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Crucial to the effectiveness of yielding power to the people is the need for clear and constant communication. Some CEOs take an especially proactive approach. "If you actually ask people for ideas, they will tell you. But the burden is on you to ask, or they won't think you're interested. When you do ask, you find an amazing pot of gold," says Rusty Childress of Childress Buick Co., a Phoenix auto dealership.
Childress began empowering employees in 1988 as part of his "crisis management" plan. Customer satisfaction had dropped drastically -- retention was down to 30%. To improve it, he disassembled the company's autocratic management style. Today he stresses that he wants his employees to use their judgment and initiative from day one. The message is getting through; recently, a team from the service department decided to run a shuttle-bus service to a local horse-race track for customers who had cars in the shop.
In the showroom, salesman Jim Lather finds the latitude a big asset. "We all work our own deals from start to finish," he says. "Customers are more relaxed when they know they're dealing with someone who doesn't have to go ask the manager for a price every two minutes." These days Childress enjoys retention rates of up to 70%, remarkable in the car business.
One precept of autonomy, of course, is the belief that employees want to do a good job. What impresses Bob Freese, CEO of Alphatronix Inc., in Research Triangle Park, N.C., is how hard people will work when they're allowed to set their own objectives. "We let employees tell us when they can accomplish a project and what resources they need," he says. "Virtually always, they set higher goals than we would ever set for them."
Another precept: when you entrust employees to make decisions, some parameters must be set. "You can't just hire the best people and let them have at it," says Curt Rawley, CEO of Avid Technology Inc., in Tewksbury, Mass. What's called for is a set of checks and balances. "You're given some general guidelines, but after that you're free to get the job done the best way you can," says Marc Oliver, an equipment tester at Avid.
At Action Instruments Inc., in San Diego, CEO Jim Pinto calls those guidelines "gray boundaries." The scope of autonomy at Action depends on an employee's duties. Test technician Juan Estrada thinks it's terrific that he can handle an unexpected test situation if his supervisor isn't around. For systems analyst Brett Henning, the authority level is higher. "I get a start point for a project and an end point, and I fill in the middle," he says. "Right now we're rewriting the computerized inventory system. So I assemble a team of people who have a stake in it, and we pretty much decide everything."
Employee autonomy works a little differently in every company, and its effectiveness lies as much in the nuances of empowerment as in the broad outlines. If it were otherwise, everyone would be doing it by now.
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Companies with a high level of job autonomy usually have these characteristics:
They invest a lot of time and effort in hiring, to make sure new recruits can handle workplace freedom.
Their organizational hierarchy is flat.
They set loose guidelines, so workers know their decision-making parameters.
Accountability is paramount. Results matter more than process.
High-quality performance is always expected.
Openness and strong communication are encouraged.
Employee satisfaction is a core value.
BEST JOB AUTONOMY
Action Instruments
San Diego
Instrument manufacturer
200 employees, $25 million in sales
Urges employees to "make it happen" to solve problems that they discover. Sets loose boundaries to define scope of autonomy. Engenders self-motivation through open-book financial disclosure.
Advanced Network Design
La Mirada, Calif.
Phone-service reseller
20 employees, $3.7 million in sales
Hires rigorously, trains thoroughly, and then turns employees loose to perform. Provides very little supervision for anyone, including receptionist. Has employees report work progress weekly or monthly.
Alphatronix
Research Triangle Park, N.C.
Optical-storage-systems maker
70 employees, $11.8 million in sales
Puts recruits through up to five interviews, then assigns them their own projects. Has employees set their own goals and timetables for project completion.
Avid Technology
Tewksbury, Mass.
Film-editing-system maker
320 employees, $50 million in sales
Screens potential hires based on company's 10 core values, like teamwork, honesty, and passion to win. Lets employees design their own work schedules.
Childress Buick
Phoenix
Automobile dealer
105 employees, $30 million in sales
Empowers salespeople to cut deals on their own. Urges ser-vice-department teams to boost customer satisfaction. Actively solicits employee ideas.
Job Boss Software
Minneapolis
Developer of factory software
40 employees, $2.3 million in sales
Encourages employees to take ownership of their jobs. Hires rigorously, trains well, and then grants employees wide latitude. Has managers act more as facilitators than as bosses.
