Empowerment Campaign Paper

1. PROBLEM/S:

• Department Heads are adamant to the “empowerment campaign” that the new CEO wants to implement.
• Department Heads do not believe and lack interest to the new direction that Martin wants to steer the company to.

1. OBJECTIVE/S

• To incite unity among the Department Heads.
• To stir enthusiasm among the Department Heads to believe in the “empowerment campaign”.

1. ANALYSIS OF RELEVANT FACTS

“As we face increasing competition, we need new ideas, new energy, and new spirit to make this company greater. And the source for this change is you – each one of you.” This statement delivered by Martin declared to the employees that the new vitality that he wants to create in the company rests upon the shoulders of each employee. Martin wants each employee to get out of the comfort zones of their nine-to-five job and bring new vitality in their jobs, in their respective departments. It is a daunting and challenging task unfortunately.

Simon, for example, was doubtful of this change in responsibility to which he said, “Garbage like empowerment isn’t a substitute for hard work and a little faith in the people who have been with this company for years. We made it great once, and we can do it again. Just get out of our way.” His statement conveys that he doesn’t want people pulling strings on him so that he could do his job better than before. He wants to deliver the change for the company the way he wanted it to deliver. His managerial personality is antiquated and is not congruent to the characteristics of modern-day managers who are very dynamic; shift their thinking from individual performer to an interdependent role of coordinating and developing others. Simon does not like to apply his entrepreneurial role as a manager, who initiates or welcomes change that can benefit his company as whole.

Barbara, on the other hand, is a leader who embraces change. She is quick to adapt to the changes that Martin wants to integrate in the company. She loved her new assignment as team leader of the manufacturing team, working on ideas to improve her company’s Retail Store operations. She is energized and livid by new ideas and new improvements that she can contribute to the company as proven by the statement: “They were proud of their ideas, which they believed were innovative but easily achievable.”

Change however impactful and beneficial it is, other people are adamant in accepting it. Especially when the change being implemented is not clearly defined to the role of the employees affected and not communicated in a way that makes the affected employees comfortable to accept the change. This is proven by the conflict that happened in the meeting attended by Barbara and the department heads, which made worse by the absence of Martin, their CEO.

Since Martin is the brainchild of the empowerment campaign in the company, his presence is indispensable. There is an old sailor’s saying that “the captain does not abandon his ship”. A leader, who wants change to happen, must be at the forefront of it. He or she is the one who will guide the rest of his team to reach their common goal.

In the chapter reading, Leading is defined as “the use of influence to motivate employees to achieve organizational goals.”Though Barbara can lead her Manufacturing team, she cannot motivate her colleagues because she felt that she was not empowered enough to be the leader in that meeting. Great influence towards other people is important whether they are your co-manager or subordinate. Barbara was not influential enough to persuade the other Department Heads to join her team in effecting better changes in the company. She does not want to take the role of a disturbance handler in the meeting, this is proven by the statement: “Barbara…keep her mouth shut; take a chance and confront Martin about her sincerity in making empowerment work; push slowly for reform and work for gradual support from other teams. She lacks confidence in putting her foot down on the decisions or

Barbara is also averse of the conflict that ensued in the meeting. She does not want to share the reforms her team came up with to the other members of the meeting group because she is afraid to hear the criticisms and disapproval that other department heads will say.

1. ALTERNATIVES

Alternative 1

Employees can, most of the time, appreciate changes when they are directly involved in the process itself. Martin should have invited the other department heads for a walkthrough of the reforms Barbara’s team have in mind so they could have a deeper grasp and appreciation on what her team is working on that can really benefit their company’s Retail Store operations. Once they appreciated what they experienced in Barbara’s team, they could somehow form ideas themselves that they can implement to their respective departments. As a result, they become excited and reinvigorated to join the empowerment campaign because they can also take action in the changes Martin is envisioning in their respective departments.