Entfaltungsfreiräume

16:06 Oct 22, 2018 

I just had this in a document: "wachsen und entfalten"

Not an uncommon phrase: https://www.blick-aktuell.de/Andernach/Wachsen-und-Entfalten...

Then, I came across this tweet:
"Employees don't want to be 'managed.' They want their managers to help them to learn, grow and realize their full potential.

How are you helping your employees reach their potential?"
https://twitter.com/HireOnLinkedIn/status/100204449912263884...

See what happened there?

Grow = wachsen (!)
realize/reach their full potential = entfalten(!!)

This is why I warned against using "grow"; it just isn't right. I subsequently posted the suggestion the asker wanted--only to find out that I wasted my time on this, apparently (considering I don't want to post half-baked answers).

No offense, but I have enough to do and did what I promised, so I don't quite understand what went on here.

Best wishes

11:58 Oct 4, 2018 

Asker: Could you guys please post your suggestions like "autonomy/leeway/latitude/..." as answers, so I can choose one for the dictionary and award the poster Kudoz points?

08:56 Sep 28, 2018 

Thanks for your reply! I promise I'll post a summary as an answer this evening if OK, since I am still knee-deep in work.

Best wishes

08:26 Sep 28, 2018 

Many thanks for your input!!! Could you guys please post your suggestions like "autonomy/leeway/latitude/..." as answers, so I can choose one for the dictionary and award the poster Kudoz points?

15:12 Sep 27, 2018 

If Eszter is a bit patient with me, I can still add an answer. I haven't because I'm pretty swamped. Needed to focus on work first. It'll be over by Saturday.

Best and enjoy your evening

00:24 Sep 26, 2018 

Glad to know that you are a binational couple too. My other half is interested in all of this but I am the one who does the writing :). I don't mind being stuck with you at all. Are you going to post an answer? I think Eszter has already asked you and I have seen that she closed her last question as well LOL. Anyway, I am also thinking that a simple, short 'Nebensatz' with a comma would also be better than a parenthesis as you pointed out. Are you changing your mind and thinking that this is about personal development?:) Bis bald

14:36 Sep 21, 2018 

Sorry for some garbled statements; that's what happens when you change something midway through the sentence. Edited. Tiny preview window.

14:29 Sep 21, 2018 

No worries. We're a binational couple too, but my better half isn't very interested in all of this, so you're stuck dealing with me. As long as your husband doesn't have to put out statements of denial later, all's fine.

Joke aside, I did think about leeway too, but wasn't sure about the register. Interestingly enough, Macmillan--which has a rating system to indicate how often a word is used--has autonomy at 1 star and none for either latitude or leeway. To be clear, my suggestion was either/or, i.e., greater degree or level of/more/some autonomy/freedom/latitude/leeway in...

The issue is that there is Entfaltungs-, Handlungs-, and Gestaltungsfreiraum (or -spielraum) in German. Sometimes, they're interchangeable, sometimes they aren't. That's why parentheses are such a mess, as there might not be a clear antecedent. I think autonomy would be the shortest of the three. Lancashireman may like this one:
"Teachers are given considerable individual autonomy."
https://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/autonomy

Best

14:14 Sep 21, 2018 

Just as a side line. At least, I have found out that if you use words that not many native English speakers understand you get the answer 'who' :). For example if I say to my neighbour 'I have latitude in my work to make mistakes' he would say 'WHO'? what are you talking about? :) but saying that I have also used obscure words and got this answer :))

13:36 Sep 21, 2018 

IMO, 'latitude' is a word that not many native English speakers would understand, let alone other English speakers. You have the right idea Björn and I can see that this is really about the autonomy of employees in being able to make mistakes. However, I found 'leeway', which most English speakers would understand and I also found an interesting article supporting your idea of 'latitude' = Spielraum at work

Leeway for the loyal: a model of employee discretion

But employers also face the fundamental post-Fordist dilemma that leeway
permits self-interested employees to take advantage and work less hard
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1467-8543....


What about 'leeway for autonomy'? You could post the answer and please feel free to borrow 'leeway' from my suggestion, cheers, Aida (only in order for you not to get stress writing Stuart & Aida) :)

10:31 Sep 21, 2018 

In short, Entfaltungsfreiraum is where you can "Potenzial entfalten":
www.joerg-mosler.de/blog/potential-entfalten

It's a subset of personal development. And it is not the same as to grow, in whatever way you want to understand this, IMO.

In essence, give them some space, so they can "flourish." And, ha ha, look, what I get when searching for flourish + employee:
"5 Practices That Make Workplaces Flourish

Practice 1: Employee Involvement And Autonomy."
https://www.forbes.com/sites/pauladavislaack/2017/07/31/5-pr...

Best

10:26 Sep 21, 2018 

...for your replies. I could post something later. Longman, by the way, has a near-perfect example:
"Employees should have some latitude in organizing their work."
https://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/latitude

Again, a few examples in German to prove my point:
"...legen wir großen Wert auf kurze Kommunikations- und Entscheidungswege, weitreichende Entfaltungsfreiräume für unsere Mitarbeiter und gegenseitiges Vertrauen."
https://www.dth-tiemann.de/karriere/das-sind-wir

Autonomy.

"Was heute gut ist, wird morgen noch besser sein, weil engagierte Mitarbeiter ihr Handwerk verstehen und Entfaltungsfreiräume nutzen."
http://www.haasmetal.eu/de/karriere

Could be turned into "initiatives," as has been posted as an answer.

"...nahebringen, dass es nicht der Staat ist, der uns sagen muss, was wir tun sollen. Unternehmer sollten größere Entfaltungsfreiräume haben."
https://k2-krefeld.de/news/presse-echte-innovationen-brauche...

Latitude/freedom.

[...]

07:45 Sep 21, 2018 

Björn, I really like the term "latitude" in this context. Could you post it as an answer?

23:29 Sep 20, 2018 

Thank you for the links. No, no worries. Wir haben immer ein offenes Ohr für Dich:) Yes, I can see that this is more about autonomy. I also found the link with 'parenthical inserts' quite good. Cheers, nice to chat with you :)

22:35 Sep 20, 2018 

My post may have been a bit curt but wasn't supposed to sound that way. To show you a good example of what I mean, please see this reference:
https://www.kununu.com/de/asc-tec/a/SkZoU15zdg==

It's titled "Entfaltungsfreiraum und kurze Entscheidungswege"; further down, it reads,"Der Chef hat immer ein offenes Ohr und läßt einem genügend Spielraum um sich nicht eingeengt zu fühlen."

And now, back to autonomy (which is a popular HR term, by the way, and has its own Wiki entry):
"Autonomy is the means by which employees have the latitude to make their own decisions and employers provide both the tools and the guidelines to help employees succeed."
https://www.hrexchangenetwork.com/hr-management/articles/aut...

Cf. http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/autonomy.html

In short, this need not have anything to do with personal development or employees mushrooming and having kids (https://roomtogrow.org ); and creative freedom is rather Gestaltungsfreiraum.

But since the asker didn't close her previous question, all of this may not matter.

Best wishes

13:54 Sep 20, 2018 

http://translationpost.com/german-parenthetical-inserts/

The issue is that Germans like to insert as many parentheses as possible, regardless of whether they're in the right spot or contain more of a stray thought. But if the sentence before this reads "innerhalb derer nicht jeder Vorgang kontrolliert und hinterfragt wird," you should translate it based on this piece of information, not on interpretations you may find online.

Also, I absolutely do not need to know what company this is. It's from HR to board members. It should be clearly structured and not introduce side notes at the end of a statement. Just my two cents, though.

Best

13:42 Sep 20, 2018 

It depends, of course, what line of business this company is in and what type of jobs we are talking about (factory, IT/creative, retail/sales, finance etc). It could be autonomy, room for personal development, room to grow or creative freedom depending on the particulars of the job/department this applies too.

13:29 Sep 20, 2018 

"Das stellt einen klaren Verstoß gegen Artikel zwei Grundgesetz dar, der die freie Entfaltung der Persönlichkeit schützt." stern.de Link

Would not be Entfaltung der Persönlichkeit personal development?

I fully understand the idea of autonomy. I would encourage you to give an answer :)

13:26 Sep 20, 2018 

https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/254030

Please also note that the first ENS document I posted bears the fitting title "Human Error Management."

13:21 Sep 20, 2018 

"Autonomy
The degree to which the work permits freedom, independence, to the
individual regarding the timing and methods employed to complete
the job."
https://orca.cf.ac.uk/55474/1/U516510.pdf

In my opinion, this has been misunderstood. Entfaltung here means that the company doesn't monitor their every move. Think Lidl:
https://www.stern.de/wirtschaft/news/ueberwachungsskandal-li...

Best wishes

13:17 Sep 20, 2018 

I think the idea here is to give room to the employee to develop individually.
Growing see:

Six Ways to Grow Your Job
https://hbr.org/2013/09/six-ways-to-grow-your-job

How can I grow professionally?
https://money.usnews.com/money/careers/articles/2011/08/17/t...