Employees Need to Be Held Accountable for Their Work

It is true that employees need to be held accountable for their work. This is primarily the essence of empowerment, besides the need to develop a productive, specialized, and dedicated workforce. However, the leader should not distance themselves from their employees after they empower them. It is imperative to highlight that empowerment does not translate into the neglect of the employees. If a leader teaches his subordinates how to handle a task, he needs to be there with his subordinates to ensure that the task has been well handled. Besides, employees constantly need motivation and reassurance from their leader, and the physical presence provides that reassurance. While the law of empowerment requires that a secure leader gives power to his followers that power should not come at the expense of neglect or insubordination. Respect and loyalty are fundamental constructs of the leader-follower relationship ( Kim & Fernandez, 2017). These constructs need to be cemented by empowerment, in consideration with the other functional laws of reproduction, timing, connection, and solid ground. Forging a positive relationship with the employees enhances trust and mutual responsibility, thus making both parties accountable for their actions.

Empowerment aims at placing the needs of the follower first before the needs of the leader, this in itself empowers followers to own their work and contributions to any particular organization or undertaking. Employee empowerment occurs when superiors bolster the juniors’ beliefs and their capability to choose on the basis that they have the decision making control power (Kim & Fernandez, 2017). Scholars and theorists perceive that people will feel more empowered if they possess freedom or power to decide on how to carry out work-related duties. This perception is supported by management research which has revealed a good relationship between workers empowerment and their attitudes, job utility, and focus on the organization's operations. Empowered workers who practice freedom in making decisions usually enjoy their work more and show more satisfaction to their team and company.

Reference

Kim, S. Y., & Fernandez, S. (2017). Employee empowerment and turnover intention in the US federal bureaucracy.  The American Review of Public Administration ,  47 (1), 4-22. Retrieved from https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0275074015583712