Empowerment programs swept through corporate America in the last two decades. Unfortunately, bolting empowerment programs onto existing power structures often led to the appearance of empowerment–without the actual power. Going beyond empowerment means that people have all the power they need from the very moment they join a company–regardless of the level of responsibility or complexity. They are immune from threats or coercion. They are free to seek any needed resources and relationships on their own initiative. And they are held fully accountable for results by themselves, their colleagues and the organization’s mission.
Doug Kirkpatrick writes an engaging story of how to dramatically change how organizations are ran. It is even more amazing when you find out that it based on a true company and actual experiences. It challenges conventional wisdom and offers a way to engage employees in a deeper and more meaningful way than the old command and control approaches.What is most interesting is how this approach achieves much deeper accountability than traditional methods. If you are an exhausted…
Excellent stories and examples of self-management I read the entire book in a night, and it’s quite fascinating. It comes out of Morningstar, the company on the cover of the Harvard Business Review because they have a lean operation with hundreds of people and NO managers. This puts it all in context through story, as well as some great examples of other companies (in the back).NOTE: The first 10-15 pages or so where the entrepreneur builds his team are very, very boring. If you only read that and put it down you’ll think it’s a…
A Breakthrough in Organizational Management Beyond Empowerment is a fictionalized account of a company that creates a new paradigm in management–a company where everyone is a manager. The book is really a “how-to”, with step-by-step instruction in moving from a traditional management structure to a self-managed corporation. It crystallizes something that most in management have known for a long time–whether or not they really want to admit it–that the people who do the jobs are the ones who best understand how to do them, what…