What’s empowerment and how can it benefit my company?
There may be different definitions of empowerment, but the essence of empowerment revolves around providing employees with a solid understanding of the company vision, information, skills, and the authority and accountability to make the right decisions for the business. So, how can empowering your employees provide benefits for your company?
Empowerment for better customer service
The first benefit of an empowered company is better customer service. When you have employees that know and share your company vision, and are truly engaged and view themselves as integral parts of the organization, they are capable of making decisions and doing whatever it takes to make the customer a happy customer. They treat that customer as their own and recognize for themselves, and the organization, to be successful they need to attract and retain customers. The result: a better service experience for your customer.
Empowerment for increased productivity
The second benefit of empowering employees at your company is increased productivity. If employees know what is expected and have the authority to make decisions then timelines are met, and tasks are completed. Think about how many times you’ve heard someone say, “I need to have this okay-ed from my boss.” This can take minutes, hours, even days. However, if an employee is empowered and has the authority, they can make the decision and keep the work moving forward.
Empowerment for less waste and added value
The third benefit, empowered employees identify sources of waste and opportunities for increased value. When an employee is empowered within an organization they feel accountable and responsible for the success of the organization. The empowered employee is much more apt to bring to light issues around waste in the production of a product or a service, and their proximity to the production makes them perfect candidates to provide feedback on areas that can provide enhanced value for your customers and company.
An empowered work environment can offer many benefits, but three very real, tangible examples are better customer service, increased productivity, and the reduction of waste and recognition of value add opportunities.
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What benefits does your company derive from empowerment? Feel free to leave a comment below or shout out to us on Facebook or Twitter. Of course, you could always write your own blog post on the subject and share it with us… We’d love to read it!
