Here is a guest blog I wrote last month for Claire Diaz-Ortiz, head of Social Innovation at Twitter
“Rules are for fools, use your head.” — Paul Petzoldt
How do you empower yourself and your team to develop bold, creative solutions when you have a two-inch-thick policy manual? Many crises can be averted and off-the-wall ideas prosper when people are given the power and confidence to use their judgment in decision-making. In any large organization’s key policies around issues like harassment, confidentiality, etc. Are important. But sometimes these go too far, removing the potential for smart, capable team members to use their own judgment. For leaders to “let go” and let team members use their own judgment on important decisions is challenging but essential if they are the right people with the proper training in the right positions. If you can’t trust team members to use their judgment when it counts, they probably shouldn’t occupy these positions.
