Empowerment Essay (Essay Sample)

EMPOWERMENT
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Institutional Affiliation
Executive summary
The paper concentrates on the meaning of empowerment and the various ways that a manager can use to empower its employees and customers as well. Companies like Zappos, New United Manufacturing Inc., and Johnson & Johnson have employed empowering techniques to their workers and clients as well. Empowerment of employees occurs through issuing them with support and tools to succeed, involving them in problem-solving process and securing their future. Customers are empowerment occurs through warm receptions administered by the client service employees.
Empowerment refers to the process of enabling or guiding an individual to make independent decisions. A person can empower themselves to work hard and make effective decisions and choices in their lives. The same person may receive authorization by their manager or boss to work with commitment (Cartwright, 2002). The managers use empowerment techniques on employees to ensure that they work hard enough to achieve the goals of the firm. An individual who has empowerment uses their abilities and skills to improve both their lives and their organization’s as well. Empowerment in organizations works best if the managers allow employees to handle issues that they can tackle on their own. Empowerment technique is a tool that any ambitious manager should use for them to be successful. The manager of a firm can empower both employees and customers of the company in a number of ways.
An outstanding method managers use to empower employees involves issuing them with support and tools to succeed. The CEO of Zappos, Tony Hsieh, is one example of such managers. Hsieh emphasizes in better treatment of the employees, contrary to many firms that majorly dwell on impressing their customers only (Matteson, Ivansevich and Konopaske, 2013). Employees receive proper training at Zappos and those who decide to leave then get $2000 as a bonus. Hsieh further asks employees to increase their knowledge by going through the company’s books available in the company store. The employees also have a chance to ask any question they have in the firm’s newsletter and make suggestions on where they prefer changes to occur. These empowerments have led to an improvement in the employee's performance at Zappos.
Successful managers ensure the empowerment of customers to keep them loyal to their products. Customers at the Zappos Company get a warm reception when they contact the company’s customer service personnel. Hsieh encourages the employees of Zappos to treat customers with a commitment, Kindness, and integrity. Employees stay connected with the customers as long as it takes to satisfy them (Harris, 2003). The company has a phone conversation between a client and an employee that lasted for as long as six hours. Customers here also get free deliveries, thank you notes, flowers and even surprise coupons (Cheverton, 2006). Customers feel appreciated when they get these services from the employees at Zappos. The empowerment has led to a significant increase in the number of clients over the years.
Managers can also promote the empowerment by involving their employees in problem-solving processes. A firm that employs this technique is the New United Manufacturing Inc.(NUMMI), established in 1984, as a branch of Toyota and General Motors.The company is located at Fermont, California, where a General Motors firm previously existed(Matteson et al. , 2013). The managers of the company devised a system that involved employees in the improvement of the business as well as in solving its problems (Kemp, 2008). The technique played a significant role in empowering its employees to steer the company to success. Employees would contact their leaders in case a problem occurred, and the production process continued after solving the problem. The involvement of workers in solving problems created a hard working employee group at NUMMI that performed at its level best until the firm closed down in 2010.
Empowerment can also occur when managers secure the future of their employees. At Johnson & Johnson Company, employees are empowered by taking responsibility for whatever happens to them. The employees experience a sense of security when they work for the enterprise (Stewart and Brown, 2011). Working conditions have incorporated efficient safety measures, cleanliness, and orderliness. Employees at Johnson & Johnson receive adequate and fair compensations in case of an accident or retirement. The company helps some of its employees in fulfilling responsibilities at the family level (Matteson et al., 2013). Employees are free to make complaints in case of any disappointing issues. The company treats its employees with respect and concerns itself with the well-being of its entire staff.
Managers can empower both employees and customers of their firms. Empowerment of workers occurs through ways like issuing them with support and tools to succeed. The CEO of Zappos employs this technique. The manager encourages employees to go through the books available to increase their knowledge (Matteson e...