Service-Based Leadership and Employee Empowerment

What are empowered employees and how can they help a club meet its mission and vision?? In the simplest terms empowered employees are viewed as full-fledged partners in the quest for high standards of quality and service.? Instead of the unfortunate view that employees are easily replaceable elements in an organization, people who must be trained to do narrow, well-defined tasks and who must always be closely watched and supervised, the concept of empowerment says that today’s more educated and sometimes more sophisticated employees need and want to contribute more to their employer and workplace.? Yet many businesses marginalize their employees by refusing to listen to them and by failing to let them contribute to the enterprise in any meaningful way.??

A few companies have truly embraced the concept of employee empowerment and have discovered the immense power and synergy that can be unleashed when employees participate more fully in their operations.? Any employee at a Ritz-Carlton hotel can spend up to $2,000 a day per guest to solve problems, not just to satisfy their guests, but to wow them with outside-the-box service.?

Yet it takes more than waving a magic wand over employees’ heads and telling them they can spend money to solve problems to reap the benefits of employee empowerment.? Like any complex and detail-intensive issue, establishing a culture of empowerment for employees requires leadership, careful planning, well-defined policies, and ongoing training and review to implement effectively.

In reviewing club operations, there are three principal areas where empowered employees can contribute significantly to improved performance:

·??Resolving member service issues.

·??Helping improve work processes as part of continual process improvement.

·??Taking on certain delegated management functions.

So, what does it take to create an environment that fosters employee empowerment.? As with all efforts to create and sustain excellence, it all starts with leadership.? The very term “service industry” gives hint to the necessary service-based leadership style for club managers where the people- and detail-intensive work environment requires open and thorough communication and training, as well as high levels of motivation and morale.? Certainly, one cannot expect employees to consistently provide service to a club’s members and guests if they are not properly served by the leadership and example of their bosses.

Service-Based Leadership differs from other leadership styles in its emphasis on serving the needs of employees to provide them with the proper tools, training, resources, engagement, example, motivation, and empowerment to serve the club’s members.? The importance of this support can be inferred by the question, “How can employees provide quality service if they are not properly served by the leadership, example, support, and ongoing engagement of their managers?”

A significant aim of Service-Based Leadership is the empowerment of employees at all levels to think and act in alignment with a club’s values as they serve the needs of members.? Ultimately, Service-Based Leadership is the foundation upon which empowerment is built.? It provides the necessary trust, training, and confidence for employees to take the initiative.

The major role that leaders play in empowering their employees is to create a culture where employees are valued and recognized as vital resources of the enterprise.? Leaders must also understand that to be successful with employee empowerment, employees must fully sense the club’s commitment to such empowerment; simply saying that employees are empowered does not make it so.? This means that the focus of leaders must not be on what employees are doing to achieve empowerment, but on what they themselves are doing to promote and enable it.

Therefore, leaders must embrace the principles of Service-Based Leadership and:

·??Be open with their employees.

·??Be trusting and trusted.

·??Be secure in themselves, their position, and their knowledge; not threatened by knowledgeable employees or those who show initiative.

·??Be willing to share praise and shoulder blame.

·??Be good communicators.

·??Understand and value the important role of line employees in the organization.

·??Place a positive emphasis on problem discovery and solution.? Placing blame is counterproductive.

·??Allow employees to demonstrate initiative and innovation with the reliable backing and engagement of their supervisors.

With Service-Based Leadership, the attitude and primary motivation of the leader is service to others – to members, to employees, to shareholders.? This approach to leadership naturally creates relationships – the deep and abiding bonds that sustain the efforts of the club.? This outward focus of the leader sets up a dynamic where:

·??Employees are continually recognized.

·??There is an unimpeded flow of ideas, opinions, and information.

·??Initiative and innovation are highly regarded.

·??Problem discovery and solution is a focus while placing blame is unimportant.

·??Every employee feels energized and part of the team and is valued for his or her contribution.

·??Prestige is derived from performance and contribution, not title or position.

·??Members are treated well because employees are treated well.

·??The energy and initiative of all employees are focused on the common effort.

With Service-Based Leadership, managers will find that service to both external and internal customers is effortless.? Less energy is expended in processing complaints, grievances, and conflicts.? Work is more fun, and everyone's job is easier.

John Tschohl, founder of the Quality Service Institute, famously said, “Without empowerment, an organization will never be a service leader. Empowerment is the most critical skill an employee can master, and a company can drive in order to lure and keep customers.”

For additional reading, see:

The Power of Employee Empowerment

Employee Empowerment – Transforming Service in Your Club

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