Those poor employees might feel "empowered", but in reality, they are "impoverished". They are now responsible for the project, but often without amble resources needed. For example, when they need additional hardware or rooms or .... they are not empowered to get it. They are still beggars. Instead, they are empowered to work longer hours to reach the project goals they have set themselves. Why did they such a stupid thing? Because they wanted to look bright or because of group pressure or because they want a raise ...
And after they set their goals themselves, they are on their own.
This is not "empowerment", it is not about people -- it is just a good excuse for the management to get rid of the responsibilities and to "motivate" people to work longer hours. It is the newest "silver bullet" process of a project management that already lost control.