It took a PhD mathematics thesis to prove that Argyris was right.

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Argyris argued that the problem with many corporate programmes designed to encourage empowerment was that they created more external than internal commitment.

ECONOMIST: Idea

Everyone is talking about empowerment, said Argyris, but it is not working.

ECONOMIST: Idea

To understand why it was not working, Argyris set empowerment in the context of commitment, an individual's commitment to his or her place of work.

ECONOMIST: Idea

Argyris suggested that companies should recognise that empowerment has its limits.

ECONOMIST: Idea

When Argyris first came up with the FEM no-one believed him because it was so simple and only had a limited number of nodes to calculate a solution from.

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Internal commitment, said Argyris, is closely allied with empowerment.

ECONOMIST: Idea

This approach was championed by the business theorist Chris Argyris, who argued that simply creating debate is of uncertain use when the issues involved are potentially threatening or embarrassing to the participants.

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Argyris described a method for improving the thinking and decision-making of executive groups that involved engaging them both collectively and individually as a coach-facilitator, giving them feedback, challenging their thinking and using focused exercises to help them reflect on how they operate.

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