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EMPLOYEE EMPOWERMENT
By
Shelia Berglund
Manager
Records Section
Lakewood, Colorado, Police Department
In many organizations, particularly those in the public
sector, employee satisfaction is often sacrificed to the demands
of other compelling objectives, such as cost containment and the
constant pressure to do more with less. Unfortunately, employers
who take this stance fail to recognize that unhappy employees are
unable to put customers first, no matter what the organization
mandates.
While budget cuts require that police managers learn to
accomplish objectives with fewer resources, employees do not have
to suffer as a result. By balancing the needs of employees with
the demands of the organization, police departments can empower
workers to meet--or even exceed--the goals of the agency
willingly.
Empowered employees actively participate in setting and
achieving department objectives. In doing so, they feel a sense
of ownership and pride in the tasks they perform. The Lakewood,
Colorado, Police Department recently discovered the benefits of
employee empowerment when faced with the problem of increasing
turnover in the Police Records Section.
BACKGROUND
Lakewood's police department consists of 200 sworn and 100
civilian employees. With 25 employees, the Police Records
Section represents 25 percent of the civilian staff. The
section's daily functions support a customer base that includes
citizens, criminal justice agencies, other city employees,
businesses, and police officers. Employees provide comprehensive
information management services, including the processing and
release of police records and impounded vehicles, quality
control, research, and bonding of arrestees. These employees
have to possess computer proficiency, knowledge of municipal and
State statutes, and the capacity to interact positively with
customers. As the department's central repository of arrest
warrants and police reports, this section operates 24 hours a day
to provide support to on-duty police personnel.
THE PROBLEM
For years, members of the Records Section worked five 8-hour
days per week, with staffing levels based on the varying demand
for services during a 24-hour day. Employees chose which of the
three shifts they preferred to work and kept that schedule during
their career with the agency. Seniority determined days off.
By 1990, this system had become increasingly unsatisfactory.
More than one-half of the work group had accrued 10 years of
service and consistently selected weekends off. This meant that
the remaining employees--some with as much as 8 years' tenure--
worked every weekend.
As a result, during a 2-year period, one-third of the work
group resigned or transferred to other positions within the city
government. At exit interviews, these departing employees
consistently cited the prospect of potentially endless weekend
work as a major factor in their decision. This high turnover had
a particularly debilitating effect on operations because new
employees required at least 9 months of intensive training due to
the technical nature of the positions they filled.
In addition, even though job applicants learned of
scheduling limitations during pre-employment interviews, many new
employees--quickly tiring of weekend work--resigned or
transferred. Morale, productivity, and customer service suffered
as the work schedule became an issue that divided junior and
senior staff members.
THE SOLUTION
Realizing that employees are its most valuable resource, the
Records Section formed an administrative team composed of the
Records Section manager and three supervisors to solve its
schedule-related difficulties. The Administrative Services
Division commander, well-versed in team building and a proponent
of employee empowerment, provided ongoing support and expertise
to the group.
The eventual solution was forged through the combined
efforts of the staff and their leaders over a year-long period of
formal and informal discussions. First, the administrative team
met with the employees--individually and in groups--to assess
perceptions, solicit suggestions, and discuss issues related to
the work schedule. After identifying the most acute problem--
the inability to retain a trained staff-the team defined its
principal objective, that is, to improve working conditions by
distributing weekend work more equitably. As brainstorming and
discussions continued, one question repeatedly surfaced: What
would happen if employees were allowed to select their own work
schedules?
To answer this question, the administrative team decided to
test the proposition that empowered employees might become more
effective employees. Formal and informal groups met with their
supervisors to discuss the potential impact of a new,
employee-driven schedule.
Later, in private meetings, individual employees had the
option of retaining their existing schedules or selecting a new
4- or 5-day schedule. They could also choose their days off and
starting times, within reason. Those employees who selected a
4-day schedule did so with the understanding that they would work
some weekends. Fortunately, a number of employees viewed this
option favorably because of the additional time off it provided
during the week.
Following these meetings, the administrative team inserted
employees' schedule preferences into a calendar matrix. After
numerous manipulations and revisions, they fit the selections
into a schedule that supported required staffing levels, while
satisfying employee requests. Then, they took the ultimate
product, a well-engineered combination of 4- and 5-day workweeks,
reviewed it with employees, and refined it further. Following
approval by the division commander, the chief, and the city's
director of employee relations, the new schedule--which complied
with the Fair Labor Standards Act--was successfully implemented
in the Records Section.
RESULTS
The administrative team tested the theory that permitting
employees to select their own work schedules would improve job
performance and stability. And, as anticipated, the new
schedules produced tangible and intangible benefits.
To begin, the section experienced a 90-percent reduction in
overtime, representing a yearly savings of more than $2,500.
Next, the amount of sick leave used remained relatively constant,
despite the fact that employees working 10-hour days would need
to use more leave per day if ill.
The new schedules also allowed for better deployment of
personnel. The variety of schedules provided greater flexibility
to manage absences. Planned overlap at the beginning and end of
the night shift reduced the number of employees needed to work
all night--an unpopular option for most.
In addition, staggered starting times relieved an
unproductive bottleneck caused by entering and departing staff at
shift changes. There was also a dramatic decrease in the amount
of so-called "work in progress," a reliable gauge of the
efficiency of day-to-day operations.
Further, because of the number of employees who chose a
4-day week, weekend work was distributed among a much greater
percentage of the staff. Therefore, in contrast to the old
schedule, no employee worked every weekend.
Finally, no employees resigned because of dissatisfaction
with the work schedule. In fact, in a survey conducted by the
department, employees who did not change their work schedules
reported as much of an increase in their level of satisfaction
with the overall work environment as those who selected new
schedules.
In addition to the quantitative benefits, management
observed other, more qualitative, benefits. First, because the
new schedule allowed for at least 1 day per week with increased
staffing levels, training, review, and recertification
opportunities rose dramatically.
The supervisory staff, whose schedules changed from a 5- to
a 4-day workweek, faced a more equitable distribution of
employees under their command. And, working a 10-hour shift
increased their availability during critical time periods.
Most important, the level of cooperation and teamwork
increased markedly. An unexpected benefit, employees
demonstrated this esprit de corps through their greater
willingness to adjust their work schedules to cover for other
staff members when needed.
INSIGHT GAINED
During this project, the administrative team discovered not
only that employees' priorities change over the course of their
careers but also that their values regarding work change with
time. Employees have a diverse set of needs--some employees
maintain single-parent households, some pursue educational goals,
others prepare for retirement. Because of these
responsibilities, employees highly value their discretionary
time. As a result, they welcome the flexibility to balance work
and their personal lives more effectively. Because management
recognized these needs, employees reciprocated by willingly
cooperating when asked to work a different shift than scheduled.
CONCLUSION
The Records Section of the Lakewood Police Department
successfully implemented an unconventional work schedule that was
the product of employee empowerment and administrative teamwork.
Records administrators crafted a schedule that balanced worker
preferences with staffing requirements, which resulted in more
evenly distributed weekend work, improved morale, increased
retention of trained staff, and decreased burnout.
Some of today's management problems defy traditional
solutions. Lakewood's administrative team discovered a solution
that was unconventional, yet successful.
Many experts believe that the greatest potential for
improvements in organizational quality involves putting people
first. This project proved that employee empowerment can work
and provide benefits beyond expectations.