Take things step by step: At first, assign projects that are well suited to participatory collaboration. Gradually move toward taking a collaborative approach to all team projects.
What are the advantages?
Employee empowerment is a beneficial process for employees, managers, and the company as a whole. Employees feel more invested in the company, valued as important contributors, and motivated to excel.
People who actively participate in the workplace see greater skill development, and gain a greater understanding of which techniques are effective and which ones are not. They also have a greater opportunity to come up with creative solutions to problems, and novel ways to improve performance . The power to utilize their creativity and knowledge leads to expertise. People who are able to independently evaluate and implement projects have a sense of ownership that makes them committed to the project’s success.
Indicators:
Empowerment can be difficult to quantify. There are no statistics or percentages by which to measure its success. When it comes to empowerment, qualitative indicators are the most important measure of success. Understand, however, that change does not occur overnight.
Indicators of success include:
Open management: Team members are actively involved in meetings, evaluation and analysis of important issues, and identifying creative solutions. Managers support their skill and autonomy, and allow team members to exercise control in these matters.
Team spirit: Team members and managers alike show a high degree of enthusiasm, and company morale is high.
Decentralized control: Team members function in relative autonomy, with overlapping roles and functions, all the while maintaining clear individual roles.
Taking these important employee empowerment measures will result in a more skilled, motivated, and autonomous employee team while at the same time increasing the overall effectiveness of the company.