Empowerment is based on the belief that employee's abilities are frequently underused and that given the chance and the responsibility people want to make a positive contribution.

Checklist

1. Outline your priorities - Is your priority to develop people and expand their skills base, or is it for improvements to the bottom line? Let colleagues and senior managers know what you are doing. Do their expectations meet your own?

2. Recognise the barriers - For example an unreceptive organisational culture, psychological factors (managers may feel empowerment means losing control), rigid routines that discourage people from taking responsibility. Recognise the need for a conducive culture

3. Set boundaries - Although empowerment allows staff extra autonomy the boundaries should be clearly indicated.

4. Raise employee's awareness of what empowerment entails

5. Get staff on your side - Staff who are used to doing what they are told rather than finding solutions for themselves or taking independent decisions are likely to feel threatened or even suspicious about such a change in culture.

6. Find out what your employees actually do - Find out what staff do at present to find out whether jobs can be extended or where they are already unofficially empowering themselves

7. Audit staff skills - Investigate what hidden talents staff have.

8. Ensure staff have resources

9. Agree performance objectives and measures - Empowerment encompasses agreeing objectives with your people and agreeing the measures of efficiency, effectiveness, cost-efficiency and cost-effectiveness to deliver customer service.

10. Launch the initiative - Encourage the empowerment process by implementing or acting on ideas suggested by the staff.

11. Monitor developments - Hold meetings to check progress, give and receive feedback, and gather ideas and other support.

Do's and Don'ts:

Do:

Be clear about why you are introducing empowerment.

Set clear boundaries and communicate these to staff.

Find out what your staff do.

Don’t:

Ignore staff feedback on the initiative.

Ignore the importance of monitoring the effects of empowerment to ensure progress is checked.