Abstract
M.Comm.
Empowerment is one of the most discussed topics relating management style, culture, structural change and employee satisfaction. Once a company has introduced an employee empowerment strategy, there is very little guidance on how to determine if the strategy is effective and successful. Management is defined as getting things done through other people. What is to be done is not exactly described or- prescribed. No tasks are defined, the definition is generic and should fit all organisations, structures and people (Pretorius, 1997:1). However, over time a lot of management theories have evolved in describing the "how" of management. Together with these approaches, structures, cultures and management styles have formed that were and are still in use by companies today. The world has evolved from an Industrial Age to an Information Age where information is freely available. In an ever-increasing pace of change, most companies are changing the structure, culture and management styles in which they operate to keep up to improve market share, communications and productivity. Most bigger and older companies grew up in the era of structured power. This hierarchical structure of power has its origin in the Industrial Age. The emphasis was on mass production, standardisation, specialisation, stability and security. But even that has changed as "change" become the buzzword for survival. There has been a move in the late eighties and nineties, where change is the only constant. It is influenced by a total new set of needs, and left with the need for different attitudes, behaviour, management style and modus operandi. Responsible empowerment is seen by some as an essential part change management, because it can lead to both increased productivity, quality and employee satisfaction. Since there may be as many negatives talked about employee empowerment as there are positives, it is clear that empowerment does not work for all organisations. It is one of the most difficult aspects of continual improvement to implement (Stebbins, 1998). Involving people in the decisions they make, to make them feel responsible and accountable for their work is something that takes time, patience and perseverance. The idea of employee empowerment has considerable appeal to the participating business leaders and many are convinced that empowerment offers substantial potential benefits to companies,