Lets begin by understanding a little more about delegation
Hopefully this short piece will allow you to assess your own approach and review its effectiveness or otherwise.
Definition - Delegation is where part of your own job consciously passed to a subordinate whilst retaining accountability.
As management is really about getting things done through people, successful delegation is vital aspect of a manager's job. The more senior you are the more you really delegate and the more effective you become. You're doing more strategic work as you progress upwards within your organization and doing less transactional work.
Delegation is something one needs to make a conscious decision about. Looking at your own time and how successful can you be doing everything yourself? Perhaps delegating makes sense to clear your desk of things that you don't have to be doing yourself.
Select a subordinate who is not only capable of doing the tasks but will be able to use the experience to grow their own career. This is a win-win experience. Of course you may not have the luxury of selecting your own subordinate and have to take what you get.
Then of course strike a balance between delegating too little or too much.
What to delegate and to whom
Divide work into meaningful tasks and then allocate them to specialists or people who will benefit from the experience.
Allocate the work
This is the hardest and most important stage of delegation and generally involves a number of issues:
Monitoring performance
A manager should constantly monitor progress against standards and sub-goals. Recognition must be given for task accomplishment and preventative or corrective action instituted when targets are not being achieved. It's the monitoring of performance which keeps you in control and aware of the results of the work you delegate.
If tasks are delegated as part of a developmental program the manager should ensure that the subordinate receives proper training and guidance!
Benefits of successful delegation
Providing subordinates with the opportunity for growth and development
Obstacles to successful delegation
There are a number of possible reasons which hold managers back from delegating. The reasons are;
Good luck in your delegation!
Best Year Yet Closing the gap from where you are to where you want to be!
By Graeme Nichol of Arcturus Advisors. Please visit their website at http://www.arcturusadvisors.com. Arcturus Advisors works with business leaders and their teams to close the gap between great strategies and mediocre results. We use the Best Year Yet process to get you to focus on a shared vision and agree on how to achieve it. We get team members to value and respect the individual members and achieve results that far exceed individual contribution. (Newsletter arcturusadvisor@aweber.com)