星空传媒

As the popularity of the 鈥榚mpowerment鈥� buzzword has grown, people have asked me about it. One incident exemplifies the problems.

I received a phone call from the 鈥榚l supremo鈥� of a large carpet manufacturer. 鈥淢r Burch, I want you to come and empower my staff.鈥�
鈥淭o do what?鈥� I asked.
鈥淭o move us forward through empowerment into the new millennium.鈥�
鈥淓mpowered to do what?鈥� I asked again.
鈥淓mpowered, er 鈥�empowered, ah鈥� empowered to move ever onward.鈥�
鈥淲hat do you want them to be empowered to do?鈥�
鈥淲e want them empowered to do what they鈥檙e told. We want you to empower some discipline into them.鈥�

I explained gently that empowerment, in my opinion, was about transferring executive decision-making from the top, to the front line.

In other words, everyone could make profitable or business-friendly decisions regardless of rank. The benefits are that it can save money, and it can make money.

At the sound of the word 鈥榤oney鈥�, he perked up and asked for more information.

I explained that in his case, the people at his front line, with constant customer contact, were his carpet fitters 鈥� and that they should be the first to be empowered.

鈥淗ow would this work?鈥� he asked.

Imagine having a carpet fitted, when you notice a small fault. You say to this now-empowered carpet fitter: 鈥淓xcuse me, there seems to be a difference in the pattern.鈥�

The fitter replies: 鈥淥h yes, I am so terribly sorry, you must be really disappointed. What would you like me to do about it?鈥�

鈥淲hat can you do?鈥�
鈥淎nything you like.鈥�
鈥淎 refund?鈥�
鈥淥f course, what shall we say 鈥� 拢30? 拢40? How about 拢50?鈥� And with that, the fitter takes out a bundle of fivers from his pocket, and counts 10 out. 鈥淔ifty! Are you sure you are happy with that?鈥�
鈥淥h yes, delighted. Thank you.鈥�

After I had presented my theories, there was a moment鈥檚 stunned silence, then uproar. 鈥淵ou are raving mad. Are you suggesting we give our fitters cash? You said this would save us money. It鈥檒l cost us a fortune!鈥�

鈥淲hat鈥檚 wrong with giving the fitters cash?鈥� I enquired.
鈥淭hey鈥檒l clear off with it, that鈥檚 what.鈥�
鈥淲hat sort of people are you employing?鈥�
鈥淭he sort that would run off with our cash, that鈥檚 who!鈥�

We were both right, they did have a problem with trust. Empowerment does allow a flexibility that is open to abuse. So why take the risk? You only have to see the current behaviour of the fitters to understand why.

鈥淓xcuse me, there seems to be a difference in the pattern.鈥�
鈥淥h yes, I am not surprised. These carpets are rubbish, bloody hard to fit as well. If you think that the pattern is strange, you wait 鈥檛ill it starts to smell.鈥�
鈥淲hat are you going to do about it?鈥�
鈥淐an鈥檛 do nothing, got 24 more of these rotten things to fit today, you鈥檒l have to ring customer service.鈥�

Things are not as straightforward as they seem. What about the other 24 carpets? What do you base his bonus on: the number of carpets fitted, or his attitude to the customer?

I don鈥檛 think you can do both, so on the face of it empowerment could affect numerical productivity. And did you recruit for attitude and honesty, or did you recruit for skill? Consider recruiting only for attitude and then training for skill.

You then ring customer service.

鈥淚鈥檓 Janeeece, thank yew for calling Acme Carpets. Can I inform you that a carpet is a naturally woven product, where one can expect differences in colour and pattern, and if you aren鈥檛 happy with that, then up yours!鈥�

Now the customer has two choices, both bad. One is to walk away and never return. This is the worst option, since no company can afford to lose customers.

Second worst is that the client bubbles through the whole organisation seeking satisfaction, gathering ire and expectation like some infernal snowball, until they reach the chief executive and say: 鈥淚 want a free house from you.鈥�

If you are a senior person maybe you have wondered why customers who get past your gatekeeper have such outrageous demands. Maybe it is a lack of empowerment lower down.

To try to illustrate this, I have chosen a medieval example. The old baron has died and the eager young baron has inherited the estate. He is terrified at the state of the finances and the negative cash flow. So he calls in the management consultants, and because we are talking the middle ages here, his firm of choice is Machiavelli and Co.

They suggest that the first thing that is required is a staff audit. When this is completed, the picture is clear.

鈥淗ere is your problem: head office, or the castle as you call it. You鈥檝e got your peasants, smiths and millers 鈥� marvellous productive profitable people 鈥� but in the castle you鈥檝e got the knights, ladies in waiting, accounts department, jesters, marketing, minstrels, and human resources.

鈥淚f you get rid of all of them, you will get what we call a flat organisation. In other words, it will simply be baron and peasants. Peasants work, baron gets money. Direct, simple, flat, no middle.

This the baron does, and in moments the profits roll in, costs are slashed. Just like every bank, travel company, and out of town retailer has discovered, the next discovery is not so amusing: the competition.

The baron next door who is acquisitive and aggressive is moving his army on our baron鈥檚 border. Our hero calls the consultants back, in a high state of alarm.

鈥淕uess what?鈥� he wails. 鈥淚 have no army, you made me get rid of my fighting people.鈥�
鈥淓mpowerment,鈥� is the reply.
鈥淲丑补迟?鈥�
鈥淪imple. Empowerment means that you must arm your peasants.鈥�
鈥淵ou want me to give my peasants guns? Are you mad? My peasants hate me. If you give them guns, the first person they will shoot is me!鈥�

If you mistreat, underpay and under-inform your people, any weapon they get, financial or percussive, will always be turned on you first.

鈥淲e have a solution. You give your peasants guns, but you don鈥檛 give them any ammunition. To the outside world they look armed, but in reality they have no real power.鈥�

Then it stands to reason that we must make our peasants love us. They must understand that the way of life they will defend is better than the invaders鈥� one and, to quote another tired business clich茅, they must become stakeholders.

So they love us, they share our goals. Then can we arm them? You have got to be joking. Can you imagine peasants let loose with sophisticated battle weapons? They would shoot each other. They are going to need training.

So we have our trained, well-rewarded peasants who love us. Perhaps it is a bit insulting to think of them as peasants, perhaps we could call them our 鈥榚mpowered troops鈥�. Towards square one maybe, but still a great improvement.

Empowerment is about every person who works with you becoming a profit centre. Everyone, when correctly empowered, can add value. The route is rocky, but the rewards are beyond belief.

Empowerment is a very dangerous, but very profitable, word.