Empowerment in an executive agency? A grass‐roots assessment of strategic intent

Empowerment has been described as providing local management with a clear framework within which to manage, with the maximum devolution of responsibility and with the skills and confidence to accept it. Despite their wide adoption there is a dearth of research which elevates the voice of those on the receiving‐end of such empowering strategies, especially as applied in public sector organisations. This paper examines the impact of a five‐year empowerment programme, as perceived by the managers and staff within a “Next Steps” agency. Based on individual and group interviews with 75 staff, it is found that the programme is associated with a number of new working practices and a shift in management attitudes but the extent to which these are experienced as empowering varies considerably.