Accidents and injuries, instances of nonconformance with a policy or standards—really, failures of any kind—can all contribute to a need for an organization to change.

If you’re old enough to remember The Lone Ranger, Tonto and Silver (the Lone Ranger’s trusty horse) you’ll also remember the famous silver bullets. Unfortunately, silver bullets only exist in Hollywood, not in the real world. I’ve had several conversations with people whose companies are using lean transformations to pursue the magical silver bullet.

No matter your position at your company, have you ever asked yourself, “What are the key elements that drive outstanding performance?” Certainly, having good products and processes are among those important elements but that’s only two legs of a three-legged stool and without that third leg the stool will topple.

Recently a discussion centered on organizational empowerment, its relationship to employee self-determination, and the impact on opportunity. The following is a summary of a recent conversation with one of our readers.