The four dimensions of people empowerment
How leaders promote self-determination in the workplace
“Daddy, I wanna do it myself,” says my daughter. She grabs the knife and fork from my hands, with which I’m laboriously trying to cut up her vegetables. She eagerly starts working on the broccoli. No matter what I try to help her with, I keep hearing: “Wanna do it myself, wanna do it myself!”
My daughter’s enthusiasm for self-determination echoes a universal human need. People want to decide for themselves how they live. And how they work. This brings us to the topic of this article: It is about how leaders can empower their employees to greater self-determination. It presents a framework that every leader — regardless of industry and hierarchical level — can use to empower employees. Oh, and there are hiccups, one-page plans, and little devils.
Why empower employees?
Because they demand it? Or because you long for relief yourself? Maybe you want to make your entire company more agile. You know what, it doesn’t really matter. Empowerment pays dividends on all fronts. It’s this simple idea of redistributing responsibility and power from a select few to the broader team. The concept is straightforward, but despite its apparent simplicity, progress has been slow. It’s almost as if every mention of empowerment summons little mischievous devils, poised to sabotage the initiative. One of them is, drum roll…
The little devil of one-dimensionality
But wait, what do you mean by little? This is a grown-up demon, at least a department head in the keeping-people-small business. This devil thrives on oversimplification, tempting leaders to underestimate the complexity of empowerment. It tricks them into believing that addressing specific issues alone will suffice, blinding them to other crucial aspects. This devil assumes various forms, often masquerading as:
- The Objective Restructurer (usually in the form of a senior consultant): “You need to restructure your organization. You need guilds instead of departments and cross-functional teams instead of specialized teams.”
- The Method Master: “You must work more agile. Daily stand-ups, retrospectives, and design thinking workshops. Then it’s on!
- The New Work Philosopher: “Will is everything. If you develop a collective mindset, everything else will follow.”
I have nothing against the measures mentioned. Certainly not against the people. The problem is not what is being done, but what is not being done. When single issues are addressed in isolation, even if done competently, the overall impact is diminished. It’s not surprising: the greatest freedom of employees is of little use if they work in different directions. The most competent experts are of little help if, in the end, management decides everything. This lack of holism is one of the most common reasons for failed empowerment, frustrated leaders, and confused employees.
The four dimensions of empowerment
Okay, in bold: empowerment requires a holistic approach. Your job as a leader is to bring everything under one roof. To make sure you don’t lose your head, you can follow the four dimensions of empowerment.
1. Willingness
One might think that nobody actually has any objections to empowerment. Employees don’t clamor loudly against more participation and superiors don’t complain because their subordinates want to take on more responsibility. Actually. Because what makes total sense on a cognitive level often looks different on an emotional level. For example, when the leader realizes that she is losing influence over decisions. Or the team member fears that the new budget responsibility comes with unfulfillable expectations.
The key questions in this dimension are: Is the leader willing to give up power and do the employees want to accept it? If so, it creates a positive driver for the process. If there is a lack of willingness, the project will be considerably more difficult. Sometimes even impossible. If inner resistance arises, it is time to investigate the causes. Here are three typical causes of inner resistance in empowerment processes:
- Competing needs
For instance of the employee: “I want more responsibility, but I also want to work without stress” - Limiting beliefs
For instance of the leader: “Today’s workers don’t take ownership” - Old habits
For instance of a client: “My previous sales rep and I were a well-established team. I don’t want to adjust to anyone new.”
Addressing these causes requires a nuanced approach, and for those seeking deeper insights, check out these books:
- Robert Kegan and Lisa Laskow Lahey’s “Imunity to change” on dealing with competing needs and limiting beliefs.
- Charles Duhigg’s “The Power of Habits” on, well, habits.
All strategies have one thing in common: The problems must be addressed openly to solve them. It`s about addressing the elephant in the room, the stinking elf, and all the other unpleasant animals.
2. Context
“Chaos! A total mess! Sodom and Gomorrah!” Leaders give these answers again and again when I ask: “What if your employees were given complete autonomy to make all the decisions overnight?” These answers seem exaggerated, yet they hint at a genuine concern: the risk of self-determined employees veering in different directions.
With conventional command & control leadership, the manager is responsible for aligning and coordinating the team players. They can do this because they have a better overview. Big picture and all that. If the team members are to work independently, they need orientation. Your job as a leader is to provide it. If you’re wondering where to start, here are my top 3:
- Purpose
I know, an overused term, drowned in we-save-the-world-marketing-gibberish. Strip away the excess, and focus on the authentic purpose of the organizational unit. Plain and simple. And yet so powerful. Purpose serves as a guiding force, offering long-term orientation. - Goals
Be it OKRs, MBOs, or any other acronym, ensure that your employees comprehend the goals set. Short-term objectives, when paired with the overarching purpose, create a dynamic tandem. Short-term goals facilitate day-to-day management, while the purpose provides a compass for long-term orientation. - Correlations
Your team members should be aware of the connections between their responsibilities and the broader environment. This enables them to develop an understanding of how their decisions affect others (e.g. an adjacent department). Creating a stakeholder map is a wonderful way to raise awareness of the organizational landscape.
“Great, we can cover that in half a workshop day!” you may call out. That’s even true if you have all the information at hand. But remember that one-off information is not enough. Self-determined employees require ongoing access to relevant information. This leads us to a pivotal question in this dimension: What knowledge do your employees need to make well-informed decisions?
3. Competence
Competence is the bedrock of self-determination in the workplace. Self-determined employees must possess the skills required for their roles. Bloody obvious. If their skills are not yet at the required level, they need to be developed. Whether it’s on-the-job training, off-site workshops, or personalized coaching, the spectrum of employee development tools is at your disposal. It’s not just about hard skills; soft skills are equally vital. The following are particularly relevant for self-determined employees:
- Communication
Independence doesn’t equate to isolation. Quite the opposite — effective communication becomes even more crucial. Imagine a flock of birds; each one communicates with those around it. The cornerstone here is training in giving and receiving feedback. When employees know how to address challenges, they need less guidance from superiors. And that was the goal in the first place, wasn’t it? - Decision-Making
If people make decisions themselves, they should be familiar with it. And not just with the subject in question, but with decision-making itself. Numerous cognitive biases and heuristics can cloud the path to sound decisions. Surprisingly, even top decision-makers are often unaware of them. Training and coaching can help people to understand their thinking and their misconceptions better. - Teamwork
As superiors take a step back, teams need to step up in self-regulation. Familiarity with the dynamics of high-performing teams is invaluable. If you want to read more about this, take at the article here: The House of Teams.
Additionally, knowing the ropes of effective methods for daily tasks is beneficial. However, a word of caution. Some self-organized teams, in their bid for autonomy, submit to the tyranny of excessive methodologies. Finding the sweet spot is imperative.
Empowering competence isn’t a one-off endeavor; it’s an ongoing commitment. It’s about fostering a continuous learning environment where both hard and soft skills are cultivated.
4. Structure
The favorite dimension of corporate transformers and top strategists. At last, they can deal with tangible facts (and not those emotional people)! Yet, it remains the least favored by leaders who merely pay lip service to empowerment. Because when structures are redesigned, it becomes official: employees have more authority than before. Here’s a closer look at key structural considerations:
- Roles & Tasks
Empowerment changes how people work together. If not, you can save yourself the trouble. Updating areas of responsibility and redistributing tasks becomes imperative for the transformation to take root. - Decision-Making Power
Clarify the extent of decision-making powers granted to your employees. From budget allocations to contract signings and instructional authority. Defining these parameters may be time-consuming, but it provides the necessary safety net for your empowered employees. - Information Flow
Streamlining the flow of information is important. Determine how employees access relevant information. Which information can they get themselves and which must be sent to them? New access rights or meeting attendance may be needed. Avoid being copied on every message, or you’ll never get out of the information overload. And your employees will never feel completely responsible.
Navigating the four dimensions
In principle, you can start in any dimension. In practice, the following sequence has proven successful:
1. Willingness Check
Begin by assessing the willingness of all stakeholders, including yourself and your employees. Recognize the driving forces and handle resistance wherever possible.
2. Providing Context
In the second step, deliver the necessary context. Ensure that your employees comprehend the direction and broader context of their newly expanded responsibilities.
3. Skill Development
Next, focus on skill development. Assist your team members in acquiring the competencies essential for autonomy and informed decision-making.
4. Structural Adaptation
The final step involves adapting structures to align with the new possibilities. This ensures that the framework supports and sustains the autonomy that has been granted.
In essence, these steps form a comprehensive roadmap, guiding you through the intricate journey of empowerment. By following this sequence, you can systematically address challenges, foster collaboration, and create a robust foundation for the self-determination of your team.
The Empowerment Plan
Wanna get started? The first step is to craft an empowerment strategy. Don’t worry, I don’t mean one of those 100-page strategy papers nobody ever reads. I’m talking about a concise one-page plan.
Click here for the bit-by-bit guide to setting up your empowerment plan.
Once your plan is in hand, it’s time to shift gears into implementation mode: Try out, analyze, adapt, repeat. Expect hiccups along the way, as not everything will fall into place immediately. Remember, empowerment is a process, not the press of a button.
So, roll up your sleeves, dive into the empowerment plan, and witness the metamorphosis from aspiration to reality. It’s hard work, I know. But it’s worth it.
