Heads of departments and companies solve many tasks and, to remain effective, must empower their employees and engage them in assignments and projects. Such actions provide more opportunities for employees and ensure their involvement in the work and the manifestation of strong qualities. Otherwise, distrust to employees and the managers’ desire to fulfill all tasks on their own will negatively affect both the company’s effectiveness and the workers’ performance. While empowerment and engagement streamline workflows, help increase business interest, and reduce executives’ burden, it is crucial to choose the right approach for their application to achieve the best result.
In the considered case, the head of the department provides the financial vice president with a company’s portfolio with recommendations for changing practices. For an excellent report, the manager lacks the equity market knowledge that four department employees have. One of the obstacles is that together they usually cannot come to a single decision on investment strategies. Since these employees’ help is necessary, the manager has the task of choosing an adequate approach for empowerment and engagement.
When deciding who to be involved in the task, it is necessary to consider various aspects of the problem – knowledge, commitment, shared values, time, and capabilities expansion. In a situation of providing recommendations for a portfolio, reasons to involve employees include the fact that they have the necessary expert knowledge and there is enough time to use their help. In the work process, it is crucial to define the scope of authority for each employee.
The use of a specific personnel engagement strategy depends on how the task is to be performed. Based on the model on the decision to involve employees for the studied case, the best solution will be “Consult with the team but make a decision by yourself” (Whetten & Cameron, 2015, p.383). This method assumes that the manager will bring together specialists, explain the task to them and ask for advice. An alternative solution may be to consult with each employee personally, but the team has some advantages for this situation. First, the interaction of the team will clarify the task. Second, a small disagreement can motivate workers and provide an opportunity to find better solutions. Third, since the final decision remains with the manager and there may be several recommendations, even disagreement between team members will not grow into dysfunctional conflicts.
The team’s effective work will be ensured by empowerment and the manager’s task to spawn it among employees. According to the case, employees already have a vast knowledge base to measure self-effectiveness, and the manager’s job is to provide them with clear information about the task and what is expected of them. The provision of resources and data also affects self-determination. At the same time, it is essential to explain that although consulting is crucial for the company’s work and can significantly affect it, the final decisions depend on the manager and the company’s heads. A personal consequence can be tied to a potential opportunity to improve the organization’s operations and increase its profit. The value and trust the manager can demonstrate expressing emotional support and providing the necessary conditions for the work.
Thus, to provide an updated portfolio with recommendations for changing the company’s practice, the head of the department needs to consult with the specialists on the equity market and make their own decisions. The choice of this strategy is dictated by the needs of the task and the peculiarities of employees’ work. This scenario will allow them to apply their knowledge in the best way, not creating conflict situations but motivating employees. By providing resources for work, clearly explaining the task ahead, and defining some authority limits, the manager will also be able to provide the necessary volume of empowerment for workers.
Reference
Whetten, D. A., & Cameron, K. S. (2015). Developing management skills, (9th ed.). Pearson