In a Nutshell
Managers with "control issues"
often don't even know that they have them. When I tell them they
should delegate more, they think I "just don't get it." But, I get
it better than they realize because (a) I'm a third party who can be more
objective about their relationships with their staff members, and (b) I
am also learning to give up control in order to be more effective.
I've made progress, but I still need to improve my delegation skills.
What level are you at in
terms of your delegation skills?
· Oblivious to your inability to delegate
· Aware that you need to delegate more, but still need to develop
your skills
· Very effective at getting your staff fully engaged in helping
you achieve goals
Delegating effectively is
very difficult, and few managers excel at it. However, the ones who
do are able to reduce their workload and provide opportunities for growth
and challenge for their subordinates. Given the importance of effective
time management and employee development to managerial success, delegation
is something that managers should do strategically--i.e., with forethought
and planning.
What Delegation Is
"Delegation" has many definitions
and connotations. In this context, delegation means more than simply
giving assignments to others. It means giving another party a certain
degree of discretion that's not inherent in their role--the right to make
decisions that are officially tied to your role and for which you are ultimately
responsible. Many organizations, as a part of their "employee empowerment
programs," delegate quite a bit of decision making authority to their employees
in order to promote employee spontaneity for the sake of customer service,
quality or innovation.
"Delegating strategically"
means delegating with forethought and planning in a way that capitalizes
on opportunities. Not all managers who delegate strategically draw
up plans for developing their staff, but that's an option. Management
is so complex that managers don't have time for formal strategic planning
of everything they do that has a strategic impact. Sometimes "being
strategic" means thinking through the consequences of choices to get the
best results for a given situation even if there isn't any kind of structured
analysis. However, periodically jotting down plans for delegating
work to staff members with progressive levels of responsibility can be
worth the time invested over the long run.
The Benefits of Delegation
There are countless benefits
to delegation. The most obvious might be lightening your workload.
Delegating allows you to cross items off your "to do" list and put them
on someone else's. As important as that is, it might be the least
powerful of the benefits of delegation. Delegation should provide
challenge for your subordinates and encourage them to develop their capabilities.
As they take on tasks that exceed their basic job description, they will
naturally develop new knowledge and skills to cope with those tasks.
Such development prepares them for future assignments and promotions.
Delegation can also be a clear sign that you respect your subordinates'
abilities and that you trust their discretion. Employees who feel
that they are trusted and respected tend to have a higher level of commitment
to their work, their organization, and especially their manager.
In addition, effective delegation requires subordinates' input during the
delegation process. When subordinates participate in making decisions
that pertain to their work, they tend to have a greater sense of ownership
of the work and increased commitment to its successful completion.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, delegation often improves responsiveness
to customers. The people who have the most contact with customers--whether
they are external customers or internal customers--are usually the ones
with the most complete information about how best to serve them.
Hence, delegation can help empower subordinates to take action to improve
customer satisfaction.
How to Delegate Effectively
Have
a plan. Think about your employees' level of development
and how much responsibility they're ready for. Delegate work to them
over time in such a way as to continually develop their competence.
You can discuss these plans with your employees. They'll appreciate
your concern for their development.
Define
objectives and standards. Effective delegation requires
clear articulation of the objectives for the task being delegated and the
standards for the work. Ideally, a manager will go beyond describing
objectives and standards for each task and will convey a broader vision
of what he or she is attempting to accomplish over the long run.
With a clear sense of what is to be accomplished, subordinates are better
able to be creative and resourceful to identify ways to complete the tasks
delegated to them. Subordinates with a keen sense of their manager's
vision are even more empowered to innovate and strive for realization of
that vision.
Specify
the range of discretion. Subordinates need to know
what resources--including human resources--they can use to accomplish the
tasks that are delegated to them and the level of initiative that is expected
of them. Can subordinates assign tasks to their peers or other personnel
not in their line of authority? What workspace and equipment can
subordinates use? Can subordinates have a budget for the project?
Can subordinates hire assistants or temporary help? These are the
types of questions that should be addressed when delegating. It is
also important to describe the level of initiative you expect the subordinate
to take in terms of problem solving en route to task completion.
You may ask subordinates to do one of the following when they encounter
unexpected problems:
1. "Ask me what you should do."
2. "Recommend a solution, then I will tell you what to do."
3. "Act, and then let me know immediately what you have done."
4. "Take initiative, and report only routinely."
More experienced subordinates can often handle high levels of initiative.
Involve
subordinates in the delegation process. Discuss what
you're delegating and how you are delegating it with the subordinates.
Ask them what types of tasks they would be comfortable taking responsibility
for. Ask them whether they understand and can achieve the objectives.
Identify the level of discretion they feel prepared to handle. As
mentioned above, people tend to be more committed to decisions when they
have participated in the decision-making processes. That commitment
will be invaluable since you will be relying on them to be at least somewhat
resourceful and to take initiative.
Clarify
performance consequences. Make sure that subordinates
understand the importance of the work that you have delegated to them and
how successful performance helps you, your customers, etc. In addition,
ensure that subordinates understand and value the rewards associated with
their successful performance. Rewards can include your appreciation,
public accolades, additional responsibility, visibility, enhanced promotion
potential, a bonus, etc.
Match
responsibility and authority. A fundamental principle
of work assignments is that responsibility must match authority.
Power without accountability breeds abuses of power. Accountability
without power is unjust and demoralizing. Ensure that subordinates
will be held accountable for the work that has been delegated to them.
As their manager, you retain ultimate responsibility for their successes
and failures. But, when you grant them considerable discretion, your
subordinates must receive primary responsibility.
Inform
others that delegation has occurred. Particularly
when delegation involves granting rights to allocate and consume additional
resources, other parties need to know that you have delegated authority
to your subordinates. If you tell one of your subordinates that she
can enlist the help of one of her peers, you better also tell that to her
peers. Everyone affected by a project must be informed that the project
has been delegated.
When
problems arise, insist that the subordinate recommend solutions.
Avoid upward delegation--that is, having your subordinates turn to you
to solve every problem that they encounter while performing the tasks that
you delegated to them. One of the ways to avoid upward delegation
is to ask that your subordinates find solutions to the problems that they
bring to you. Even if their solutions are inferior to yours, the
exercise of generating possible solutions encourages your subordinates
to think like resourceful creative problem solvers.
Evaluate
progress and results, and provide consequences. Unless
you have formed a very high level of trust with a given subordinate, it
is wise to plan periodic progress checks on the tasks you have assigned
to them. When subordinates are off track, correct them without eliminating
all of the discretion that you delegated to them. Subordinates are
only empowered to the extent that they are given discretion as to how they
will complete tasks. Evaluate results, and remain open to unconventional
methods. Compare the results achieved to the standards for the tasks,
and apply the appropriate consequences. Publicly praise their successes,
or privately explain their errors.
Continue
to delegate. In today's fast-paced competitive environment,
work must be delegated to the lowest organizational level that has the
competence to successfully perform it. Over time, consistently delegating
an ever-increasing level of discretion and authority to subordinates creates
an environment in which they will develop their skills and knowledge.
So, a continual commitment to delegating tasks empowers and enhances the
competence of the people who support you. Even when you have enough
time to do the tasks yourself, delegate. Delegating only when you
are too busy to do things yourself does not show your subordinates that
you trust and respect them. For the same reason, delegate the pleasant
and the unpleasant tasks. There are very few tasks that you should
not delegate.
The
Very Short List of Things That Shouldn't Be Delegated
You say that there are just
some things that you don't think should be delegated? There are a
few things that managers should not delegate:
- performance feedback
- disciplinary actions
- politically sensitive tasks
- confrontations arising from interpersonal conflict
These difficult duties are part of your exclusive responsibility
as a manager. It is abdication to make your subordinate the
"fall guy." Everything else should be delegated down to the lowest
organizational level that has the knowledge and skills to accept the responsibility.
Of course, that's easier said than done. Many managers have to overcome
their perceived barriers to delegation.
How to Overcome the
Barriers to Delegation
Many managers' attitudes
and beliefs interfere with their use of effective delegation. Check
those attitudes against reality.
"Delegation
is abdication." Proper delegation isn't anything like
abdication--it's actually hard work. Of course, dumping tasks on
your subordinates without a systematic approach to fostering their success
and skill development is abdication. However, there are so many legitimate
business reasons to delegate.
"Delegating
would mean giving up power and control." Not when
done properly. Effective delegation involves retaining control over
the work output--only decisions about processes can be totally turned over
to subordinates. Furthermore, by delegating managers leverage their
subordinates' efforts to become more productive and influential themselves.
In addition, delegating frees up time that you can use to pursue innovative
projects. If you can't think of several innovative projects that
you could pursue with some free time, then a lack of creativity is your
problem, not delegating.
"Delegating
makes me nonessential." Do you fear that your subordinates
are "gaining on you"? Do you think the best way to deal with that
fear is to hold them back? If so, see a therapist, because that's
a recipe for failure due to paranoia. Your subordinates and your
firm appreciate a manager who can develop and empower subordinates.
Again, delegating frees up time that you can use to pursue innovative projects
that make you valuable to your organization.
"Delegating
is not worth the time--I can do the job myself faster and better."
That's shortsighted. If you don't delegate tasks because you want
to save time in the short run, there's likely to be a time in the future
when you are overloaded with work and don't have a staff that's prepared
to help you.
"I
can't count on my staff to handle this." If you're
not giving them the chance, how would you know? If you delegate incrementally
and continually, your staff will acquire the necessary capabilities.
Let them learn from their mistakes like you did when you first learned
how to perform the task. If your subordinates are not driven to continually
learn new skills and information, you need to counsel them. If they
are motivated to learn, coach them.
In Summary ...
Strategic delegation takes
time, and for many of us it requires overcoming our personal barriers to
delegating. However, it's well work the effort. By delegating
effectively, you get your staff engaged in important and challenging work,
you allow them to develop their skills and prepare for the next level of
responsibility, and clear your schedule so that you can work on innovative
projects.
Sources and Additional References
Caudron, S. (1995).
Delegate for results. Industry Week, 244(3): 27-30.
Kreitner, R. & Kinicki,
A. (2001). Organizational Behavior, (5th ed.).
New York: Irwin McGraw-Hill.
Robbins, S. P. (2000).
Managing Today!, (2nd ed.). Englewood Cliffs, NJ:
Prentice Hall.
Rue, L. W. & Byars,
L. L. (2000). Management: Skills and Applications, (9th
ed.) New York: Irwin McGraw-Hill
Whetten, D. A., & Cameron,
K. S. (1998). Developing Management Skills, (5th ed.).
Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
About the Newsletter
and Subscriptions
LeaderLetter is written
by Dr. Scott Williams, Department of Management, Raj
Soin College of Business, Wright State University, Dayton, Ohio.
It is a supplement to my MBA 751 - Managing People in Organizations class.
It is intended to reinforce the course concepts and maintain communication
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E-mail Your Comments
Whether you are one of my
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Let's keep the conversation going.
A Good, Clean Joke
An 80 year old man was having
his annual checkup and the doctor asked him how he was feeling. "I've never
been better!" he boasted. "I've got an eighteen-year-old bride who's pregnant
and having my child! What do you think about that?"
The doctor considered this
for a moment, then said, "Let me tell you a story. I knew a guy who was
an avid hunter. He never missed a season. But one day went out in a bit
of a hurry and he accidentally grabbed his umbrella instead of his gun.
So he was in the woods and suddenly a grizzly bear appeared in front of
him! He raised up his umbrella, pointed it at the bear and squeezed the
handle. And do you know what happened?"
Dumbfounded, the old man
replied, "No."
The doctor finished, "A
loud 'bang' rang out, and the bear dropped dead in front of him!"
"That's impossible!" exclaimed
the old man. "Someone else must have shot that bear."
"That's kind of what I'm
getting at..." replied the doctor.
