Mid-level leaders are often expected to implement employee empowerment initiatives, yet many do not have a clear understanding of how to empower employees. To address this issue, a model of empowering leadership was developed. The model presents specific, actionable behaviors that a leader should perform in order to empower employees. The model comprises 13 factors built around the areas of ability, accountability, and authority. First, leaders must ensure employees have the ability to be empowered. To do so, they must (a) build employee organizational knowledge, (b) provide access to pertinent information, (c) assure employees have the necessary skill set, and (d) identify and provide needed resources. Second, leaders must create systems of accountability for employee outcomes by (e) setting a standard of continuous improvement, (f) recognizing and rewarding good work, (g) regularly evaluating employee efforts, and (h) providing continuous feedback on employee efforts. Third, leaders should provide employees with the authority to be empowered by (i) serving as advocates of employee efforts, (j) providing an environment that is conducive to empowerment, (k) setting a clear and consistent direction to guide employee efforts, and (l) building systems and structures to support employee empowerment. The thirteenth factor of the model is a constant focus on the work, because without the work there is no real reason for empowerment. A review of the existing literature suggests a need for empirical research on empowerment concepts. This dissertation empirically investigated empowering leadership with two studies. The first focused on development of measures, while the second focused on model development. The measurement study supported the three general areas of ability, accountability, and authority, although the accountability area was weak. Results of the model examination study indicated that the model largely behaved as expected, but did require some modification. Based on the model exploration, four of the original 13 dimensions (set a standard of continuous improvement, provide continuous feedback on employee efforts, set a clear and consistent direction to guide employee efforts, and focus on work) were removed. Finally, the study revealed that a relationship does exist between employee empowerment and empowering leadership.

Research purpose The purpose of this study is to examine the extent to which both employees and leaders in extreme environments perceive the same levels of safety participation. Furthermore, this study examines the association between empowering leadership and team performance as well as empowering leadership and safety participation. Research design, approach and methods This study follows a quantitative approach as its main purpose is to establish relationships between constructs. As such, correlations and multiple regression analyses were conducted. Convenience sampling was applied to obtain the data. Firefighters and their immediate line officers (lieutenants) were surveyed. Five fire departments in small to medium cities were chosen in the Great Lakes and south-eastern regions in the United States (US). Questionnaires were distributed to 263 firemen, of which 186 were firefighters and 78 were their line officers/lieutenants. Main findings Results indicated that a positive association does not exist between firefighters' perceptions of safety participation and their leaders' perception of safety participation when control variables are added. Therefore, no significant relationship exists between firefighters' perceptions of safety participation and their leaders' perception of safety participation. Furthermore, the results also showed a positive association does not exist between empowering leadership and safety participation when control variables are added. Consequently, no significant relationship exists between firefighters' reports of empowering leadership and lieutenants' reports of safety participation. Lastly, regarding empowering leadership and team performance, the results did not support a direct relationship between these two constructs. Limitations The results should be interpreted bearing in mind that they are applicable to the United States of America and may not be generalised to the South African context. Additionally, very little research has been conducted on empowering leadership and safety behaviour in extreme environments, and therefore the literature review was limited to other organisational environments. Lastly, only three cultural groups (White, Black and Hispanic) and only men participated in this study, so results may not be generalisable to other demographic groups. The study was only positioned in extreme environments, specifically in firefighting, therefore it is unclear whether the results can be generalised to other work environments. Future Research It is suggested that this study is replicated, firstly because little research has been done in extreme environments but, secondly, that it also be specifically replicated in South Africa. Indicated by the data, a lieutenant's age has a positive association with how he perceives his team's safety participation. This could be due to various reasons. For example, the more experienced the lieutenant the more comfortable he gets towards the extreme environment. Lastly, it is suggested that research is conducted to determine other leadership styles which could be effective in extreme environments. Conclusion Insight was given into the empowering leadership style in terms of team performance and safety behaviour. Furthermore, the relation between firefighters' perceptions of safety participation and their leaders' perceptions of safety participation was not confirmed. / Dissertation (MCom)--University of Pretoria, 2017. / Human Resource Management / MCom / Unrestricted

Understanding the factors that influence Job Satisfaction of managers is vital because satisfied managers will improve overall effectiveness of an organisation. State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) play a crucial role within economies, however a lack of attention has been focussed on understanding the concept of job satisfaction within this context. The main objective of this research was to identify the factors which are most important to influencing job satisfaction of managers at SOEs and to verify whether these factors are influenced by demographics. A survey was developed and utilised to gather data regarding the importance of several factors to a manager’s job satisfaction. The data that was gathered was statistically analysed in order to support or reject the research propositions. The findings of the research indicated that three factors predominantly influenced the job satisfaction of managers at SOEs; namely, Inspirational Leadership and Purposeful Work, Equitable Rewards and a Facilitative Work Environment and Effective Working Relationships and Work Life Balance. The results also provided support for the research propositions concluding that the factors influencing job satisfaction are certainly affected by demographics. A Three Factor Framework and Organisational Effectiveness Framework were developed to graphically represent the findings of the study. Copyright / Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) / unrestricted

abstract: In spite of the existence of successful humble CEOs, the current strategic leadership literature has little understanding regarding what humility is and how humble CEOs influence organizational effectiveness by creating a context to motivate managers. After applying the self-concept framework to integrate the humility literature, I proposed four mechanisms through which CEO humility were related to middle manager ambidextrous behaviors and job performance: CEO empowering leadership, empowering organizational climate, top management team integration and heterogeneity. After developing and validating a humility scale in China, I collected survey data from a sample of 63 organizations with 63 CEOs, 327 top management team members and 645 middle managers to test the research model. Except for top management team heterogeneity, the other three CEO-middle manager mediating mechanisms received moderate support. Specifically, I found that humble CEOs were empowering leaders; their empowering leadership behaviors were positively associated with top management team integration and empowering organizational climate, which in turn correlated positively with middle manager ambidexterity and job performance. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Business Administration 2011

Abstrakt Transformativt ledarskap och empowering ledarskap undersöktes i en kvantitativ studie där 89 medarbetare vid ett större skogsföretag i Sundsvall besvarade en enkät och skattade sina chefers ledarskapsbeteende. En principal komponentanalys visade stöd för att det var två olika typer av ledarskap, och multipla hierarkiska regressionsanalyser visade stöd för att effekterna av transformativt ledarskap och empowering ledarskap var ledarskapseffektivitet och tillfredställelse med arbetsledningen. Resultatet av studien överensstämde väl med tidigare internationell ledarskapsforskning och indikerar att det går att predicera vilka effekter ett ledarskap hade på medarbetarna och därmed indirekt på medarbetarnas prestationer.

In this thesis we study Boolean functions from three different perspectives. First, we study the complex- ity of Boolean minimization for several classes of formulas with polynomially solvable SAT, and formulate sufficient conditions for a class which cause the minimization problem to drop at least one level in the polyno- mial hierarchy. Second, we study a class of matched CNFs for which SAT is trivial but minimization remains Σp 2 complete. We prove that every matched CNF has at least one equivalent prime and irredundant CNF that is also matched. We use this fact to prove the main result of this part, namely that for every matched CNF all clause minimal equivalent CNFs are also matched. Third, we look at propagation completeness - the property of a CNF that says that for every partial assignment all entailed literals can be discovered by unit propagation. We can extend every CNF to be propagation complete by adding empowering impli- cates to it. The main result of this section is a the proof of coNP completeness of the recognition problem for propagation complete CNFs. We also show that there exist CNFs to which an exponential number of empowering implicates have to be added to make them propagation complete.

South Africans are engaged in daily battles with work-related and non-work related issues. Although an organisation is not capable of addressing or changing all the issues experienced by the South African population, it can intervene in order to improve the quality of its employees’ working lives. A suggested starting point is person-environment fit (PE fit), due to its effect on job satisfaction and intentions to leave. Consequently, when an individual experiences low PE fit, it will contribute to job dissatisfaction, and intentions to leave as international research has shown. To possibly decrease the impact of these relationships, it is important for leader empowering behaviour to be evident throughout the organisation. The objectives of this study were to determine possible relationships, indirect effects, and moderating effects between PE fit, job satisfaction, intentions to leave, and leader empowering behaviour. A convenience sample of employees working under the guidance of a leader/manager/supervisor was taken from a retail company in Gauteng. Participation in the study was voluntary. A measuring battery measuring PE fit (i.e. person-organisation fit, needs-supplies fit, and demands-abilities fit), job satisfaction, intentions to leave, and leader empowering behaviour (i.e. delegation of authority, accountability, self-directed decision making, information sharing, skills development, and coaching for innovative performance) was used. Descriptive and inferential statistics, Raykov’s rho coefficients, Pearson product-moment correlations, measurement models, structural models, and goodness-of-fit statistics were used to analyse the data. The results indicate that PE fit has a positive relationship with job satisfaction. Job satisfaction has a negative relationship with intentions to leave. PE fit has an indirect effect on intentions to leave via job satisfaction. Leader empowering behaviour moderates the relationship between job satisfaction and intentions to leave. Various recommendations were made for the selected retail company as well as for future research. The retail company and employees should comprehend the impact of PE fit on outcomes such as job satisfaction and intentions to leave, as both parties are equally affected by its implications. Therefore, both pro-active and re-active measures should be institutionalised to address PE fit. Additionally, the retail company should understand the importance of leader empowering behaviour and the impact it can have on their business unit and the organisation as a whole. Recommendations for future research include longitudinal research designs, as well as the expansion of research beyond the selected company in the retail industry. / MCom (Industrial Psychology)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2015

South Africans are engaged in daily battles with work-related and non-work related issues. Although an organisation is not capable of addressing or changing all the issues experienced by the South African population, it can intervene in order to improve the quality of its employees’ working lives. A suggested starting point is person-environment fit (PE fit), due to its effect on job satisfaction and intentions to leave. Consequently, when an individual experiences low PE fit, it will contribute to job dissatisfaction, and intentions to leave as international research has shown. To possibly decrease the impact of these relationships, it is important for leader empowering behaviour to be evident throughout the organisation. The objectives of this study were to determine possible relationships, indirect effects, and moderating effects between PE fit, job satisfaction, intentions to leave, and leader empowering behaviour. A convenience sample of employees working under the guidance of a leader/manager/supervisor was taken from a retail company in Gauteng. Participation in the study was voluntary. A measuring battery measuring PE fit (i.e. person-organisation fit, needs-supplies fit, and demands-abilities fit), job satisfaction, intentions to leave, and leader empowering behaviour (i.e. delegation of authority, accountability, self-directed decision making, information sharing, skills development, and coaching for innovative performance) was used. Descriptive and inferential statistics, Raykov’s rho coefficients, Pearson product-moment correlations, measurement models, structural models, and goodness-of-fit statistics were used to analyse the data. The results indicate that PE fit has a positive relationship with job satisfaction. Job satisfaction has a negative relationship with intentions to leave. PE fit has an indirect effect on intentions to leave via job satisfaction. Leader empowering behaviour moderates the relationship between job satisfaction and intentions to leave. Various recommendations were made for the selected retail company as well as for future research. The retail company and employees should comprehend the impact of PE fit on outcomes such as job satisfaction and intentions to leave, as both parties are equally affected by its implications. Therefore, both pro-active and re-active measures should be institutionalised to address PE fit. Additionally, the retail company should understand the importance of leader empowering behaviour and the impact it can have on their business unit and the organisation as a whole. Recommendations for future research include longitudinal research designs, as well as the expansion of research beyond the selected company in the retail industry. / MCom (Industrial Psychology)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2015

This study concerns a rural development project in a village in Bangladesh, initiated in 1973 and followed up regularly until 1991. The original project included the development of a jute handicraft cooperative for women, started and supervised by the author The aims of the thesis are: to describe and analyze the process of change in the lives of some women, engaged in the cooperative, to shed light on this process from the women's perspective, and to discuss what can and should be a target for development education for rural women, coming from the lowest social stratum of society. The ten women who first joined the cooperative are focused in this thesis. The thesis includes their own tales of their experience of the training involved in participation in the cooperative, and their own development process. In the study, the concept of dialogue is used both as a pedagogical method of imparting knowledge, as a form of conversation/interview, aiming at obtaining information from an insider perspective, and also as a concept when compiling data in life histories. The life history approach has been helpful in investigating the educational and developmental process from the women's point of view. Beside skills training, the content of the education for the cooperative was alphabetization, cooperative training and management. Other topics such as nutrition, hygiene, health- and child-care and family planning, were eventually included after the need for training in such areas was articulated in the dialogue between the participating women and the project leader. In contrast to many development projects managed entirely from the top down, all aspects of the training programme were discussed with and approved by the targeted group. The main effect of the training programme was empowerment of the women, which was expressed as an articulated consciousness of their human dignity and a feeling of freedom. The women had developed a professional identity and an awareness of the relevance of contextualised education. A further effect of their new identity was a reduced birth rate. The results of the project are discussed in relation to development education. / digitalisering@umu

Thesis (Ph.D. (Industrial Psychology))--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2007.