Which term refers to granting employees official authority to decide and manage their own work?

Which term refers to granting employees official authority to decide and manage their own work?

• A. Delegation
• B. Empowerment
• C. Consultation
• D. Subordinates

Answer: (B)

Empowerment means giving employees official authority to decide how to do their work and to manage it themselves, within the organisation’s goals and rules. It goes further than simply handing out tasks. Delegation transfers responsibility for a task while the manager still makes the key decisions and remains accountable; empowerment instead grants broad decision-making power and access to the information and resources needed to act without constantly seeking approval. This enables staff to prioritise, solve problems, and choose how to achieve outcomes, which can boost motivation and performance. Training, trust, clear boundaries, and access to relevant information are typically needed to make empowerment work. Consultation is about managers seeking input from employees before deciding, not about giving them autonomous authority, and subordinates are staff who report to others, not a process of decision-making.