Abstract:

Empoworment is a management concept that enables employees to assume responsibility and authority to make decisions through training, mutual influence, sharing, team working, trust and emotional support. It has been in the forefront of quality improvement efforts. But, it’s recognised that as a new business strategy and management approach. It’s also recognised that empowerment can be powerful strategy if implement well through middle managers who play critical roles in the empowerment practice. This article therefore, presents the middle managers’ perception and viewpoints on empowerment concept and examines their roles in the practice of empowerment. Middle managers targeted, because they are the group caught in the centre of this organizational change. The basic questions this study focused are; Do middle managers squeeze between the keep authority and control? or relinquish control? what then, is empowerment? Are they aware of their critical roles? And how do middle managers think it should be implemented? First, this study tries to answer these questions by investigating the literature on the concept of empowerment. Second, provides findings that are presented from the middle managers who are being in the process of empowerment. For that, we inquiried into empowerment views and assessments of middle managers in the automotive industry and explored their empowering roles by conducting intensive and depth interviews. Third, the assesments of those analysed and compared with literature and then summarized by comments. The study concludes that organizations should empower middle managers and rely on them. Providing the needed leadership, training, confidence-building and support are the task which the middle managers saw as their main contribution of empowerment process

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