In her Forbes article “An International Perspective: Top Leadership Challenges for 2020” Sally Percy writes the following :
The French challenge: liberating the workplace
Liberté is engrained in the French national motto. Yet, the daily experience of French people is that their sense of freedom tends to evaporate once they enter the corporate world, according to Isaac Getz, professor of leadership and innovation at ESCP Europe in Paris and author of Freedom, Inc. “In particular, employees’ freedom to use their initiative has historically been stifled,” he says. “Paradoxically, this is key to the ‘corporate liberation’ revolution that is currently taking place in France – a revolution that is set to further pick up pace across French organizations in 2020.”
Corporate liberation means giving employees responsibility to take any action that they –not their superiors – decide is best for their company’s vision. “The liberated workplace is built to meet the fundamental human needs of equality, self-realization and self-direction,” explains Getz. “Every morning, employees go to work because they want to and, once there, they do their best, meaning that their companies largely outperform counterparts.”
Since 2012, hundreds of French-based companies have embraced the concept of corporate liberation. Most are SMEs, but multinationals such as Airbus, Decathlon, EDF, ENGIE and Michelin, have also embarked on the liberation journey. Meanwhile, the French government has even joined the movement. Getz predicts that over the coming year, “we are sure to see more and more French CEOs try to establish a radically different, liberated workplace”.
You can read the full article here
