The golden rules of growth: Clive Beddoe

No one knows how to build a business better than the entrepreneurs behind some of Canada's most successful companies. These are their most powerful lessons. Clive Beddoe Chairman & CEO WestJet Airlines Ltd. Calgary Empower your staff and they'll amaze you "Many years ago, I heard a story that said the people who suffer the most stress in life are front-line personnel who are charged with responsibility but not given any authority. That, to me, is almost like an abuse of people. How can you ask someone to be responsible for something and yet not give them the authority to make decisions when confronted with issues? "Recognizing that, we empower our people and trust them to make decisions on the front line. And for them, a job that would otherwise not be particularly satisfying becomes very satisfying. They can make a decision and improve someone's circumstances for the better. They come away pretty proud of themselves. "The risks that come with our strategy are minimal. We have yet to find a case in which somebody went too far. If anything, it's the opposite—they don't go far enough. "When you empower people and trust them, you'll be amazed what they can do. They will go much further than you'd ever believed if you provide them with the right incentives, reward mechanisms and acknowledgment." —KS