Not enough enough to topple the company. In fact given a goal to move from A to B, a time frame and a budget - most humans can act responsibly. Give them a political and physical environment where they can innovate. Power goes with the job. I am not advocating giving up total centralised control.
Authority is needed from management.
I do not endorse anarchy . The power of information technology empowers individuals to a fuller capacity. Knowledge is becoming the one critical factor of production. I then told him they were worth billions. He smiled again.