Entrepreneurs empower staff, get rewarded

DE PANO

EMPLOYEES are important sources of ideas for improving productivity in the work place and reducing operating costs.

But how do you get them to come forward and speak out? How do you make them feel confident enough to share their ideas? How do you empower them?

Employee empowerment means giving workers the freedom to take initiatives, do things their own way with little or no guidance, decide for themselves or participate in decision-making.

Empowered workers have the confidence to speak out their thoughts on how to do things better for the company because they are assured their inputs will be heard and acted upon.

Having empowered people working for an entrepreneur frees him of day-to-day chores and consequently allows him time to devote to more crucial management responsibilities like planning and new product development, not to mention time for himself and his family.

Empowered employees, highly motivated people who give their best to the company, are loyal and committed. Empowered workers are the cogs that make a company dynamic and productive.

More than any other kind of employee, “the empowered employee is able to create a feeling of true customer service that ultimately yields a much greater customer loyalty,” said Simon Sinek of sinekpartners.typepad.com.

Two small entrepreneurs share their transition from “do-it-all” leaders to managers who trust their people, thus being rewarded in many ways:

Case 1: Learning to trust and delegate

Maldwyn de Pano, owner and manager of printing company Design Plus, used to do 80 percent of the work in his printing shop.

De Pano used to be a “know it all, do it all” leader.

His people used to be scared to take initiatives. “One wrong move and they’d get hell from me. No one dared decide for himself because that is how I wanted it to be.”

He used to tell his workers to their face: “Just use your hands, let me do the thinking.”

It dawned on him gradually he was doing something wrong. “If I micro-managed and a mistake resulted from it, I couldn’t correct it by doing the same thing again. I had to do it differently next time.”

Nowadays, before a major project begins, he seeks the help of his staff—the account executives, artists, production managers. “We sit together, set goals together, anticipate problems together. We talk to the client together so client expectations are aligned with staff capabilities and timetables.”

He has set up autonomous units, each authorized to make their own decisions.

“Dati ako ang bida. Ngayon sila na (I used to be the lead. Now, they’re leaders of their own),” he says.

He believes even those at the base of the organizational pyramid has something important to contribute. “Bawat isa, may alam na hindi ko alam gawin (Each one has his or her own expertise—something that I don’t have).”

He has learned to let go, to let his people make their own mistakes. “I can now rationalize that if a mistake happens there’s a reason for it.”

Even if he loses a client or project, he is positive there is something better in the works.

De Pano today is now a more relaxed and effective manager.

Case 2: Fostering open communication and

rewarding improvements

Ariel Calma, an engineer and building contractor based in Pasig City, has a similar experience.

He used to be a stern taskmaster who was considered a “terror” because he would criticize his employees even in public.

When he learned to relax, he started communicating with them openly. He soon realized his foremen and even the peon at the base of the totem pole had something to contribute.

“I schedule weekly meetings with them so they will have a regular venue not only for progress reporting but also for ventilating their thoughts, observations, and suggestions. They could call me on the phone any time, if they are in the construction sites and I am elsewhere,” he says.

For this purpose, he provided mobile phones to foremen and other staff with crucial responsibilities. His workers were able to get clear directions, while feeling at the same time they are making a difference to the company.

He would often sponsor his workers’ weekend drinking sessions. He would share a drink with them for an hour or so, where talk could go anywhere from work to family to just plain “kulitan (having fun)”. Then, he leaves soon after “so they can enjoy the night without restraints.”

Calma has also put in place a reward system for employee contributions and self-improvement in the form of a yearend profit sharing. Already, he anticipates distributing a hefty sum when he hosts the company Christmas party.

(For more entrepreneurial stories, visit the Small Enterprises Research and Development Foundation website at www.serdef.org.)