Is Selection the Answer for Encouraging more Employee Autonomy?

Abstract

When companies embrace new business models to become more innovative or customer focused they often need to inspire their employees to think differently about how they approach their jobs. And in some cases this can be extraordinarily diffi cult. Companies with long, established histories of providing strict oversight of even the smallest employee decisions, for example, will have a hard time implementing new initiatives that are intended to empower employees and allow them to make autonomous decisions. Indeed, employees are often slow to embrace new levels of autonomy even if doing so is in their own best interest. And although employee resistance to change is natural, if management does not deal with it effectively then new initiatives will fail. Consequently, executives committed to making change happen may want to implement new incentives and performance management programs to help overcome employee resistance. Unfortunately, certain types of employee behavior and decision-making processes are harder to infl uence with traditional management tools. For these situations, managers are faced with a dilemma: do they bring in new people who think and approach decisions in a way that is better aligned with new business strategies or do they apply management controls aimed at motivating resistant employees to change the way they approach decision making? Fortunately, new research by Dennis Campbell of Harvard University provides some insight to managers facing this dilemma. Campbell explored the role of selection in helping management ensure that employees embrace new strategic initiatives— especially those that require employees to approach decisions in new ways. Specifi cally, he studied whether different recruitment and selection tactics impact the likelihood that employees will engage in practices that are aligned with the organization’s new strategic objectives.