UNIVERSITY OF EAST LONDON. LONDON.UK

HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Rollinson (1998) states that the aim of empowerment is to mobilize the skills,

energies and commitment of employees to enhance operational effectiveness and

efficiency in the organization. Employees assume ownership of the product quality and become committed to improvement.

Climate control

Influence

ResourcesStrengths

Involvement

Centrality

Autonomy

Dimensional Empowerment Model

John E Jones and William L Bearley(1988) Empowerment Profile, Org: Design and Development, P.10

Three keys to empowering people:

Share information with the employees, encourage them to act like owners of the organization.

Autonomy through boundaries: create new boundaries, new purpose, values, images, goals and roles i.e. create a sense of autonomy through boundaries.

Delegate Authority

SOURCE: UKEDUCATION.ORG.UK P.1

Increased awareness of business needsIncreased intrinsic motivation of employees manifested in four cognitions i.e. meaning, competence choice and impact (Thomas and Veithouse)Cost reduction from delayingImproved quality profitability and product measuresIncrease reaction to changes in the marketDecrease staff turnoverIncrease levels of effective communicationImproved organizational commitment

Increased levels of job satisfactionDecrease levels of absenteeism as intrinsic motivation increasesOwnership of work processesIncreased self confidenceIncreased acquisition and development of knowledge, skills and attitudes

According to Parker and Slaughter (1995)

“ Empowerment creates management by stress approach that pushes people and systems to a breaking point by increasingly asking workers to do more with less.”

True empowerment entails “letting go of control and loss of prestige for executives.” (Mills 1995)

Employees see themselves as being mere disposable units of productionActually there is little or no voice in the strategic concerns

of the organization Managers set targets not employees, therefore it is only a

perception that employees have control over the workplaceBabson 1995 Employee schemes can undermine and

destroy the legitimate and independent voice of the workforce i.e. the Trade UnionsIt is simply a scheme to reduce the levels of the workforce,

if productivity increases fewer employees are needed.

Edgar Schein (1992) describes organizational culture as a basic pattern of assumptions-

invented, discovered by a given group as it learns to cope with its problems of external adaption and internal integration- that has worked well

enough to be considered valuable and therefore to be taught to new members as the correct way

to perceive, think and feel in relation to these problems.

Artifacts and CreationsArtifacts and Creations

Values and Beliefs

Basic Assumptions

Strong sense of people being protective of the organization and what it stands for.

People work in a highly collaborative way. Intensive induction programs are used to inculcate core values. The high degree of

sharedness and intensity creates an internal climate of high behavioural

control. Examples cited by authors:

Hewlett PackardJohnson and Johnson

Exists in large organizations that face very competitive environments. Typically the critical success factors in these organizations is a free and open flow of information across functional, geographic or national boundaries.

Examples sited by the authors are:UnileverHeinekenPhilips

Exists in companies where interdependence between the different functional areas is low and the critical success factor is having “star individuals” in a particular field. Sociability or solidarity are unlikely to have a strong effect on the performance.

Examples sited by the authors include:Artists

Law FirmsConsultancy Firms

This culture is most beneficial in a fast changing environment where competitive pressures are extremely high. Organizational success and survival depending on establishing priorities, goals and strategies to beat off the competition. Effectiveness and efficiency are at the core of the culture . Strategic goals are specific and ambitious.

Some example cited are :Mars

PepsiCoCiticorp

Fincham R and Rhodes (1999. 3rd Edition) Principles of organisational behaviour. Oxford. Robbins P, Stephen (1997 8th Edition) Organizational Behavoiur :

Concepts Controversies ,Applications . Prentice Hall

Rollinson D, Broadfield A. 7 Edwards D.J, (1998) Organisational Behaviour and Analysis: An Integrated Approach Addison – Wesley

Torrington D, Hall L and Taylor S (2002) Human Resource Management 5th ed. FT/Prentice Hall Top Ten ways to make employee empowerment fail : from Susan M.

Heathfield, Your guide to human resources Free News letter on Internet Handbook of Principles of Organizational Behaviour, Pages 137-147

Edited by Edwin A. Locke, Chapter 10 Motivate Performance through Empowerment , Jay A.Conger The Dimentional Empowerment Model. By John E. Janes and William

L Bearley (1988) Empowerment profile, King of Prussia, PA: Organization Design and Development, P.10