Whether you lead a team for a corporation or your own employees, or guide a group of volunteers, you hear words like teamwork, delegation and empowerment. Empowering any group of individuals will naturally lead to effective teamwork and along with it, delegation happens almost organically.
By definition, empowerment is simply allowing individuals to shine—to be in charge and feel the ownership and the responsibility.
As a byproduct of this sense of empowerment, employees often feel they have more control over their work lives. This leads to individuals who are motivated, productive, accountable and feel they are a valued part of the company.
- Overall, when the day-to-day operations are performed by people who feel supported, appreciated and empowered, you’ll experience benefits like these:
- Job satisfaction leads to fewer absences, sick leaves, and burn-outs which leads to increased retention.
- Employees feel more involved, listened to, and fulfilled, which solidifies their commitment to the organization.
- Those who are happy and proud to work for their company will speak well of it to their entourage, customers, family etc. which creates a positive image for the enterprise.
READY: Start writing: List clear ways you can measure and develop:
- Tools. Each individual needs the appropriate tools to get the job done whether it be funding, staffing, information, or any number of elements required to work efficiently.
- Safety. Everyone needs to have the confidence that they’ll see a project through—mistakes and missteps included. The feeling of ‘I’ve got your back’ when things don’t run as expected without fear of being punished or reprimanded is key to a future with an empowered workforce.
- Appropriate delegation of not only tasks but of authority. Basically, you are delegating a certain amount of decision-making autonomy.
SET:
- Decide on one or two people to ‘test-drive’ your empowerment plan.
- Give it 3-6 months with scheduled check ins to work out the kinks and get everyone comfortable.
GO: Here’s a bit of inspiration:
