Participative management, as a management method, cannot be understood as a simple management technique, valuing the "creativity" of employees, stimulating the voluntary mobilization of groups, in relation to product quality and customer service. It must be approached, at the same time, as a management strategy, aiming to overcome conflicts of interest to encourage identification and attachment of staff to the company and obtain a broad consensus on priority objectives .
This type of management is part of the broader issue of employee participation in the company with the aim of improving their performance. This participation covers a variety of meanings and is achieved through mechanisms as diverse as information and consultation, staff representatives, collective bargaining, works councils, self-management, semi-autonomous teams, continuous improvement groups, and financial profit-sharing