Rethinking Empowerment

to Create

a Dynamic Team

Greg Basham Chief Executive Officer

Andrew CheungClient Relations Manager

Agenda

Our Credo & BeliefsCreating an Environment of Empowerment

The Business CaseMaking It Work

Netflix

“The task of a leader is to create conditions under which all followers can realise their full human potential.” - Aristotle, 400

BC

1.All have a story and narrative - How we integrate all the stories is critical to achieving the vision.

2.Integrity, openness, trust and concern for the growth of people- It is not how much you tell them you have it. It’s how much it is proved to them it is true.

3.A stakeholder view of the enterprise - It is more sustainable and potentially more profitable.

4.Time and energy are scarce resources - Focus on strategic priorities.5.Internal performance mirrors how external stakeholders are dealt

with.6.People understand and commit to changes they are a part of

creating. 7.Building on strengths leads to faster and better progress.8.Focus on operations and continuous improvement internally and

externally.9.Achievements, sharing credit, collaborating and allowing space for

your staff to grow build power, credibility and relationships.

Our Credo & Beliefs for Team Effectiveness

Empowerment

Enabling people to take responsibility and ownership for:• Satisfying their customers’ requirements• Solving problems• Continuously improving their work process

Participative Leadership

Leaders create the environment by:• Creating a shared Vision• Negotiating decision making

boundaries• Delegating decision making authority• Providing information and resources• Teaching and coaching

Employee Involvement

Employees:• Take responsibility for making decisions• Accept accountability for the results of these

decisions

Partnership

“An individual without information cannot take responsibility; an individual who is given information cannot help but take responsibility.” - Jan Carlzon, ex-SAS CEO

Satisfied and Loyal Customers

Make Decisions

Have Responsibility

for Implementation

Accountability for Outcomes Solve Problems Improve Work

Process

Empowered Employees & Teams

Engaged Self Managed Team

Command ConsultativeManager and

Employee Consensus

Employee Decision with Manager Input

Employee Decision

• Manager makes decision with no input

• Employees are informed of the decision after the decision has been made

• Manager asks for input and makes decision

• Work together to make decisions

• Share decision-making responsibility

• Agree to work to consensus

• Employees make decisions with input from manager

• Employees have authority to make decisions within set boundaries

• Employees makes all decisions regarding work processes

• Employees make with decision with no/ few boundaries

• Manager informed after decision made

Types of Decision Making

No Empowerment Full Empowerment

Boundaries need to be negotiated

between the manager and work group

No Boundaries

“Do whatever you think is best for the customer”

No Direction

No decision is a bad decision.

Clearly Defined Boundaries

Customer satisfaction must be maintained

“Authority up to a certain dollar amount - offer a free bottle of wine”

Clear direction

Good decisions with manager support

Setting Decision-Making Boundaries

Other example?

Key: You cannot create an empowered environment unless you first clearly define the boundaries for decision making.

Clearly Defined Boundaries

Set how much flexibility in when and how the job gets done

Give Staff a clear role in designing the structure of the work activities

Ensure they have the ability to respond to the unpredictable

Ritz Carlton Leadership Centre

It’s all about empowerment. The thing our guests are wowed about is that every single employee

has US $2,000 per day per guest to delight OR make it right…

We are saying to our employeesWE TRUST YOU!

- Diane Oreck, Ritz Carlton Leadership Centre

The Business Case for Empowerment

1.People resist change that they are not part of creating.2.Empowered teams and individuals create better outcomes.3.People can function as individuals in more than one team at the same time.

Netflix is the world's leading Internet television network with over 44 million members in more than 40 countries.

It is 124 slides, created by Netflix CEO Reed Hastings.9,000,000 hits.

'The Most Important Document Ever To Come Out Of The Silicon

Valley'- Sheryl Sandberg, COO, Facebook

Seven Aspects of our Culture

• Values are what we Value• High Performance• Freedom & Responsibility• Context, not Control• Highly Aligned, Loosely Coupled• Pay Top of Market• Promotions & Development

The best managers figure out how to get great outcomes by setting the

appropriate context, rather than by trying to control their

people.

Manage Context, Not Control

Manage Context, Not Control

• Strategy• Metrics• Assumptions• Objectives• Clearly-defined roles• Knowledge of the stakes• Transparency around decision-making

Key: High performers work better if they understand the context.

Good Context

• Link to company/ functional goals• Relative priority (how important/ how time sensitive)

- Critical, or…- Nice to have

• Level of precision & refinement- No errors (credit cards handling), or… - Pretty good/ can correct errors, or…- Rough (experimental)

• Key stakeholders• Key metrics/ definition of success

Hard Work

It’s not directly relevant.

It’s about effectiveness.

We don’t measure people by how many weekends or nights they are in their cube.

We measure by how much, how quick, and how well they get work done.

High Performers

• 2 times better in process work• 10 times better in creative work• Attract more new talent