Robert Heller - How to Delegate

Dorling Kindersley Limited

The Penguin Group

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First published in 1998 by Dorling Kindersley Limited. ISBN: 9780789428905

This Digital Edition published 2009. ISBN: 9780756662486
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Delegation is an essential element of any managers job. Used effectively it provides real benefits for everyone involved. How to Delegate will enable you to achieve the best possible results from each delegation you make from small everyday tasks to major leadership appointments. The content covers every aspect of this process, from deciding and prioritizing which tasks to delegate and choosing the right person for the job, to recognizing and overcoming barriers and anticipating risks. Practical advice on how to motivate and develop staff, build loyalty, and give and receive feedback will increase your confidence and help you to become a skilled and trusted delegator. Included are 101 practical tips that summarize key points, and a self-assessment exercise that provides insight into your performance as a delegator.

Effective delegation is an essential managerial skill. To achieve the best results, you must be aware of its benefits and recognize the barriers that can hinder its success.

As organizations grow increasingly complex, duties and responsibilities across the workforce can become less well defined. Often it seems as though everyone is doing everyone elses job. Delegation is the managers key to efficiency, and benefits all.

Use delegation to benefit you, your staff, and your organization.

Explaining delegation

Delegation involves entrusting another person with a task for which the delegator remains ultimately responsible. Delegation can range from a major appointment, such as the leadership of a team developing a new product, to one of any number of smaller tasks in the everyday life of any organization from arranging an annual outing to interviewing a job candidate. Examining the overall structure of an organization will reveal a complex web of delegated authority, usually in the form of management chains, providing a mechanism for reporting and control.

Delegating for managerial success

An effective manager must monitor a delegated project, assuming responsibility while allowing the delegate autonomy.

Exploring the fundamentals

The basic issues involved in delegation are autonomy and control. How much authority is the delegate able to exercise without referring back to the delegator? How far should the delegator exercise direct influence over the work of the delegate? When choosing a delegate, you are assessing whether a particular person is fully capable of performing the task within available resources. Having appointed a delegate, you must ensure that they are allowed sufficient autonomy to undertake the task in their own way, subject to an initial briefing and regular reports on progress.

Defining the process

The unending process of delegation is integral to the managers role. The process begins with the analysis selecting the tasks that the manager could, and should, delegate. When the tasks are selected, the parameters of each should be clearly defined. This will help the delegator to appoint an appropriate delegate and to provide as accurate a brief as possible. Whatever the role, proper briefing is essential you cannot hold people responsible for vague or undefined tasks. Monitoring of some kind is also essential, but should be used for control and coaching rather than interference. The final stage is appraisal. How well has the delegate performed? What changes, on both sides, need to be made to improve performance?

Always be positive when reviewing expect to hear good news.

Show faith in your chosen delegate, even if others have reservations.

Why Delegate?

Delegation has a number of benefits. When you streamline your workload, you increase the amount of time available for essential managerial tasks. Your staff feel motivated and more confident, and stress levels decrease across the workforce.

Delegate to boost staff morale, build confidence, and reduce stress.

Set aside enough time each day for concentrating on your long-term projects.

Increasing your time

Managers commonly claim that the short-term demands of operational and minor duties make it impossible to devote sufficient time to more important, long-term matters. Strategic planning, control, and training are among the higher level activities which will suffer under the burden of undelegated, routine tasks which you wrongly attempt to do yourself. To create more time for yourself, more routine work must be handed down by delegation. Also, the more frequently you delegate, the more experienced staff become, and the less time you need to spend on briefing.

Reducing stress

The pressure on managers to perform under demanding conditions can lead to a marked increase in stress levels. The symptoms are visible in erratic and sometimes disorientated personal behavior, mounting paperwork on desks, and overcrowded calendars. Clearing your desk and your calendar is best accomplished through delegation. Fully effective delegation not only eases the pressure on the delegator, but can benefit the delegate and the team or department as a whole. Before delegating, consider carefully the task requirements, and make a realistic assessment of your proposed delegates abilities.

Questions to ask yourself

• Am I devoting enough time and resources to strategic planning and overall monitoring?
• Is my desk overflowing with uncompleted tasks?
• Are staff enthusiastic and sufficiently motivated?
• Am I delegating routine but necessary tasks to staff?