Do empowered workers help achieve consensus?

A few posts ago I shared with you that German companies have additional challenge in their pursuit of Enterprise 2.0.  Since many information workers enjoy the right to form workers councils (which are somewhat akin to workers unions), these councils have a say in the way technology is implemented at the workplace.  And there is good reason for many to say “no”. Moreover, when the technology captures information about the workers themselves, German law steps in to protect workers from having their employers capture information about their work. This puts collaboration technology at a certain disadvantage — as it does indeed capture the very kind of information that Germans may feel to be in violation of their privacy. Read the details here and here — and especially the comments.  I must admit that the balance of power is very odd for me to understand, having never worked in such an environment.  But in upshot, the way decisions are made in the workplace differ. And this must have a profound impact on Enterprise 2.0. One that I expected to be a negative impact.

Generally speaking, in the US – if you have budget, you have the de-facto power to make a decision.  Managers have more budgetary allowance than workers, and thus have more power in this regard.  If a manager with budget authority purchases a new time-tracking tool and tells her subordinates to use that tool to track time — well, chances are that this is what will happen.  Sure we have workplace politics.  It’s not just about budget and authority. The manager will have to secure buy-in from her superiors.  But if you have a team of sales people, project managers, developers, case workers, or phone service reps, and you tell them that from now on they are to use Zoho instead of Siebel (for example), well, then that’s what they should use.  You don’t have to ask them if they like Zoho better.  They don’t have to give you permission to change their workplace tools.

But what if you worked in an environment where you have to get their buy-in?

My first thought was that this would be very stifling.  After all, decisions are so hard to make in the corporate world because everyone has some turf to protect or some stake in the matter.  We run meetings after meetings to find a path to consensus and we still take months to get it.  So my inclination is that adding another party into the mix would make this process even more cumbersome and lengthy.

However, facts are stubborn things.  And considering how successful Enterprise 2.0 appears to be in Germany, it may be the case that having an empowered workforce is instrumental in getting the kind of consensus one needs in an Enterprise 2.0 type project.  Perhaps the buy-in process engenders more trust, or at least provides a safety-valve in case something does not work out well.  Or maybe the more successful cases in Germany are a result of some other factor at play.

So I’d like to ask you to comment below and share your facts, thoughts, and speculations below (in that order of preference).  What do you think about the role of workplace empowerment and Enterprise 2.0?  Do you subscribe to the belief that E2.0 takes power away from management?  Do you first need empowered workers in order for them to be able to leverage that power effectively?  Or maybe consensus is the secret source?   Do you work in a German company that has adopted E2.0 tools and behaviors?  Was your worker’s council involved?  Help us understand your environment so that we can learn from it.  And thanks in advance for your comments!

Tagged as: adoption, barriers, behaviors, culture, Enterprise 2.0, leadership, workplace