"The Empowerment Imperative: Six Steps to a High Performance Organization" by
Daniel Quinn Mills, Human Resource Development Press, Inc. (22 Amherst Road,
Amherst, Massachusetts 01002), 1994, 146 pages, $14.95 (list)
 
A Book Review by
Norman C. Frank, PE, CQE, CQA
CER Corporation, Washington, DC
 
"The Empowerment Imperative" addresses management's need do more with no
increase in resources.  The book is written in a dialog style with Charles
and Susan learning the ins and outs of empowerment by gathering information
>from experts and discussing their ideas and fears while trying to apply the
concept of empowerment to their own organization.  The conversations are
realistic and insightful, helping to bring into focus the total concept of
empowerment.  The pitfalls of bringing empowerment into the workplace are
discussed along with the realities of having to take action in addition to
your regular duties while making a profit for the shareholders without
additional resources.  The results of their conversations are "written" on a
white board or on a flip chart.  These become the lessons for us to learn.
 
This book is valuable for anyone managing toward an "empowered"
organizational structure, anyone assigned the role of "change agent" (e.g.,
ISO Coordinator), and anyone who will be working within an empowered
organization.
 
Three major management styles, Organize/Deputize/Supervise - Autocratic,
Organize/Deputize/Supervise - Participative, and GEM are discussed, then the
benefits of using the "GEM" management style are covered in detail.  The GEM
management style is the empowering management style that forms the basis for
the balance of the book.  GEM stands for Set Goals, Empower, and Measure.
 
Mills develops six steps for bringing empowerment into the workplace: 1)
Fault Tolerance, 2) Building Trust, 3) Vision, 4) Setting Goals, 5)
Measurement, and 6) Motivation.  Each step is covered in detail along with
some of the problems associated with the step.
 
The book closes with three chapters that help you bring empowerment into the
workplace by covering what training will be needed by people as they become
more empowered, how to manage change within the organization, and how to
apply GEM management to the organization.
 
Mills provides a quick, easy introduction to empowerment, how it can benefit
an organization, and how to begin bringing it into your organization.  The
dialog style makes it interesting to read, while conveying the important
information.
 
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Mr. Frank has over 25 years experience in the field of quality, in the areas
of nuclear quality assurance, research and development, and consulting.  He
is currently in Washington, D.C., with CER Corporation out of Las Vegas,
Nevada, and can be reached at 202-488-5444.