It Pays to Empower Employees

Is your boss too much a control freak? Do you feel that you could do much more for the company if only your boss would let you have a bit more autonomy? Well, you’re in luck: some new research findings point the way to a win/win for you and your boss.

A new survey of corporate chief financial officers by Robert Half Management Resources found that empowering employees can lead to increases in productivity – for the boss.

When asked, “If you gave your staff greater autonomy over how and when they do their jobs (such as flexible work hours, working remotely or less direct supervision), what effect, if any, do you feel it would have on your own productivity?”, 32% of CFOs said that their productivity would increase. Only 13% said that their productivity would decrease.

Other research suggests that giving employees greater flexibility and autonomy can certainly lead to those employees being more productive. But it’s interesting to see that it can also help the boss to be more productive.