and relationships. Gone are the
worst aspects of disenfranchised organisations, such as
blame-and-fear, bunker mentalities and me-first thinking.
Instead, individuals know they can make a difference; teams
see themselves as businesses and relationships become
shared and mutually-beneficial partnerships.

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MTL Course Topics
STYLE
You know you have an empowered organisation when the
following exchange can take place.
MD: "Hi, Bill, how are things today?
Bill: "Fine, John, thanks. The only problem is that old
machine. It's keeping us down to three tons a day when my
customers could happily take three and a half. What should I
know?“
Such an exchange can only take place when organisations
embrace an empowered style. This means dismantling the
old means of motivating people and instead involving them
in where the organisation is going.
"I'm slowly becoming a convert to the principle that you
can't motivate people to do things, you can only de-
motivate them. The primary job of the manager is not to
empower but to remove obstacles." (Scott Adams)

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EMPOWERMENT IS...
An empowered organisation looks chaotic because
everyone knows what they're doing and gets on with it.
An empowered organisation sounds chaotic because people
communicate openly and a lot at any time and in any place.
An empowered organisation feels chaotic because of
everyone's energy.
Yet chaos is a much more accurate reflection of how real life
is than the formal, ordered and disciplined models of
hierarchical management.
Paradoxically, there is no reason why a chaotic-looking,
sounding and feeling environment cannot produce results
and be as effective as the best of the old styles.

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YOU CAN TELL...
You can tell when you're in an empowered organisation
because...
1. there are no reserved car park places for executives, but
there are for visiting customers
2. there are women doing jobs you don't expect like
security guards
3. you see and hear people in small clusters listening and
talking to each other animatedly
4. there are no status divisions between people such as
size of desks, pile depth of carpets, names on doors
5. everyone wears the same kind of uniform
6. everyone wears a smile of welcome and confidence;
7. there's an open feel which embraces outsiders
8. nobody is kept waiting
9. there are no unnecessary signs prohibiting, stopping or
warning people
10. the tone of the decor is light and cheerful; it feels like a
happy place to work.

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ADDING VALUE
Empowered staff are those who see themselves not just
doing a job but adding value to themselves and their
organisations as they do it.
The story is told that Steve Jobs, pioneering head of Apple
Computers, was one day interrupted from his work to be
introduced to a new recruit to the organisation.
"Hi, sir," said the young man impressed to be meeting the
legendary Jobs.
"Hi," replied Jobs warmly. "What do you do?"
"I'm the new Accounts Receivable Supervisor."
Jobs answered: "No. What do you do? DTP? Graphics?
Animation? Sound? Multimedia? Video?"
Uncomprehending, the young recruit repeated: "I'm the
new Accounts Receivable Supervisor, sir."
To which Jobs muttered a barely audible "Oh, cost..." and
returned to his work.

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INVOLVEMENT
The organisations of the industrial era were centred on
technology and profits. The contributions of people were
not part of the equation.
"When I joined my first company, I was doing what my Dad
did - getting a job for life. I expected the Company to do
everything for me. As long as I kept my nose clean, I could
walk out at 65 with my clock and pension. That's what I
thought everyone wanted. Then I realised that a clock and
pension aren't really much for a life.“
The organisations of the information era are turning the
equation upside down and are centred on contribution and
involvement. "Leaders in the new organisation use different
tools from those of traditional corporate bureaucrats. The
new rewards are based not on status but on contribution
and they consist not of regular promotion but of excitement
about mission and a share of the glory." (Rosabeth Moss
Kanter)

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COMMITMENT
P. Martin and J. Nicholls studied the levels of employee
commitment at 14 British companies ranging from Jaguar
and Schweppes to the Royal Bank of Scotland.
They found that employee commitment was to be found in
all companies and depended on three factors:
1. A Sense Of Belonging People had a greater sense of
belonging in their organisation when they were informed,
involved and shared in the organisation's success.
2. A Sense Of Confidence In Management People were
more committed to their organisation when they had the
impression that managers were dedicated to the
organisation, were competent and had authority.
3. A Sense Of Excitement People were more committed
when they could feel a sense of excitement about the job
and the organisation. This was enhanced by a sense of
pride, trust and accountability.

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EMPOWERED PEOPLE
Sir Colin Marshall, erstwhile chairman of British Airways,
describes the qualities needed in a good manager. They are
the qualities of empowered people.
The empowered person...
1. has lots of energy
2. is willing to commit totally
3. has a desire to excel
4. can take delight from the success of others
5. has a genuine liking for others
6. has a good self-image
7. believes that being truthful pays off
8. has a curious mind with a fair degree of common sense.
“If you pick the right people and give them the opportunity
to spread their wings and put compensation as a carrier
behind it, you almost don’t have to manage them.” (Jack
Welch)

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MTL Course Topics
EVERYONE MANAGES
Empowered people take the journey from being dependent
on others for their work and lives to working
interdependently with others. It is the process of growing
up. Instead of being dependent on the organisation for
motivation, discipline, career moves, satisfaction, rewards
and happiness, these things are all in your own power.
For everything that the organisation once did for you, you
can learn to do for yourself. You can develop your own role,
develop your own hopes, develop your own direction,
develop your own discipline, develop your own motivation,
develop your own feedback and develop your own sense of
success.
"Every person is a manager and from a very early age, as we
form our earliest precepts, so we begin to manage ourselves
and our environment." (John Heywood)

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SELF-MANAGEMENT IS SO HARD
In his book "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective
People", Stephen Covey describes the
experience of getting his young son, Stephen, to
take responsibility for keeping their yard green
and clean throughout the summer months.
Covey went to great pains to show his son what
he wanted the yard to look like, with the proviso
that "you're the boss now; it's up to you."
The two made a deal about how the work
would be done and how results would be
judged. Then Covey senior left Stephen to it.
Two weeks passed. And nothing happened.
Each day, Covey looked for the results he'd been
promised but to no avail. In the end, unable to
leave it any longer, and tempted to return to
"gofer" delegation, Covey asked to inspect the
overgrown and dirty yard...
"As we started out the door, his chin began to
quiver. Tears welled up in his eyes and by the
time we got out to the yard, he was
whimpering.
"It's so hard, Dad!"
What's so hard? I thought to myself. You haven't
done a single thing! But I knew what was hard -
self-management, self-supervision. So I said, "Is
there anything I can do to help?"
"Would you, Dad," he sniffed. He pointed to the
garbage from the barbecue. "Will you pick that
stuff up? It makes me sick."
So I did. I did exactly what he asked me to do.
And that was when he signed the agreement in
his heart.
It became his yard, his stewardship.
He only asked for help two or three more times
that summer. He took care of that yard and kept
it greener and cleaner than it had ever been
under my stewardship."
(Re-produced with permission)

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USING DISCRETION
People in front-line positions often know what needs to be
done and how; they're just waiting for the green light to get
on and do it: the green light of discretion.
When a regular supplier offers you a special deal which lasts
this week only, what discretion do you have?
1. Do you say: "OK, let's negotiate." or
2. Do you have to say: "You'll have to speak to the boss.
I'm not allowed to deal with non-standard orders. The
boss? Sorry, I don't know where she is today." or
3. Do you have to say: "Sorry, nothing to do with me.“
"The strange thing is that when you, the management,
decide what the standards should be, people will argue why
things can't be done; but when you let them decide, people
will passionately argue why things can be done."

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OWNING THEIR JOBS
When BT's Customer Services division undertook an
empowerment programme in 1995, they promised their
staff that in return for the right to own their jobs, take risks
and delight the customer, they would receive ongoing
support and training from line managers committed to the
new way of working.
Four questions were asked of employees at the start and
end of the programme. These were:
"Are you satisfied with your line manager?" which increased
from 61% saying "Yes" to 84%
"Do you have a sense of ownership?" which rose from 73%
saying "Yes" to 89%
"Are you confident about making decisions?" which rose
from 84% saying "Yes" to 89%
"Do you feel able to take a considered risk?" which rose
from 64% saying "Yes" to 86%.

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DISCRETION
Discretion is letting employees use their own skills,
knowledge and experience to deal with situations without
obligatory reference to others.
The first time, of course, we all make mistakes; but with
patience, trust and feedback, we all learn.
"Real power comes from giving it to others who are in a
better position to do something with it than you are.“
There are three shades of discretion:
1. discretion + control (do what you need to do as long as it
is correct).
2. discretion + delegation (do what you need to do in line
with what we agreed).
3. discretion + empowerment (do what you need to do to
get the job done).

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DISCRETION & CONTROL
The only discretion employees are allowed in a tightly
controlled work situation is the discretion to follow the rule
book. Anything else is disallowed.
This is the case in any organisation where the process has
been studied in detail by experts and a right-or-wrong
standard laid down. Telesales staff in some organisations
work to a word-for-word script with instructions when to
pause to breathe. In some fast-food chains, the smile is
scripted into the customer exchange.
This works fine if employees can work like robots and
customers only want the standard product but may not
work so well if things don't follow the plan or if customers
want something different.

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MTL Course Topics
DISCRETION & DELEGATION
Managers can delegate a level of responsibility that reflects
the skills of the staff. Outside that level, the staff have to
defer to management.
This is how it might work in a hamburger restaurant where
the team are relatively experienced and competent:
1. if you stay between 200 and 500 customers an hour, you
have discretion to run things the way that suits you
2. if you go above 500 customers an hour, contact
management to decide what changes have to be made
3. if you go below 200 customers an hour, contact
management to decide what changes have to be made.
These numbers might be changed to suit the experience and
skills of the team: a newer team being given a lower
threshold and an excellent team a higher threshold.

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MTL Course Topics
A SELF-MANAGING TEAM
The team meets every morning to discuss the day's work.
The meetings are as long as they need to be. Today, it is
John's turn to lead.
The agenda covers ongoing issues from the last meeting,
work coming up, information from management, problems
that need looking at, new staff, who's doing what. Everyone
has team and leadership skills. Every decision taken remains
within the team's ability to implement. Today, Eric mentions
a piece of work he needs some help with. Sue who has been
itching to have a go volunteers, if Eric could coach her. They
agree to meet to sort out the details. Other discussions are
held in similar vein.
The meeting closes. John phones the manager to tell her
their decisions and everyone else gets on with their new
jobs.

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SERVING THE CUSTOMER
The level of discretion an employee has is determined by
the organisation's view of how the customer is best served.
1. In DisneyWorld, each employee (known as an "actor")
performs according to a carefully-planned script. The
idea of people operating alone is unthinkable.
2. In ClubMed, employees work in teams with a large level
of discretion over how they deliver customer
satisfaction. They are free to offer spontaneous and
creative solutions of their own wherever needed.
3. In the hotel chain Novotel, a rigid adherence to
consistency is demanded in all 270 of its world-wide
hotels. For example, all rooms are 25 square metres
large and all rooms are identically laid out. After
requests by customers the company agreed that
customers could have more than two pillows at the
discretion of the hotel staff.

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MTL Course Topics
A TASTE OF DISCRETION
Peter Grazier tells the story of his visit to a grocery store to
buy some wholesome biscuits, (he was on a diet at the
time).
He asked the young man behind the counter for the whole-
wheat variety but his gaze was irresistibly drawn to a range
of chocolate chip biscuits. The young man noticed his
interest and asked him if he would like to try one. Thinking
more of his waistline than his taste buds, Peter declined.
The young man noticed Peter’s hesitation and obvious
interest so repeated the offer. Peter was sorely tempted but,
after a brief struggle in his mind, said a final “No, thanks”
and ordered the wholemeal biscuits instead.
When he got home and opened the bag, Peter found,
alongside the wholemeal biscuits he’d ordered, two of the
mouth-watering chocolate chip biscuits he’d wanted to try.
That’s empowered service.

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SATELLITES
When delegation, discretion and empowerment are taken
to their logical conclusions, people and teams have a totally
new relationship with the "mother" organisation.
Ricardo Semler, head of the Brazilian manufacturing
company Semco, created in 1990 what he calls "satellites".
These are employees working as freelances, by themselves
or in groups, with a high degree of support from Semco.
They work under a variety of contracts, but may use the
organisation's facilities and equipment. As freelance agents,
they may also work for the organisation's competitors. By
the end of 1993, nearly half of the 450-strong workforce
was spun off into satellites.
By 1999, only 60% of the original satellite groups were still
in existence, but 80% of the people who originally worked in
them were still working for Semco.

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SHARED VALUES
The strength of any organisation derives from its shared
values. Sharing the values of the organisation is what ties
empowered individuals into the organisation.
Values are the things that matter. Unlike the structures,
systems and strategies of an organisation which can change
to meet changing conditions, values do not change. They
are the important principles of relating to others that are
embedded in everyone's hearts and minds.
Some of the values that are likely to be important in
empowered organisations are: teamwork; sharing
information; mutual support; responsibility; accountability;
trust; openness and learning.
"Values are the tapes that we play on the Walkmans of the
mind." (Rabbi Jonathan Sacks)

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AT THE HEART OF IT ALL
Trust is at the heart of the values that make empowerment
work. Yet, according to Professor John Whitney of Columbia
University Business School, at least half of all daily work
activities are wasted as a result of mistrust.
This mistrust is so commonplace that many leaders and
professionals are blind to it. At the bottom line it appears as
a largely invisible toll on all interactions. Instead of trust,
many of us spend our time and effort protecting, inspecting,
doubting, checking, disputing, disowning, deceiving,
distancing and disappearing. The commitment and
contribution simply aren't there.
"Trust is mandatory for the optimisation of any system.
Without trust there can be no co-operation between people
and departments. Without trust, each component will
protect its own immediate interests to the long-term
detriment of the entire system." (W. Edwards Deming)

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SUBSIDIARITY
"Subsidiarity" is a concept that has been practised for
centuries in organisations which delegate and empower
others. It means creating a relationship between central
authority and local freedom, in which both have a
meaningful role based on a respect and understanding for
each others' powers.
More recently, subsidiarity has been an issue in political
structures like the European Union, in devolved power
structures within countries and in organisations which have
head offices and subsidiary units.
Subsidiarity has been a key concept in the Roman Catholic
church for centuries and was defined in a papal encyclical in
1941: "A higher order body should not take unto itself
responsibilities which properly belong to a lower order
body."

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MTL Course Topics
THAT’S
IT!
WELL DONE!

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MTL Course Topics
THANK YOU
This has been a Slide Topic from Manage Train Learn

Empowered People

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