Beyond Empowerment The age of the self-managed organization

by Doug Kirkpatrick

Empowerment programs swept through corporate America in the last two decades. Unfortunately, bolting empowerment programs onto existing power structures often led to the appearance of empowerment--without the actual power. Going beyond empowerment means that people have all the power they need from the very moment they join a company--regardless of the level of responsibility or complexity. They are immune from threats or coercion. They are free to seek any needed resources and relationships on their own initiative. And they are held fully accountable for results by themselves, their colleagues and the organization's mission.

Genres: Business, Management, Nonfiction

145 pages, Paperback

First published August 31, 2011

Reviews

[Rebecca Angela · Rating 4 out of 5]

As far as business centric books go with the topic of self management. This has been the easiest way to grasp the full concept of self management for me. I have read other books and went in to this book already knowing the main points but seeing the example of "BerryWay" made it really sink in.

[Evan Leybourn · Rating 4 out of 5]

While controversial (and I certainly don't agree with all of it), this is one of the most innovative approaches to business management and staff empowerment I have read. Built around the idea that individuals can be truly accountable in their work, Beyond Empowerment is a must read for any business leader looking for new ways to operate.

I would love to see more case studies and practical implementation suggestions.

[Tadhg · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author does a great job of describing self-management in a detailed way using a fictionalised account of BerryWay. This really filled in the gaps I had from reading Reinventing Organizations.
4.5 stars.

[Hunter Hastings · Rating 5 out of 5]

Doug Kirkpatrick is our leading thinker on self-managed firms.

Traditional management built on command-and-control hierarchies and bureaucratic compliance engines is a horrible error that has strangled value creation for 150 years. We’re just now breaking free and realizing the potential of “no-management”. Doug Kirkpatrick surveys the new field and shows us all the possibilities and potentialities.

[Fran Cormack · Rating 3 out of 5]

A personal bias, but I struggle reading books that are written in the form of a fable. The lessons and learnings feel less real. To me at least.

That said there is pointers that can be taken from this book if you are researching self management.

[Jan Höglund · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is a book about an interesting topic, but the format—an imagined story—didn't work for me. Chapter Eight: Self-Management Comes to the Organization is worth reading. My view.