Premium Essay

The Impact of Employee Empowerment

In:

Submitted By Hanibal
Words 23725
Pages 95
Paper: Bachelor Thesis in Business Administration. Department: School of Sustainable Development of society and Technology. School: Mälardalen University, Västerås. Period: VT-2008. Tutor: Leif Sanner. Date: June 5, 2008

The impact of employee empowerment on service quality and customer satisfaction in service organizations
(A Case study of Länsförsäkringar Bank AB)

Silvia C. Peters: 1982-05-15. Elham Mazdarani: 1976-12-11. GROUP: 1924

ABSTRACT COURSE: Bachelor Thesis in Business Administration, 15ECTS AUTHOURS: Peters Silvia Chigozirim. Flugsnappargatan 6, 3tr. 72472, Västerås. 0737225113. SUPERVISOR: LEIF SANNER TOPIC: The impact of employee empowerment on service quality and customer satisfaction: a case study of Länsförsäkringar AB. BACKGROUND: Considering the nature of service delivery and particularly intangible-dominant services, employee empowerment becomes a very important issue to organizations producing services. In that, the customers and the employees are, engaged simultaneously in the production of the service. This inseparability is what is considered by the organization in choosing how best to serve its customers, either by the traditional method or through the empowerment approach. The inability of the management to control the service encounter makes the employees responsible for the quality of service delivered to the customers. In order for the management to trust that the employees are successful in dealing with their customers, the management has to give the employees the authority and necessary support to succeed at it, which is referred to as employee empowerment. The practice of which can directly affect the quality of services delivered, and customer satisfaction. PURPOSE: The purpose of this research is to ascertain the extent to which Länsförsäkringar Bank AB practices employee empowerment in their organization and how it

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

The Impact of Empowerment on Employee Effectiveness and Employee Responsiveness in Banking Sector

...A PROJECT REPORT ON The Impact of Empowerment on Employee Effectiveness and Employee Responsiveness in Banking sector of Mysore Submitted by Deeksha.B USN-4JC10MBA35 Submitted to VISVESVARAYA TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY, BELGAUM, INDIA In December 2011 In partial fulfillment of the requirements For the award of MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION Under the guidance of Mr Girish Baga Assistant Professor Sri Jayachamarajendra College Of Engineering, Mysore Sri Jayachamarajendra College Of Engineering JSS Technical Institutions Campus, Mysore 570006 Autonomous institution affiliated to Visvesvaraya Technological University DECLARATION I,Deeksha.B , USN 4JC10MBA35 a student of Master of Business Administration at Sri Jayachamarajendra College of Engineering, JSS Technical Institution Campus, Mysore, India hereby declare that this project report titled “The Impact of Empowerment on Employee Effectiveness and Employee Responsiveness” is a record of an original and independent work carried out by me during the period july to december in the 3rd semester of the course under the guidance of Mr. Girish Baga Master of Business Administration, Sri Jayachamarajendra College of Engineering, JSS Technical Institution Campus, Mysore, India submitted to Visvesvaraya Technological University, Belgaum, India, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of Masters of Business Administration. I further declare that this project work and...

Words: 7048 - Pages: 29

Premium Essay

Production and Operations Functions Under the Changing Techno-Structural Environment

...Production and Operations Functions under the changing Techno-structural Environment By Shweta R. Chinchole September 2nd, 2013 Abstract: Majority of organizations today are restructuring, changing the work design and adapting the employee involvement (engagement) process in the business. However every function in an organization may or may not respond well to these changes. This paper focuses on the effects of Downsizing (effective way of restructuring the organization) and employee empowerment on the production and operation functions in the manufacturing industry. Employee empowerment has a positive impact on Production functions under specific conditions and with more of trust and social relationship between the management and employees. Empowerment is a boon to the manufacturing industry, as the in-depth knowledge of technical employees in operations is well utilized by the management. The Operation functions brings together raw materials with the production process to make products that customers need, here employees form the core, around which these processes revolve. Downsizing creates opportunities to identify, train and develop capable employees to fulfill more responsible roles in production and operation departments. Downsizing, from a company perspective, is a very positive event targeted to make their products better, increase their profit, and streamline operations. In organizations that have restructured, many do not handle the process of downsizing well and can...

Words: 5028 - Pages: 21

Free Essay

Empowerment

...Empowerment, Motivation, and Performance: Examining the Impact of Feedback and Incentives on Nonmanagement Employees By: A. Drake, J. Wong, & S. Salter Behavioral Research in Accounting, Volume 19, pp. 71-89 Renee Claussen Janet Page Kevin Sandmann Matt Schlemmer Micah Shornack Empowerment, Motivation, and Performance: Examining the Impact of Feedback and Incentives on Nonmanagement Employees It has been proven that the motivation level of employees can make or break an organization. This motivation level can be increased by the feeling of empowerment, and when the motivation level increases, so does organizational performance. Empowerment, a psychological concept, is greatly influenced by one’s habits, values, and surroundings. A model of psychological empowerment was developed by Gretchen Spreitzer, Professor of Management and Organizations at University of Michigan, and it is based on a survey of mid-level managers. Her model explains that by providing employees with performance feedback and rewards, the feeling of psychological empowerment will increase. In contrast to this model, Drake, Wong, & Salter (2007) conduct an experiment which uses subjects representative of lower-level employees, rather than mid-level managers. They choose to focus on lower-level employees because little research has been published that investigates the ideas of empowerment within this group (Drake, Wong, & Salter, 2007). The lower-level employees are directly...

Words: 2153 - Pages: 9

Free Essay

Empowerment

...EMPLOYEE EMPOWERMENT Employee empowerment is creating a working environment where an employee is allowed to make his own decisions in specific work-related situations. It helps in giving platform to the employees for their words. It makes a healthy environment in a organization. Guidelines for effective employee empowerment • Select the right managers. • Choose the right employees. • Provide training. • Offer guidance. • Hold everyone accountable. • Build trust. • Focus on relationships. • Transform mistakes into opportunities. • Reward and recognize. • Share authority instead of giving it up. • Encourage disagree. • Give it time. • Share information. • Realize that empowerment has its limitations. • Watch for mixed messages. • Involve employees in decision-making. • Be prepared for increased variation. Employee empowerment is good because of job satisfaction, motivation, productivity, creativity and innovation. Whilst it increases the efficiency in employees. Employees when empowered become more entrepreneurial and start taking more risks. Greater the risk, greater are the chances to succeed. As with the positivity there exist negativity, similarly there are many disadvantages of empowerment. • Egotism / arrogance • Security • Risks • Industrial democracy Therefore the best executives are one who has the sense enough to pick good men to do what he wants done, and self-restraint enough to keep from meddling with them while they do it. WHAT’S BEHIND...

Words: 1283 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

The Impact of Hr Focused Tqm Practices on Employee Satisfaction & Loyalty in the Financial Sector of Pakistan

...The Impact of HR Focused TQM Practices on Employee Satisfaction & Loyalty in the Financial Sector of Pakistan Burhan Nawaz Butt, Aamir Daraz, Nauman Imtiaz, Junaid Jameel, Ali Raza, Zunair Akram, Tauqeer Ahmad, Farhat Abbas, Israr Khan Niazi, Javeria Mehmood, Irum Naz Department of Management Sciences, Mohammad Ali Jinnah University, Islamabad, Pakistan Abstract: Introduction: * Research Objectives: * Financial Sector of Pakistan: Literature Review: * TQM and its Importance: It has been argued that the use of TQM practices has a synergistic impact on organizational performance (Schonberger, 1986; Cobb, 1993). Some studies have found that the use of TQM practices reduces manufacturing process variance, eliminates reworks and scraps, and improves quality performance (see Daniel and Reitsperger (1991), Flynn et al. (1995) and Schmenner and Cook (1985). In addition, there is considerable anecdotal evidence (Crosby, 1984; Hayes and Wheelwright, 1984; Gerwin, 1987; Harmon and Peterson, 1990) on the extent to which TQM initiatives enhance the potential for firms to improve their performance. More recently, empirical evidence suggests that there are direct and indirect relationships between the adoption of TQM practices and firms’ performance levels (Hendricks and Singhal, 2001; Kaynak, 2003). Fortune 1000 companies surveyed indicated that firms achieved greatest success when they pursued both TQM and employment involvement simultaneously. Kevin...

Words: 10408 - Pages: 42

Premium Essay

Factor Affecting Employee Motivation

...4002‬ ‫-‬ ‫‪Significant conditions in Employees‬‬ ‫‪Empowerment: the Case of Jordanian‬‬ ‫‪four Star hotels‬‬ ‫د. ﻳﺤﻴﻰ ﻡﻠﺤﻢ‬ ‫ﺟﺎﻣﻌﺔ اﻟﻴﺮﻣﻮك‬ ‫اﻟﻤﻤﻠﻜﺔ اﻷردﻥﻴﺔ اﻟﻬﺎﺵﻤﻴﺔ‬ ‫233‬ Abstract Data from 95 frontline hotel employees in 10 four star hotel in Jordan show strong association between three significant conditions (communication and information-flow, incentives, and knowledge and skill) and employee empowerment. The findings in this research suggest that communication and information-flow, incentives, knowledge and skill and autonomy among hotel service-employees may have a direct and strong impact on the empowerment of hotel service employees. These four conditions accounted for significant variation in the levels of employee empowerment in four star hotels in Jordan. Levels of empowerment seem to further impact the level of employee job satisfaction indicating a significant association. Implications for future research and for management practice are discussed. Introduction In a competitive environment in which organizations must be faster, leaner, provide better service quality, be more efficient, and more profitable, an empowered and proactive service worker is thought to be essential (Bowen and Lawer, 1992; Fulford and Enz, 1995; Bowen and Lawler, 1995). However, delegation of authority for a long period of time in the past, dominated the management field. In fact, this view changed into the “empowerment” concept as mentioned by Kocel (1998). It covers the participation...

Words: 7427 - Pages: 30

Premium Essay

Crіtіcаl Еvаluаtion of Rеѕеаrch Mеthοdѕ Аррlіеd Tο А Hοѕріtаlіty Cοntеxt

...Crіtіcаl Еvаluаtion Of Rеѕеаrch Mеthοdѕ Аррlіеd Tο А Hοѕріtаlіty Cοntеxt Dеductіvе vs. Іnductіvе Based on dеductіvе vs. inductіvе techniques whenever researchers conduct research in hospitality and tourism research proejcts they dіѕtіnguіѕh bеtwееn twο bаѕіc kіndѕ οf аrgumеnt: іnductіvе аnd dеductіvе. Іnductіοn іѕ uѕuаlly dеѕcrіbеd аѕ mοvіng frοm thе ѕреcіfіc tο thе gеnеrаl, whіlе dеductіοn bеgіnѕ wіth thе gеnеrаl аnd еndѕ wіth thе ѕреcіfіc; аrgumеntѕ bаѕеd οn еxреrіеncе οr οbѕеrvаtіοn аrе bеѕt еxрrеѕѕеd іnductіvеly, whіlе аrgumеntѕ bаѕеd οn lаwѕ, rulеѕ, οr οthеr wіdеly аccерtеd рrіncірlеѕ аrе bеѕt еxрrеѕѕеd dеductіvеly. А dеductіvе аrgumеnt іѕ οnе whοѕе cοncluѕіοn fοllοwѕ frοm thе рrеmіѕеѕ аѕ rеquіrеd. Thіѕ fеаturе іѕ cаllеd vаlіdіty аnd іѕ whаt dіѕtіnguіѕhеѕ іt is frοm οthеr аrgumеntѕ, ѕuch аѕ thе іnductіvе аnаlοguе. А nеcеѕѕаry rеlаtіοnѕhір еѕtаblіѕhеd bеtwееn рrеmіѕеѕ аnd cοncluѕіοn іѕ cаllеd vаlіdіty. Dеductіvе rеаѕοnіng іѕ rеаѕοnіng thаt іnvοlvеѕ а hіеrаrchy οf ѕtаtеmеntѕ οr truthѕ. Ѕtаrtіng wіth а lіmіtеd numbеr οf ѕіmрlе ѕtаtеmеntѕ οr аѕѕumрtіοnѕ, ѕtаtеmеntѕ thаt аrе mοrе cοmрlеx cаn bе buіlt uр frοm thе mοrе bаѕіc οnеѕ. Іf-thеn dеductіvе rеаѕοnіng іѕ hοw ѕcіеntіѕtѕ (аnd οthеr реοрlе!) cаn tеѕt аltеrnаtе hyрοthеѕеѕ. Mаkіng dеductіοnѕ іѕ іmрοrtаnt whеn wе cаnnοt dіrеctly οbѕеrvе а cаuѕе, аnd cаn οnly οbѕеrvе іtѕ cοnѕеquеncеѕ. Thіѕ kіnd οf rеаѕοnіng cаn bе mοdеlеd by thе fοllοwіng:  Іf ...  Thеn...  But...  Thеrеfοrе... On the other ahdn inductіvе rеаѕοnіng...

Words: 6601 - Pages: 27

Free Essay

Empowerment Leadership

...EMPOWERING LEADERSHIP AND EMPLOYEE CREATIVITY Abstract: This paper is organized as follows. First we explain the theory on psychological empowerment and various leadership theories to develop a relationship between empowering leadership and employee creativity. Secondly it provides case studies to support the empowerment theories. We argue that the use positive psychology, specifically empowering leadership, contributes to employee success within an organization. The paper cites research by various highly esteemed professors and the primary sources were various internet articles, journals and websites. Introduction The use of positive psychology, originally proposed by Martin Seligman in his 1998 Presidential Address to the American Psychological Association, has been garnering support in recent studies. It focuses not on why people fail, but rather why they flourish and excel. Recent studies have shown that Empowering Leadership can affect employee creativity. By use of the word “creativity” we refer to the “out of the box’ ideas used in production and problem solving. Professor Alex Linley of the University of Leicester maintained that part of the empowering process calls for the leader to delegate authority which empowers the employee to make decisions and implement actions without direct supervision. This expression of confidence in the employee results in developing the employees feeling of self-efficacy which manifest “in four cognitions: meaning, competence...

Words: 2033 - Pages: 9

Premium Essay

The Effects of Employee

...The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at www.emeraldinsight.com/0959-6119.htm IJCHM 23,6 The effects of employee empowerment on employee job satisfaction A study on hotels in Turkey Elbeyi Pelit School of Tourism and Hotel Management, Afyon Kocatepe University, Afyonkarahisar, Turkey 784 Received 22 April 2010 Revised 31 July 2010 8 October 2010 28 December 2010 18 February 2011 Accepted 26 February 2011 ¨ ¨ ¨ Yuksel Ozturk ¨ ¸ Faculty of Tourism, Gazi University, Golbası-Ankara, Turkey, and ¨ Yalcın Arslanturk ¸ ¨ ¸ Faculty of Commerce and Tourism Education, Gazi University, Golbası-Ankara, Turkey Abstract Purpose – The main objective of this study is to determine the impact of employee empowerment on job satisfaction. To serve this purpose, empowerment is taken into consideration as two dimensions – i.e. behavioral and psychological – and the effect of employee empowerment on the level of job satisfaction was examined by taking these two dimensions into consideration as a whole and separately. Design/methodology/approach – A questionnaire was employed in order to collect data on job satisfaction as well as behavioral and psychological empowerment. The data collected were analyzed through correlation and regression analyses. The study covered 1,854 participants employed at five-star hotels in Turkey. Findings – The findings suggest that the most positive aspects related to job satisfaction are relations with the colleagues...

Words: 9769 - Pages: 40

Premium Essay

Is Empowerment a Valuable Tool for Increasing Efficiency and Effectiveness in Today’s Organisations?

...Is empowerment a valuable tool for increasing efficiency and effectiveness in today’s organisations? In recent years, the degree of competition in the business world has increase dramatically, business has to be able to adapt with the change of the environment, law, and technology. Many managerial practices have been developed to enable the organisation to increase its efficiency and effectiveness. Empowerment as a tool that focusing on increasing employee motivation to contribute on the organisation has been discussed in widely for years, many scholars have conducted a large number of study on this regard. From various journal articles, this paper will define and discuss the benefit of the concept of empowerment on the organisation in three different aspects, first, the individual empowerment which personal perception on the workplace. Second, empowerment climate which is directly related to firm’s code of conducts as well as structures. Lastly, the relationship across two level or multi-level empowerment will be explained and discussed. The question that is the empowerment a valuable tool for increasing organisation’s efficiency and effectiveness will also be answered There are arguments on the definition of empowerment since this concept is complex and can be explained on multiple dimensions, levels, and disciplines. Definition of empowerment in general was explicitly given by Conger and Kanungo (1988) as “ a process of enhancing feeling of self-efficacy among organisational...

Words: 2428 - Pages: 10

Premium Essay

The Employee Empowerment

...The Employee Empowerment 1 Running head: THE EMPLOYEE EMPOWERMENT IN IT DEPARTMENT The Employee Empowerment in Information Technology Department Arman Kanooni Capella University COMP8004 – Managing and Organizing People Professor: Dr. Will I Reed November 7, 2005 The Employee Empowerment 2 Abstract Many Information Technology (IT) Departments in major corporations are trying to shift the management practices from a traditional style of command and control toward the participatory management style. They encourage virtual teams, global mobile telecommuting, flexible hours, and greater participation of employees in the decision-making process in work groups. In this paper, we examine an employee versus a manager conceptual model of employee empowerment program and examine this issue in light of relevant theories of leadership, motivation theories, and cognitive science. The barriers to employee involvement are reviewed and some effective methods to remove these obstacles will be explored. Finally, the notion of delegation of decision making from managers to employees will be addressed in the context of the employee empowerment program. The Employee Empowerment 3 Table of Contents Introduction..................................................................................................................................... 4 What is empowerment?................................................................................................................... 5 Goals and...

Words: 4124 - Pages: 17

Premium Essay

Case Study

...September, 2014 N. Akhtar, Syed M. Azeem, Ghullam M. Mir. Impact of HRM practices on perceived organizational performance. International Journal of Academic Research Part B; 2014; 6(5), 23-30. DOI: 10.7813/2075-4124.2014/6-5/B.3 Library of Congress Classification: L7-991 IMPACT OF HRM PRACTICES ON PERCEIVED ORGANIZATIONAL PERFORMANCE 1 2 Nadeem Akhtar , Syed Muhammad Azeem , Ghullam Mustafa Mir 3 1,2 Yanbu University College (SAUDI ARABIA) 3 University of Gujrat (PAKISTAN) Emails: muhammadn@rcyci.edu.sa, azeems@rcyci.edu.sa, mustafa.mir@uog.edu.pk DOI: 10.7813/2075-4124.2014/6-5/B.3 Received: 16 Feb, 2014 Accepted: 05 Jul, 2014 ABSTRACT Present study examines the role of HRM practices in perceived organizational performance. A questionnaire consisting 50 items is used to collect the data from higher education institutions in Pakistan. The results revealed that HRM practices have significant relationship with perceived organizational performance. Promotion is not found significant as a predictor of commitment as HR outcome. Regression analyses show that promotion and empowerment are significant predictors of commitment. Empowerment was found to be a significant predictor of perceived organizational performance. Key words: Empowerment, Commitment, Perceived organization performance, Promotion 1. INTRODUCTION Earlier studies on human resource management focused on individual impact of HRM practices on firm’s performance, however in recent...

Words: 3018 - Pages: 13

Premium Essay

Empowerment

...Papers Series 2006 Vol. 3, No. 3, 210-231 © 2006 Eastern Academy of Management ISSN 1541-6518 www.omj-online.org Effective Empowerment in Organizations GARY A. YUKL University at Albany WENDY S. BECKER University at Albany Psychological empowerment is the perception that workers can help determine their own work roles, accomplish meaningful work, and influence important decisions. Empowerment has been studied from different perspectives, including employee perceptions, leadership behaviors, and management programs. Despite positive rhetoric, programs designed to increase empowerment seldom achieve the benefits promised. Inconclusive and seemingly contradictory outcomes stem from the fact that few companies give employees significant control and access to management information. A half century of research suggests that empowerment strategies can offer real benefits. We outline facilitating conditions for effective empowerment, including characteristics of organizations, leaders, employees, and the work itself. Keywords: Empowerment, Leadership, Teams, Power Sharing Effective Empowerment in Organizations Psychological empowerment in organizations is the perception by members that they have the opportunity to help determine work roles, accomplish meaningful work, and influence important decisions. Over the past several decades an interest in empowerment can be seen in many subject areas within psychology and management, including motivation, leadership, group processes, decision...

Words: 9742 - Pages: 39

Premium Essay

Job Satisfaction

...Jamaludin Matrix No : MHA152028 Date : 27 October 2015 Journal : Pelit, E., Öztürk, Y., & Arslantürk, Y. (2011). The Effects of Employee Empowerment on Employee Job Satisfaction. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, Vol. 23. No. 6, 2011: Pages 784-802. ------------------------------------------------- 1. Summarize the research objectives, methodology, findings and conclusion of your chosen journal. The objective of this research is to determine the impact of employee empowerment on job satisfaction whereby by considering two dimensions which is behavioral and psychological as a whole and separately. The questionnaire was distributed to 1,854 participants employed at five-star hotels in Turkey in order to collect the data on job satisfaction together with behavioral and psychological empowerment. The data that has been collected were analyzed through correlation and regression analyses. The findings of this research indicate that the most positive aspect related to job satisfaction are relations with colleagues and physical conditions, while the most negative aspect is unfair payment. Further, correlation and regression analyses indicate that psychological and behavioral empowerment has significant effect on job satisfaction and the effect is much greater when behavioral and psychological empowerment are taken as a whole. 2. Analyze the issues found in the journal with reference to a model/theory/concept from the respective...

Words: 715 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Sustainability Report

...benefit. The work execution will be really the item of an employee's motivation and capability. The capacity and aptitudes will be in this way procured through preparing, while on the work execution will be additionally obliged (Schiller, 1996). Late studies have demonstrated, that the fulfilled employees tend to be more effective, inventive, and devoted to their employees (Syptak, M.david, and Ulmer, 1996). 1.2 Motivation is the key to Performance Motivation is the way to employee execution. Profoundly energetic employees are considered to be genuine holdings for any organisation. When inspired, they fundamentally tend to be more effective, vigorous, and will be exceptionally much enthusiastic to take an extra obligation (David, 2005). At the end of the day, a spurred employee is essentially a profitable representative, and accordingly gainful workers can do ponders for an association ( Tschohl , 2006 – Web 14). Employee motivation will be of basic significance in today's focused work environment on the grounds that a propelled work power helps to give an organization a supported aggressive advantage (Schiller, 1996). Motivation alludes to the mental methodology, conduct, reason, and heading. By engaging to this...

Words: 4230 - Pages: 17