Effective leaders also delegate effectively. Why?
Delegation frees time and provides an opportunity to develop others.
As leaders, we frequently spend too much time doing tasks; we are working in the business rather than on the business. As leaders we need to step back from the tactical work and spend more time on strategic thinking and innovation, and on coaching and developing others.
The first rule of management is delegation. Don’t try and do everything yourself because you can’t.
–Anthea Turner
There are numerous reasons for not effectively delegating. The most common are not trusting that the job will get done to our satisfaction, discomfort with assigning a boring task, or feeling guilty that the workload will be too great.
Tips for Effective Delegation
- Plan your delegations.
- Assess the strengths of your delegate, match the assignment accordingly and assign a due date(s).
- Provide clear and documented instructions.
- This prevents misunderstandings and if the task is new to your delegate, they can refer back to your instructions.
- Provide the “what and when.” Leave the “how” to the individual.
- This strategy is more empowering and motivating.
- George Patton said: “Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and they will surprise you with their ingenuity.”
- Assess how long the task would take you and build in extra time for your delegate; obtain buy-in that the deliverable date is realistic.
- Ensure your delegate has the appropriate resources they need to be successful.
- Inform staff, co-workers, business partners, etc. of your delegated role.
- Follow-up and monitor progress.
- You may be needed to add clarity to the task or be nothing more than a sounding board.
- Acknowledge the contributions of your delegate and provide constructive feedback for areas of growth.
Effective delegation increases morale, builds your talent pool, and strengthens trust within your organization, ultimately growing results and improving your bottom line!
Here’s a Wealth of Information
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Last week’s tip focused on Emotional Intelligence.
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