Autonomy in Workplace

The autonomy of employees and managers are often dictated by the organizational culture. It is more evident in today’s society that autonomy, empowerment, and participation are needed to succeed. Autonomy is defined as the degree to which a job provides substantial freedom, independence, and discretion to the individual in scheduling the work and in determining the procedures to be used in carrying it out (Robbins & Judge 2009). Managers do not easily relinquish their authority and decision making capabilities; however, over time employees earn their manager’s trust and can readily make certain decisions.

Utilizing autonomy in the workplace should make employees feel a greater responsibility for the outcome of their work. Autonomy on the job is perhaps the central work characteristic in shaping worker attitudes, motivation, and behavior (Hornung & Rousseau 2007). If an employee is motivated about their job performance this typically generates a positive affect. A positive affect is defined as a mood dimension consisting of positive emotions such as excitement, self-assurance, and cheerfulness at the high end and boredom, sluggishness and tiredness on the low-end (Robbins & Judge 2009).

Within my organization, management believes in training and educating all levels of employees. This training is rigorous and extensive in nature. One will embrace the organizations mission, vision, and core values. Employees are also required to complete on-going computer based training, annually. Upon completion of the extension training, all employees are considered experts in their field of study. With this knowledge, employees can make informed and conscientious decisions. My department is a very strong and knowledgeable team. Many decisions are made with out the guidance of our manager. This latitude motivates our team, energizes the workplace, and is evident in our performance and annual goals. According to Fischer 2010, concurs that if leaders allow for freedom and...