The idea of giving
employees
responsibility usually allocated
to
supervisors. Examples ("vertical loading factors") include
granting
discretion for:
The term originates from
organization charts, where the
vertical axis usually represents increased
control. The opposite of vertical loading is naturally
horizontal loading, which involves giving the same person more tasks without increasing his control, and is
not recommended.
The term was invented by American psychologist Frederick Herzberg
and repackaged under the buzzword empowerment in the 1990s.
back to organizational behavior
References
Buchanan, David and Andrzej Huczynski. Organizational Behaviour (3rd ed.), pp. 89-98.