In my previous blog posting, I outlined the top four reasons why managers don’t empower their employees. Either they don’t have the time, think it takes up too much time, don’t want to take on the risk, or they believe it may show their lack of leadership. Whatever the excuse maybe, it is far outweighed by the positive benefits of employee empowerment. So, if you are striving to improve in this area, please be leery of the six ways you can instantly sabotage your efforts.
6 Ways to Kill Employee Empowerment
• Criticize or complain about the employee decision
• Punish decisions made by employees
• Don’t use mistakes as an opportunity to teach
• Don’t trust employees to make decisions
• Have an unwillingness to take risks
• Don’t recognize and reward good decision making
If you are guilty of any of these killer offenses, I urge you to step back and reassess your motivate for empowering others. Is it to help them grow, develop, and flourish in their jobs? Is it to create more work-life balance for yourself? Is it to increase your ability to achieve business goals through team involvement?
Bottom-line, employee empowerment (when done right) achieves results like: increased employee engagement, improved productivity in the workplace, higher customer loyalty, and ultimately increased profits. For tips and coaching strategies for properly empowering your team, effectively delegating new tasks, and gaining back your valuable time, check out some of the best practices we have posted on our website.
Delegation, Empowerment & Time Management http://psbydesign.com/images/articles/TimeManagementJuly09.pdf
Cultivating Employee Empowerment
http://psbydesign.com/images/articles/PSBD_Newsletter_Oct08.pdf
