Articles

The importance of delegation

ZweigWhite Consulting

Strangely, people seem to struggle with letting go of responsibility. Some probably feel a level of satisfaction and accomplishment when they do everything themselves. Others may have difficulty distributing their responsibilities to others because they worry others won't be able to do the job properly. But, the fact is, the highest and best use of your time as a leader is to focus on providing leadership, vision, and direction to your organization. You simply can't effectively manage and grow your business if you're entrenched in every aspect of projects as well. Doing everything on your own usually equates to long hours and excessive overtime, which is only sustainable for so long. After a while, something's gotta give!

I'm not saying that you need to sacrifice doing the technical work that you love in order to be an effective leader. Technical work was what drew many of us into the industry in the first place and giving it up altogether could be difficult. What I am saying is that a leader's role is to run and manage a business. Delegating some responsibilities to others is essential to maintaining that focus and, beyond this, there are many ways in which delegation can benefit both you and your organization as a whole.

Non-project pursuits. If you delegate work and properly train others to handle the work, your time will be freed up so you can deal with the ''business of the business.'' Managing the company and making sure that it's going in the right direction is your job. So your focus ought to be on things that help achieve business growth, profitability, and efficiency; such as business planning, business development, marketing, operations, profit and loss, hiring, firing, and training.

Building trust. Developing trust within a team is integral. You need to know who you can trust to do the job and the only way you can find out is by testing the skills, abilities, and reliability of your team members. Delegating responsibilities to someone you don't know very well can be daunting and you won't always be lucky enough to lean on people who have proven their abilities to you in the past.

Building trust begins with taking a chance on someone whose capabilities may be unknown or questionable. If they get the job done, then you'll know who you can trust the next time around. Of course, you have to accept the reality that mistakes and errors will be made from time to time and, hopefully, you won't delegate tasks that risk catastrophic results if not executed properly. However, you'll get a better sense of individual strengths and weaknesses through the process of delegation. You'll also learn to recognize and know who to trust and go to with certain tasks in the future.

Building morale. There's no better way to pump up your team than by showing them that you trust them enough to give them more responsibility and opportunity. I remember how happy I was when my boss entrusted me with important tasks or asked me to take on a new, challenging project. These tasks, I knew, were opportunities for me to grow my skills and they created chances for me to gain more exposure and experience. I felt a sense of ownership and importance, as well as a heightened sense of accountability, which, in turn, brought higher levels of motivation and morale. I didn't want to let my boss down and I did what I could to get the job done.

Creating the future. You've probably identified some star employees in your company who demonstrate strong leadership potential. In order to promote them through the ranks, give them more responsibility, and help them meet their potential, they need to be able to delegate some of their workload to others. Creating a culture where delegation is accepted and understood as necessary for the betterment of the company helps ensure cohesion and a team-oriented environment. Delegation through the ranks promotes teaching and learning of company values and culture, which is sure to thrive through the ranks and generations.

Stimulating creativity. You'd probably like for the tasks you delegate to be done your way. An exact following of your style and approach will be hard to achieve, however. More likely than not, the person you delegate to will have his or her own approach to handling the projects you pass on. Monitor the progress of the responsibilities you delegate. If the methods being used are inefficient or unpractical, be prepared to give some critical feedback and fine-tuning. However, keep in mind that each individual has his or her own way of doing things and, oftentimes, creative or better approaches can come about. Be open to the new ideas that may result from delegating work to others— there's nothing wrong with reinventing the wheel.

Delegation definitely has its benefits. While the process of delegation may seem simple and straightforward, there are some things to keep in mind that can prevent problems from taking place. 

The ''Dan'' phenomenon. ''Dan'' is an employee in my office who, simply put, is a superstar. He's bright, learns quickly, is eager to take on more responsibility, and consistently comes through in producing stellar results. I'm sure there's a ''Dan'' in every office and, because these stars are a godsend, it's natural to want to delegate to them first. While I'm sure your ''Dan'' would be more than happy to assume some of your workload, be cautious of overloading him with too much. It's easy to find yourself relying on one person when you realize how good they are. However, overloading one person creates less opportunity for others. Furthermore, Dan's progress on his own responsibilities may stall if he's constantly being pulled in to execute your tasks.

Delegating undesirable tasks. Everyone has responsibilities they wish they didn't have. I loathe attending weekly project update meetings and often wish I could send someone else to attend the meeting in my place. The point of delegating, however, isn't to get out of doing something you don't like doing. Most likely, if you don't like doing something, the person who does it for you isn't going to enjoy it either. The point of delegating your work to someone else is to create an opportunity for you to use your time more wisely. And hopefully, the person you delegate to will get the chance to take on something new, learn, and benefit from it.

Being clear. The cornerstone of effective delegation is to be very clear with people about what you expect from them. When delegating, some may worry about how they are being perceived. Some fear they are being demanding, too precise, or ''micro-managing.'' The process of detailing instructions, expectations, and deadlines may also seem so time-consuming that one would rather just continue to do the work themselves. Giving specific directions, setting expectations, and creating a goal or deadline is key. Ask the person you are delegating to if they have questions, if they have the right equipment or knowledge to get the work done, and if what you're asking them to do is doable. Keep in mind that the person has other deadlines and responsibilities to adhere to as well.