In participative management, the employee has the power to be involved in the decision-making. The whole concept of this management is run by the manager of the organisation. In participative management systems, managers understand the significance of employees’ perspectives because employees are the backbone of the entire organisation.

The complete strategy of the organisation is executed with the help of all the employees. Every employee in the organisation is essential. Many employers are now associated with the consumers in the organisation to meet their requirements and take feedback about the product and services. Many organisations use this kind of management system to get more positive outcomes.

Participative Management Characteristics

The following are the characteristics of participative management:

• The employee has the power to take the judgement instantly
• Their employers are also part of core management
• They have opportunities to give their view on improvement
• They have the authority to give their creative ideas
• Employees have the authority to question any task running in the organisation
• It is an ethical way of management because everyone is treated equally
• It helps the employees in their empowerment
• It also creates a sense of accountability for the employee
• The communication gap between the employers and management was reduced
• Employees have the power to give feedback to their leaders
• It develops a sense of commitment in the employees

Advantages of participative management

The following are the advantages of participative management:

• The efficiency of the organisation increases due to innovation and flexible feedback systems
• Knowledge sharing between the employee and management increases
• From the ground level to the higher authority, everyone has some power
• It helps to enhance the quality of products and lower the price of manufacturing
• Due to more frequent communication, the rate of achieving targets increases
• It develops a sense of ownership in the employee
• The quality of products and services increases because of fewer communication gaps and an improved feedback system
• The dispute between the employees decreases
• Due to an increase in contact, knowledge sharing causes more and more employees to get prepared without any organised schedule

Goals of a participative management system

This system acts as a driving motivation for the employees, which is very beneficial for the organisation’s growth. Overall growth is the main purpose of such a type of management system.

The following are the goals of this management system:

• Improving job satisfaction
• Making the best use of employees’ potential
• Extending the possibilities of additional ways for the employees
• Increasing the interaction between the different employees
• Increasing productivity and efficiency
• Improving the association between the employees
• Improving the sense of pride in the employees
• Highlighting the skills of the employees
• Growing a more competitive environment
• Maintaining discipline in the community

Participation and achievement

Due to an increased sense of work rights, the performance of the organisation rises with the performance of every employee.

The following are the achievements of the participative management system:

• The employees become empowered due to increased decision-making
• The working culture of the organisation is enhanced due to better participation
• The respect aspect of the ordinary employee is boosted
• The chance of earning bonuses increases
• Employees get additional promotions
• The sense of responsibility increases
• The coordination between employees improves, due to which the support system becomes strong
• The attitude of the employees improves due to responsibilities and the competition
• The behaviour of the employees improves due to the learning attitude

Drawbacks of the participative management system

• For some work, employees need to be supervised. This creates a sense of partiality in the system:
• Due to freedom in decision-making, some of the employees make incorrect decisions, due to which the performance of the organisation could be reduced
• Some employees may misuse the information and power given to them because of which the environment of the organisation gets affected
• Labour unions are a major problem with such a type of management system
• Some of the less-knowledgeable workers may get manipulated by the other employees
• Organisation politics is also the most prominent problem faced by employees
• Sometimes, decisions may be biased due to the management system getting confused about the decision

Reasons a participative management system may fail

• If there is opposition or disagreement among employees, the system will not improve and efficiency is reduced
• Applying new rules in the organisation is not so easy because everyone wants to be in their comfort zone
• The employees having less knowledge may deviate from senior employees
• Due to large management layers, processes become complicated
• Higher authorities may not respect their subordinates