Effective Delegation
T.J. McCoy states that “to develop an empowered workforce it is necessary to grow people’s capacity to assume more responsibility” ( I work at an business and can think of different situations that may come about in our day to day operations where empowerment is used. One situation is where we may need to finance a client’s premium with an outside finance company. The finance company provides us with a quote that includes an annual percentage rate for the interest charged. We normally do not alter this rate, but we do have the capability. My company uses the empowerment tactic of providing ample information to us so that we have the knowledge of what it means to both our client and to our agency if we alter the percentage rate. When I train newer employees, I also share this information so they understand why we do it sometimes and why other times we don’t. The situation and the client are taken into account when the decision is made. A lowering of the percentage rate does cut into the agency’s profit, but if we feel there are extenuating circumstances for a client, we will make the change. The expected outcome of using this tactic is that we employees understand that it is not something that is freely done since we need to ensure profits for our company, but at the same time, need to work for our client as well.
Another situation at my company is when a large commercial client’s insurance account is coming up for renewal, our agency uses the empowerment tactic of allowing group members to choose methods. We handle our own clients independently and are responsible for client retention. Our company does not tell us how to go about doing this or what processes to take. We all work on teams and discuss within our teams how to handle each client individually and everyone gets to their goal in their own way. If a team is falling behind on their goal, management will assist, but if you are meeting your goals, you are able to choose your own methods.
Another situation at my company is when a large commercial client’s insurance account is coming up for renewal, our agency uses the empowerment tactic of allowing group members to choose methods. We handle our own clients independently and are responsible for client retention. Our company does not tell us how to go about doing this or what processes to take. We all work on teams and discuss within our teams how to handle each client individually and everyone gets to their goal in their own way. If a team is falling behind on their goal, management will assist, but if you are meeting your goals, you are able to choose your own methods.
References: Goldsmith, M. (2010, April 23). Empowering your employees to empower themselves. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved from http://blogs.hbr.org/goldsmith/2010/04/empowering_your_employees_to_e.html Lipman, V. (2013, June 3). The secret to effective delegation. Forbes Magazine. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/victorlipman/2013/06/03/the-secret-to-effective-delegation/ McCoy, T.J. (2006). Empowerment: Five steps that develop a high-involvement, high- performance workforce. Problem Solver Series. Retrieved from http://www.tjmccoy.com/articles/Empowerment2.pdf