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DAVID GERSHON

The Practice of Empowerment Changing Behavior and Developing Talent in Organizations

The core of the matter is always about changing the behavior of people. In highly successful change efforts the central challenge is not strategy, not systems … but changing people’s behavior.

—John Kotter and Dan Cohen

Building Partnerships—Overcoming Barriers

Bob Franco, vice president of the Global Talent Division at American Express, tells his story about a successful application of the Practice of Empowerment:

A key challenge in institutions is how to move individuals to higher levels of performance, specifically when it involves building partnerships within complex organizational systems. Our team had been working under circumstances that in many ways prevented their ability to achieve our mission—there were barriers such as lack of access to critical information or key partners, and limited experience—creating results in a politicized environment.

The highly effective empowerment tools helped produce significant, measurable and sustainable behavior change within our team. This process helped us separate the circumstance around us charged with a disempowering “pathology,” and helped us focus our own personal accountability toward what we can accomplish and what we are ultimately capable of attaining. After a deep assessment of our organizational culture and challenges, this process enabled us to build our consulting skills, leverage our collective talent and create business results.

The results were a clearly defined value proposition and an ability to be successful despite any organizational barriers. This process moved us away from the crippling power of “problems” to a new power—one inside us, one focused on what we want to create. Through this work, this team now has daily practices focusing on their vision. We are empowered!

Frequently Asked Questions

WHAT IS THE PRACTICE OF EMPOWERMENT?

The Practice of Empowerment is the process of enabling individuals to adopt new behaviors that further their individual aspirations and that of the organization (see figure 1). It is based on 25 years of research and practice and has been applied by hundreds of change practitioners in organizations throughout the world.

Figure 1. The Practice of Empowerment: Changing Behavior and Developing Talent in Organizations

EMPOWERING THE SPACE

In order for Bob’s group to adopt new behaviors and develop their talent, a learning and growth culture first had to be established. Many change interventions assume that an organization’s learning and growth capacity is inherent. They neglect to see if the cultural ingredients are present, and because they rarely are, the organization’s ability to achieve the desired behavior change is limited.

Using the analogy of nature, for new seeds to take root, they need fertile soil. Fertile soil in an organization is a learning and growth culture. To create this type of culture requires that a set of practices be established, which I call “empowering the space.” An empowered space enables individuals to feel safe and trusting enough to risk true growth. The six practices described below are experienced during the training, and then the group is assisted in establishing them in their work culture.

• Self-Responsibility: Individuals take responsibility to make their job, team, and organization the way they want them to be.

• Authentic Communication: Individual communication is open, honest, and transparent.

• Trust: Individuals feel safe enough to try out new behaviors and take risks.

• Learning and Growing: Individuals are encouraged to work on the real behaviors they need to change.

• Interpersonal Process Skills: Protocols and skills are learned to resolve interpersonal issues.

• Caring: Leadership demonstrates tangible concern for individuals.

With the groundwork for behavior change in place, the empowerment model provides the overall transformation strategy.

EMPOWERMENT MODEL

Shift from Pathology to a Vision

Where we place our attention is what we create. Shifting our focus from what doesn’t work to what can work motivates us to take action. It’s the difference in planting a garden from focusing on removing weeds to envisioning flowers in full bloom.

Shift from Static to Organic Growth (Growing Edge)

Many of us view growth as a static process. There is a place to get to and I’m either there or not. Until I get there I’m frustrated or discontent, and when I get there my growth is over. The natural world provides an alternative model for growing. If a tree is alive, it is always growing. The place where this growth is coming into existence is its growing edge; it is the place of greatest aliveness. Similarly, we feel our greatest aliveness at our growing edges.

Integration of Self-Awareness and Behavior Change

Many growth processes assume that if we are aware of something, we will do it. The focus is on increasing self-awareness. While awareness increases our self-knowledge, it rarely leads to a change in behavior. On the other hand, we can set a goal for something we want, harness our wills to achieve it, and then discover that it wasn’t really what we wanted. We did not have enough self-awareness.

EMPOWERMENT METHODOLOGY

The four-part empowerment methodology activates this transformational strategy and provides the operating system for behavior change.

• Self-Awareness—Increases knowledge to determine what is desired. (Where am I now?)

• Vision Crafting—Translates knowledge into a compelling vision. (Where do I want to go?)

• Transformation—Identifies and transforms limiting beliefs with vision adjusted as needed. (What do I need to change to get there?)

• Growing Edge—Uses directed thought to mentally seed next growth step. (What’s my next step?)

The process culminates in an individual intention statement and image that represents the next place of growth around the desired behavior or outcome.

Let’s go back and follow Bob through this process. As a result of a series of guided exercises around each of these four steps, he and his team were able to adopt the behavior of self-responsibility, and move from being victims within a dysfunctional organization to being at cause for how they wished it to be and choosing a different possibility.

First, Bob went through a self-awareness exercise. He discovered he was going through the motions and had lost a lot of passion for his consulting and leadership. As he went through the visioning exercise, he saw it was possible that he and his team could develop a more robust skill-set that could more effectively serve their clients. He realized that rather than being trapped, he could rise above the dysfunctional system if he could increase the capability of his team.

However, when Bob came down from the mountaintop, he saw that this achievement would not be easy. Were he and his team up to it? Would his clients participate? He then went through a transformation exercise in which he identified and turned around these limiting beliefs.

His growing edge was believing in his team and being willing to engage in this transformation process. In the past, Bob had needed to lift everyone by the force of his vision and will. As each team member revealed his or her growing edges, it became clear that they were developing the capacity to do this on their own.

Bob translated his growing edge into this intention statement: “I help my team build our consulting skills and leverage our collective talent to create business results. I lead and am led by an empowering team who knows what it wants and gets it!”

A support system of coaching calls and master classes were established to help sustain the behavior changes.

ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE INTERVENTION

• Step 1: Interview leadership to determine behavior changes and talent development strategy.

• Step 2: Assess culture on six practices to determine its capacity to change behavior.

• Step 3: Establish metrics and design empowerment intervention.

• Step 4: Pilot program.

• Step 5: Iterate, stabilize, and scale.

Table of Uses

About the Author

David Gershon ([email protected]), founder and CEO of Empowerment Institute, is a world-renowned expert on empowerment and behavior change. He is the author of nine books, including the best-selling Empowerment, which has become a classic on the subject. He is currently writing The Practice of Empowerment: Changing Behavior in Organizations and Society. He codirects the Empowerment Institute Certification Program, which specializes in transformative change coaching, training, and design. He has lectured on his behavior change and empowerment methodology at Harvard, MIT, and Duke, and served as an advisor to the Clinton White House.

Where to Go for More Information

REFERENCES

Empowerment Institute Certification Program. www.empowermentinstitute.net/files/Cert_Program.html.

Training program to change behavior at personal, organizational, and societal levels,

Gershon, David, and Gail Straub. Empowerment: The Art of Creating Your Life As You Want It. New York: Delta, 1989.

A classic on personal empowerment. Provides underlying approach used in the organizational behavior change work.

INFLUENTIAL SOURCES

Allen, James. As a Man Thinketh. Philadelphia: Running Press, 1989.

Maslow, Abraham. Toward a Psychology of Being. 2d ed. New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold, 1982.

ORGANIZATION

Empowerment Institute—www.empowermentinstitute.net