How Planning and Leading Can Be Used By Managers to Deal with Employee Empowerment - Example

Identification, Discussion and Evaluation of How Planning and Leading Can Be Used By Managers to Deal with Employee Empowerment Student Name: Course Name and Code: University: Tutor: Date of Submission: Word Count: 2535 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The objective of this report is to demonstrate how the management at Innovative Technologies Ltd can use the organising and leadership functions of management to deal with employee empowerment in the company. Having decided to implement the strategy, but with insufficient knowledge on how the employee empowerment can be effectively controlled, the management sought to get professional advice on how go about it. This report was prepared after an interview with the management of the company concerning areas in which they wish to allow employee empowerment and through consulting various academic journals and books. The discussion first seeks to identify the effectiveness of employee empowerment with an objective of justifying why Innovative Technologies should adopt the strategy. This justification indicates that the company could gain significantly from employee empowerment through improved efficiency and decision making; increased sense of responsibility among employees; commitment and increased morale; self-esteem and reduced turnover. It is established that various aspects of organising including delegation, optimal use of resources, orientation towards goals and the human resource management would be effective in controlling employee empowerment. In the leading function, the report identifies motivation, inspiration, leadership style and communication as the major aspects that will affect employee empowerment. Finally, the report offers recommendations for the implementation of the employee empowerment strategy. The company should (1) Start by implementing the strategy in form of teams before empowering individuals. (2) Train and develop employees in order to equip them with managerial skills. (3) Implement an employee review program to check the progress of employees under the new strategy. TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2 1.Introduction 4 1.1.Aim 4 1.2.Background 4 1.3.Scope 5 1.4.Methodology 5 1.5.Assumptions 5 1.6.Limitations 5 1.7.Plan 6 2.Discussion 6 2.1.The effectiveness of employee empowerment 6 2.2.Organising 7 2.2.1.Delegation 7 2.2.2.Optimal use of resources 8 2.2.3.Orientation towards goals 9 2.2.4.Human resource management 9 2.3.Leading 10 2.3.1.Motivation 10 2.3.2.Inspiration 11 2.3.3.Leadership style 11 2.3.4.Communication 12 3.Conclusion 12 4.Recommendations 13 5.References 14 1. Introduction 1.1. Aim The objective of this report is to demonstrate to the management of Innovative Technologies Ltd, how the ideas put forth in the organising and leading functions of management can be used to deal with employee empowerment in the organization. Employee empowerment is considered one of the most efficient strategies in contemporary organizations due of its ability to enhance employee performance (Pfeffer, 1994). The manner in which the management approaches the issue of employee performance however determines the eventual outcome of the strategy. The management at Innovative Technologies has recently embarked on employee empowerment in a bid to improve the company’s productivity and the information contained in this paper will be of great importance in their endeavour. 1.2. Background Innovative Technologies is a fast growing private company that was formed by two young graduates, Albert Young and Jimmy and McCain after graduating from university in 2005. The company which currently employs 150 employees specializes in the development and distribution of innovative software and office technology. In the recent past, the company management embarked on finding a way of motivating the staff members in order to increase the efficiency of the firm. It was established that employee empowerment would be highly effective because according to the management, the young employees seemed to be very enterprising and were likely to bring in valuable ideas to the organisation. The management however is uncertain about the best way to approach the issue because the company has always relied on the management to make key decisions. They seem unsure of whether leaving important decisions to the employees will be advisable and therefore seek to get professional information on how to deal with employee empowerment. 1.3. Scope Innovative technologies want to put the recommendations to use immediately. It is expected that within one year, the employee empowerment strategy will have been fully implemented and hopefully the results will be visible within the organization. 1.4. Methodology In the preparation of this report, I sought to establish the number of departments in their organisation, how they are governed and the overall organisational structure. This was done through an interview with the Innovative Technologies management team. The interview also sought to establish the degree of autonomy that the management wanted to give the employees in decision making and other activities. In order to obtain the theoretical knowledge in the field, books and other scholarly sources were consulted to gain insight into the field of management and employee empowerment. 1.5. Assumptions It is assumed that the information obtained from the management reflects the true position of the company and that the information obtained is true. 1.6. Limitations There are a number of managerial functions that this report could have used in providing the recommendations for Innovative Technologies Ltd. However, the organising and leading functions were used for this report, only exploring various components in the functions identified. 1.7. Plan This report will begin by identifying the importance of employee empowerment in the organisation and how this can lead to increased efficiency. In essence, the report will seek to first justify the use of employee empowerment as a strategy. This will be followed by exploring the organising and leading functions of management as presented in academic literature. Exploring these functions will include the study of various concepts and components of the two functions. The report will then proceed to indicate how the organisation could make use of the concepts in enhancing employee empowerment within the organisation and eventually gain from the benefits of the strategy. 2. Discussion 2.1. The effectiveness of employee empowerment Subsequent studies have indicated that people within the firm are in most circumstances the most underutilized resources (Riggio, Chaleff & Lipman-Blumen, 2008). The new knowledge economy however requires increased levels of independent initiative and entrepreneurship in all levels of the management so as to enhance productivity. According to Pfeffer (1994), there is so much potential in employees, which the company can exploit to its advantage through enhancing employee empowerment. Employee empowerment is an effective leadership style that gives autonomy to employees thus shifting some of the organisation’s decisions from the top management to the employees. There are a significant number of benefits that result from employee empowerment. According to Lussier and Achua (2009), shared decision making improves the decision making quality and promotes acceptance of decisions within the firm. This is expected to improve employee relations and promote the implementation of these decisions. Secondly, empowerment gives employees a sense of belonging within the company thus making them towards achieving the organisational goals as if they were personal goals. In return, the company is expected to gain from increased efficiency. Thirdly, empowerment is a source of motivation for employees. It not only boosts self-esteem but also makes employees have increased sense of responsibility which promotes commitment to their jobs. The results of employee empowerment include increased productivity, efficiency, better customer service, increased employee morale, reduced turnover and absenteeism and reduction in the management’s workload such that they can concentrate on other areas of the business. These results are highly desirable and Innovative Technologies is bound to benefit immensely from employee empowerment. 2.2. Organising Organising denotes the function of management that is concerned with arranging tasks and structuring work such that objectives within the company are met (McNally, 2001). This is an important function because it ensures that duties are completed in an orderly manner and within the set timelines; and that all organisational objectives are met. The following aspects of organising will be effective in dealing with employee empowerment at Innovative Technologies. 2.2.1. Delegation Delegation emerges as one of the most important aspects of the organising function because it ensures that jobs are completed in an efficient manner. It allows the management to distribute jobs to employees according to their areas of specialisation. This aspect would be highly effective in enhancing employee empowerment. It is important for the management to stress the importance of delegation to the employees in order to avoid situations where employees get overwhelmed by large amounts of work, which could have been done with the cooperation of other employees. Empowerment therefore must also go with the ability to delegate, which can only be undertaken if all employees understand that either of them may need assistance in the completion of assignments. This should particularly be encouraged in team settings where after employees come up with new ideas for implementation, the job should be shared by the group leader through delegation. 2.2.2. Optimal use of resources The organising management function to a large extent involves the distribution of resources within the organisation. It is imperative for the management to ensure that resources are used optimally so as to reap the maximum benefits from the scarce resources (McNally, 2001). This involves a high level of prioritisation and effective planning in order to ensure that important functions in the company are given first-hand priority (McNally, 2001). With increased employee empowerment, this role is expected to be passed on to the employees to a certain extent. Poor management of resources is likely to result because under the previous form of management, the employees are used to having an already set budget which they have to work within. This insinuates that the management must take an active role in encouraging optimal resource use among the employees. Lessons on effective use of resources may be conducted and employees taught on how to plan for their duties. This would ensure that employee empowerment plays a significant role the development of the company through proper utilisation of resources. 2.2.3. Orientation towards goals One of the most important aspects of the management function is orientation towards goals as identified by Armstrong (2006). It is highly important for the management to ensure there is a considerable level of commitment towards meeting the organisation’s objectives. This enhances productivity by ensuring that the firm’s objectives are met. The management at Innovative technologies can utilise this aspect of organisation to promote the achievement of goals within the organisation through employee empowerment. This should be done through requiring employees to set their work objectives according to the organisation’s goals. The management should ensure that while they are being empowered, they are expected to organise their work in such a way that they are oriented towards meeting the company’s goals (McNally, 2001). This way, Innovative Technologies is expected to perform better and thus improve productivity. 2.2.4. Human resource management The role of managing human resources is highly imperative because employees are considered the most important assets within the organisation. The manner in which different roles are distributed within the company and how the employees are treated therefore determines the success of the organisation (Armstrong, 2006). Innovative Technologies management could use the human resource aspect of organisation to recruit highly qualified employees and to offer continuous training and development that will upgrade the skills and knowledge within the organisation. Employee empowerment requires intensive skills and knowledge among employees because they are expected to make important decisions on behalf of the company (Lee, 2000). Accordingly, the management must ensure that only highly qualified employees, preferably with management experience are recruited into the company in future. Further, the management must ensure that the existing and new employees are taken through constant training with an objective of instilling knowledge and skills that are relevant in the management of the company. This way, Innovative Technologies management will deal with employee empowerment quite efficiently. 2.3. Leading Leadership is defined as a humanistic aspect of management in which a person influences others towards the cohesive and coherent accomplishment of the organisational goals and objectives (Gray, 2003). It is notable that when a company undertakes the employee empowerment strategy, it creates leadership potential among its employees due to the autonomy given to them. The leading function could therefore play an important role in managing the employee empowerment strategy. The following aspects of leading will be effective in dealing with employee empowerment at Innovative Technologies 2.3.1. Motivation Motivation as one of the most important aspects in leading denotes the process of exerting significant effort towards reaching the organisational goals (Gray, 2003). This is done through efforts such as employee incentives and rewards, fair remuneration and employee empowerment among others (Lee, 2000). Employee empowerment is one strategy that has been successfully used in motivating employees. This indicates that the leadership aspect of motivation is applicable in employee motivation and that the management can use this in controlling the strategy. The management at Innovative Technologies should view empowerment as a way of motivating employees and therefore allow autonomy in decision making. This will result in a more enthusiastic workforce and consequently improved efficiency. 2.3.2. Inspiration The management serves the role of inspiring employees such they strive to follow the same course in achieving the organisation’s goals and objectives. According to McNally (2001), employees are likely to follow the manager’s footsteps because they believe that in doing so, the manager is exercising the best practices that will help in achieving the objectives of the company. This means that in enhancing employee empowerment, managers should aspire to be an inspiration to the employees through leading by example. This way, employees are expected to utilise their newly acquired freedom in the company to perform activities that will be highly beneficial to the company. 2.3.3. Leadership style The leadership style used in the company to a large extent determines the outcome of the organisation’s activities. Lussier and Achua (2009) describes three types of leadership styles namely: power style autocratic where the management makes all decisions; participative leadership where the management involves the employees in decision making and free-rein where the employees make their own decisions without being influenced by the leaders. Employee motivation at Innovative Technologies will be guided by the rules of participative management. This means that despite the empowerment, employees will not be allowed to make decisions on all aspects of the company, such that the management must work together with employees to promote the achievement of goals. It will be important for the management to clearly define the boundaries as to which areas of business employees have the authority to make decisions without consulting the management (Riggio, Chaleff & Lipman-Blumen, 2008). Clear directions will ensure that the sensitive business processes are protected and that the activities of the organisation are affected in a proper way. 2.3.4. Communication Effective communication is the key to successful leadership (Gray, 2003). This is because it ensures that information is passed on efficiently between the management and the employees such that procedures within the organisation are conducted effectively. This aspect of leadership will be highly applicable at Innovative Technologies as the employee empowerment strategy is being implemented and hence aid in dealing with it. To begin with, the management will be expected to communicate the change in strategy to the affected employees; with an objective of setting the records straight (Dawson, 2003). The management should inform the employees on what they will be expected to do and their boundaries as far as the empowerment is concerned. Further, during the implementation of the strategy, it is important to maintain a direct communication link which will ensure that any challenges are addressed adequately. 3. Conclusion Employee empowerment is highly effective in enhancing efficiency and productivity within the organisation and it is recommended for companies that desire to benefit from employees’ potential. The management at Innovative Technologies therefore should not take employee empowerment as a challenge but rather as an opportunity to enhance growth in the company through encouraging employees to make use of their skills and knowledge in achieving the organisation’s goals. This report identifies certain aspects of the organising and leading function that the management could utilise in order to deal with employee empowerment and to ensure that the company reaps maximum benefits from implementing the strategy. As indicated in the report, it is important for the management to ensure that the employees possess the right knowledge and skills and that they are aware of the company’s goals in order to ensure that the strategy is effective in improving the company’s potential. It is expected that if the organising and leading functions are applied diligently in promoting employee empowerment, Innovative Technologies Ltd is likely to record increased productivity in the near future. 4. Recommendations During the implementation of employee empowerment strategy, it is important for Innovative Technologies management to consider the following recommendations: Implement the employee empowerment strategy first in the form of teams before allowing individuals to manage themselves. This will help the management to identify the employees’ strengths and ability to work without supervision before the strategy can be fully implemented. Training and development are highly important whenever a company opts to use employee empowerment. This equips the employees with managerial knowledge and skills thus helping them to perform their duties in a more efficient manner. An employee review program would be highly essential in observing the progress of employees and determining the effectiveness of employee empowerment. The management will need to review employee and company performance from time to time so as to determine whether the strategy is working as expected. Besides, the management should work closely with the employees so as to follow-up their daily activities. 5. References Armstrong, M. (2006). A Handbook of Human Resource Management Practice (10th ed.). London: Kogan Page Dawson, P. (2003). Understanding organizational change: the contemporary experience of people at work. London: SAGE. Gray, L. H. (2003). Leadership and Motivational theories. London: SAGE. Lee, P. M. (2000). Employee Motivation. London: SAGE. Lussier, R. N. & Achua, C.F. (2009). Leadership: Theory, Application, & Skill Development. London: Cengage Learning. McNally, P. A. (2001). Management and Organizational Behavior. New York: McGraw-Hill. Pfeffer, J. (1994). Competitive advantage through people. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press. Riggio, R. E. Chaleff, I. & Lipman-Blumen, J. (2008). The art of followership: how great followers create great leaders and organization. New York: John Wiley and Sons Read More