What is delegation? The short answer!

Delegation (in a people management context) happens when you give one of your staff members a task
(or part of a task) to complete which, currently, you undertake

When delegation works successfully three things happen:

1. You are allowed the time and space to do the most important parts of the job really well. You do
the work only you can do

2. Your staff members take charge of some work which develops their ability and potential

3. You make the most effective use of the resources available to you

Delegation is a key tool in the effective management of time, people and resources yet managers are often
reluctant to delegate. Why? Because;

some managers just dont see the value of delegation
some managers see some value but reckon that the costs in terms of time needed to delegate
outweigh the benefits

Sound familiar? OK, then let me ask you a question (with thanks to Stephen Covey)

Delegation: A Key Question

What are the activities that you know would get you great results if only you had time to do
them?

Would your answers be anything like these (from the managers Ive recently been working with in a
London PR firm):

Delegation: Identifying High Value Activities

Thinking / reflecting / challenging so driving improvements

Proactive developing contacts so gaining more new business

Building better relationships with staff

Debriefing so identifying better working practices / learning

Planning

Focussed and forward looking activities so generating more value / revenue

Networking so generating more new business

Time for clients socialising so building stronger relationships

More research

Sharing knowledge

Personal development

Life?

This list is what those managers called High Value but Low Time Activities. They could see that these
activities would get them great results but they were struggling to find the time to undertake those
activities.

Why Delegate A Simple Principal
Heres a simple principal. If you want to focus more on the types of activities that will get you great
results high value activities youve just got to find yourself some extra time. A very effective way to
gain yourself that time is by delegating some of the work you currently undertake. And, of course,
delegation not only gains you time but also (done well) it improves employee performance and
satisfaction

So, is it now time to delegate?
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Why Delegate
1. Benefits to the leader
Eased work pressures - not dominated by minor details
Increased time for primary (broader) responsibilities
Increased time for self-development
2. Benefits to the subordinate
Challenge and interest
Increased motivation
Increased opportunities to learn and grow
The twin goals of delegation are (1) the development of subordinates and (2) the increased
effectiveness of the leader.


Why One Manager Does Not Delegate
He can do it faster and better.

Even if this is true, does he have confidence in his ability to get the thing done through
others rather than doing it himself? In other words, can he delegate?
He thinks his subordinates can't handle the assignment and will make a mess of it.

Honestly, he does not know unless and until he tries them out; moreover he can train
them to do it.
It takes too long to train/guide them to do it.

Yes, it may take a longer time in the short run but he is not investing in the short-term
task but in the long-term development of his staff. Moreover, when they can handle the
job, he would have more time for his primary responsibilities such as setting
departmental/organisational direction and objectives and building teamwork.
If he trains his subordinates to do it then wouldn't he become dispensable?

Isn't that a good thing that you have a replacement ... so that you can be promoted to a
higher level in the organisation?
If this manager continues not to delegate, he may be taking a shortcut to the cemetery because
the work will be too big and heavy for him to bear alone. Meanwhile, his subordinates will
become bored and lose enthusiasm in their jobs.



How to Delegate
1. Select the task to be delegated and match it to the proper person

Delegation is not the assignment of routine tasks to anyone who happens to be available.
There is a need to assess strengths, weaknesses and previous experience of all available
personnel and then match them with tasks that will utilize their strengths and experience.

Looking again at Moses' criteria in his selection of men to help him in the task of
mediation (Exo 18:21-23), we see that he chose spiritually and morally qualified men for
the tasks. We too need to look for these same qualities in our potential candidates.
2. Meet for the initial delegation and motivate

The key to successful delegation is communication of the importance of the assigned
tasks and how they fit into the grand scheme of things. You need to present the tasks
from his perspective, "What's in it for me?" In other words, ensure that there is benefit for
the person. This is also when you communicate performance expectations and clarify the
extent of his authority.
3. Maintain supervisory control - observe, review and coach
4. Delegation is not the abandonment of tasks. As a leader, you are still ultimately
responsible therefore time should be set aside to observe and meet with the subordinate
for follow-through and review of the delegated areas. This follow-through will give you
the opportunity to coach the subordinate in his new assigned tasks. Time spent with your
subordinate will also provide you with the information to decide whether to intervene or
to allow him to fail and learn from his mistakes.

Be careful not to take a problem out of a subordinate's hands and make a decision when
he merely wants to discuss it with you. Let him take the wheel; do not be a back-seat
driver i.e., do not make decisions that your subordinate could otherwise make for himself.
5. "The best executive is one who has sense enough to pick good people to do what he
wants done, and self-restraint enough to keep from meddling with them while they do it."
6. President Roosevelt
7. Continue to guide him by asking questions to clarify his objectives, raise up all key-
related facts, think of alternatives and possibilities and finally consider consequences of
actions.
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delegation
delegating authority skills, tasks and the process of effective delegation
Delegation is one of the most important management skills. These logical rules and techniques
will help you to delegate well (and will help you to help your manager when you are being
delegated a task or new responsibility - delegation is a two-way process!). Good delegation saves
you time, develops you people, grooms a successor, and motivates. Poor delegation will cause
you frustration, demotivates and confuses the other person, and fails to achieve the task or
purpose itself. So it's a management skill that's worth improving. Here are the simple steps to
follow if you want to get delegation right, with different levels of delegation freedom that you
can offer.
This delegation skills guide deals with general delegation principles and process, which is
applicable to individuals and teams, or to specially formed groups of people for individual
projects (including 'virtual teams').
Delegation is a very helpful aid for succession planning, personal development - and seeking and
encouraging promotion. It's how we grow in the job - delegation enables us to gain experience to
take on higher responsibilities.
Delegation is vital for effective leadership. See the leadership tips and leadership theories
webpages for guidance and explanation of how delegation enables and increases leadership
effectiveness.
Effective delegation is crucial for management and leadership succession. For the successor, and
for the manager or leader too: the main task of a manager in a growing thriving organization is
ultimately to develop a successor. When this happens everyone can move on to higher things.
When it fails to happen the succession and progression becomes dependent on bringing in new
people from outside.
Delegation can be used to develop your people people and yourself - delegation is not just a
management technique for freeing up the boss's time. Of course there is a right way to do it.
These delegation tips and techniques are useful for bosses - and for anyone seeking or being
given delegated responsibilities.
As a giver of delegated tasks you must ensure delegation happens properly. Just as
significantly, as the recipient of delegated tasks you have the opportunity to 'manage upwards'
and suggest improvements to the delegation process and understanding - especially if your boss
could use the help.
Managing the way you receive and agree to do delegated tasks is one of the central skills of
'managing upwards'. Therefore while this page is essentially written from the manager's
standpoint, the principles are just as useful for people being managed.

delegation and SMART, or SMARTER
A simple delegation rule is the SMART acronym, or better still, SMARTER. It's a quick
checklist for proper delegation. Delegated tasks must be:
Specific
Measurable
Agreed
Realistic
Timebound
Ethical
Recorded
Traditional interpretations of the SMARTER acronym use 'Exciting' or 'Enjoyable', however,
although a high level of motivation often results when a person achieves and is given recognition
for a particular delegated task, which in itself can be exciting and enjoyable, in truth, let's be
honest, it is not always possible to ensure that all delegated work is truly 'exciting' or 'enjoyable'
for the recipient. More importantly, the 'Ethical' aspect is fundamental to everything that we do,
assuming you subscribe to such philosophy. There are other variations of meaning - see SMART
and SMARTER acronyms.
The delegation and review form is a useful tool for the delegation process.
Also helpful tools for delegation, see the goal planning tips and template, and the activity
management template.
The Tannenbaum and Schmidt Continuum model proviodes extra guidance on delegating
freedom to, and developing, a team.
The Tuckman 'Forming, Storming, Norming Performing' model is particularly helpful when
delegating to teams and individuals within teams.
Below are:
The steps of successful delegation - step-by-step guide.
The levels of delegation freedom - choose which is most appropriate for any given situation.

the steps of successful delegation

1 Define the task
Confirm in your own mind that the task is suitable to be delegated. Does it meet the criteria for
delegating?
2 Select the individual or team
What are your reasons for delegating to this person or team? What are they going to get out of it?
What are you going to get out of it?
3 Assess ability and training needs
Is the other person or team of people capable of doing the task? Do they understand what needs
to be done. If not, you can't delegate.
4 Explain the reasons
You must explain why the job or responsibility is being delegated. And why to that person or
people? What is its importance and relevance? Where does it fit in the overall scheme of things?
5 State required results
What must be achieved? Clarify understanding by getting feedback from the other person. How
will the task be measured? Make sure they know how you intend to decide that the job is being
successfully done.
6 Consider resources required
Discuss and agree what is required to get the job done. Consider people, location, premises,
equipment, money, materials, other related activities and services.
7 Agree deadlines
When must the job be finished? Or if an ongoing duty, when are the review dates? When are the
reports due? And if the task is complex and has parts or stages, what are the priorities?
At this point you may need to confirm understanding with the other person of the previous
points, getting ideas and interpretation. As well as showing you that the job can be done, this
helps to reinforce commitment.
Methods of checking and controlling must be agreed with the other person. Failing to agree this
in advance will cause this monitoring to seem like interference or lack of trust.
8 Support and communicate
Think about who else needs to know what's going on, and inform them. Involve the other person
in considering this so they can see beyond the issue at hand. Do not leave the person to inform
your own peers of their new responsibility. Warn the person about any awkward matters of
politics or protocol. Inform your own boss if the task is important, and of sufficient profile.
9 Feedback on results
It is essential to let the person know how they are doing, and whether they have achieved their
aims. If not, you must review with them why things did not go to plan, and deal with the
problems. You must absorb the consequences of failure, and pass on the credit for success.

levels of delegation
Delegation isn't just a matter of telling someone else what to do. There is a wide range of varying
freedom that you can confer on the other person. The more experienced and reliable the other
person is, then the more freedom you can give. The more critical the task then the more cautious
you need to be about extending a lot of freedom, especially if your job or reputation depends on
getting a good result. Take care to choose the most appropriate style for each situation. For each
example the statements are simplified for clarity; in reality you would choose a less abrupt style
of language, depending on the person and the relationship. At the very least, a "Please" and
"Thank-you" would be included in the requests.
It's important also to ask the other person what level of authority they feel comfortable being
given. Why guess? When you ask, you can find out for sure and agree this with the other person.
Some people are confident; others less so. It's your responsibility to agree with them what level
is most appropriate, so that the job is done effectively and with minimal unnecessary
involvement from you. Involving the other person in agreeing the level of delegated freedom for
any particular responsibility is an essential part of the 'contract' that you make with them.
These levels of delegation are not an exhaustive list. There are many more shades of grey
between these black-and-white examples. Take time to discuss and adapt the agreements and
'contracts' that you make with people regarding delegated tasks, responsibility and freedom
according to the situation.
Be creative in choosing levels of delegated responsibility, and always check with the other
person that they are comfortable with your chosen level. People are generally capable of doing
far more than you imagine.
The rate and extent of responsibility and freedom delegated to people is a fundamental driver of
organisational growth and effectiveness, the growth and well-being of your people, and of your
own development and advancement.

levels of delegation - examples
These examples of different delegation levels progressively offer, encourage and enable more
delegated freedom. Level 1 is the lowest level of delegated freedom (basically none). Level 10 is
the highest level typically (and rarely) found in organisations.

1 "Wait to be told." or "Do exactly what I say." or "Follow these instructions
precisely."
This is instruction. There is no delegated freedom at all.

2 "Look into this and tell me the situation. I'll decide."
This is asking for investigation and analysis but no recommendation. The person delegating
retains responsibility for assessing options prior to making the decision.

3 "Look into this and tell me the situation. We'll decide together."
This is has a subtle important difference to the above. This level of delegation encourages and
enables the analysis and decision to be a shared process, which can be very helpful in coaching
and development.

4 "Tell me the situation and what help you need from me in assessing and
handling it. Then we'll decide."
This is opens the possibility of greater freedom for analysis and decision-making, subject to both
people agreeing this is appropriate. Again, this level is helpful in growing and defining coaching
and development relationships.

5 "Give me your analysis of the situation (reasons, options, pros and cons) and
recommendation. I'll let you know whether you can go ahead."
Asks for analysis and recommendation, but you will check the thinking before deciding.

6 "Decide and let me know your decision, and wait for my go-ahead before
proceeding."
The other person is trusted to assess the situation and options and is probably competent enough
to decide and implement too, but for reasons of task importance, or competence, or perhaps
externally changing factors, the boss prefers to keep control of timing. This level of delegation
can be frustrating for people if used too often or for too long, and in any event the reason for
keeping people waiting, after they've inevitably invested time and effort, needs to be explained.

7 "Decide and let me know your decision, then go ahead unless I say not to."
Now the other person begins to control the action. The subtle increase in responsibility saves
time. The default is now positive rather than negative. This is a very liberating change in
delegated freedom, and incidentally one that can also be used very effectively when seeking
responsibility from above or elsewhere in an organisation, especially one which is strangled by
indecision and bureaucracy. For example, "Here is my analysis and recommendation; I will
proceed unless you tell me otherwise by (date)."

8 "Decide and take action - let me know what you did (and what happened)."
This delegation level, as with each increase up the scale, saves even more time. This level of
delegation also enables a degree of follow-up by the manager as to the effectiveness of the
delegated responsibility, which is necessary when people are being managed from a greater
distance, or more 'hands-off'. The level also allows and invites positive feedback by the manager,
which is helpful in coaching and development of course.

9 "Decide and take action. You need not check back with me."
The most freedom that you can give to another person when you still need to retain responsibility
for the activity. A high level of confidence is necessary, and you would normally assess the
quality of the activity after the event according to overall results, potentially weeks or months
later. Feedback and review remain helpful and important, although the relationship is more likely
one of mentoring, rather than coaching per se.

10 "Decide where action needs to be taken and manage the situation accordingly.
It's your area of responsibility now."
The most freedom that you can give to the other person, and not generally used without formal
change of a person's job role. It's the delegation of a strategic responsibility. This gives the other
person responsibility for defining what changes projects, tasks, analysis and decisions are
necessary for the management of a particular area of responsibility, as well as the task or project
or change itself, and how the initiative or change is to be implemented and measured, etc. This
amounts to delegating part of your job - not just a task or project. You'd use this utmost level of
delegation (for example) when developing a successor, or as part of an intentional and agreed
plan to devolve some of your job accountability in a formal sense.

contracts - 'psychological contracts', 'emotional contracts'
Variously called 'contracts' or 'psychological contracts' or 'emotional contracts', these expressions
describe the process of agreeing with the other person what they should do and the expectations
linked to the responsibility. It all basically means the same, whatever you call it. The point is that
people cannot actually be held responsible for something to which they've not agreed. The point
is also that everyone is more committed to delivering a responsibility if they've been through the
process of agreeing to do it. This implies that they might have some feelings about the
expectations attached, such as time-scale, resources, budget, etc., even purpose and method. You
must give the other person the opportunity to discuss, question and suggest issues concerning
expectations attached to a delegated task. This is essential to the contracting process.
See The Psychological Contract, and Transactional Analysis Contracting - both are highly
relevant to delegation.
Certain general responsibilities of course are effectively agreed implicitly within people's job
roles or job descriptions or employment contracts, but commonly particular tasks, projects, etc.,
that you need to delegate are not, in which case specific discussion must take place to establish
proper agreement or 'contract' between you and the other person.
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Employee involvement is creating an environment in which people have an impact on decisions
and actions that affect their jobs. Employee involvement is not the goal nor is it a tool, as
practiced in many organizations. Rather, it is a management and leadership philosophy about
how people are most enabled to contribute to continuous improvement and the ongoing success
of their work organization.
My bias, from working with people for 35+ years, is to involve people as much as possible in all
aspects of work decisions and planning. This involvement increases ownership and commitment,
retains your best employees, and fosters an environment in which people choose to be motivated
and contributing. It is also important for team building. I am not, however a fan of consensus
decision making which is time consuming and may generate solutions that satisfy the lowest
common denominator on which people can agree.
How to involve employees in decision making and continuous improvement activities is the
strategic aspect of involvement and can include such methods as suggestion systems,
manufacturing cells, work teams, continuous improvement meetings, Kaizen (continuous
improvement) events, corrective action processes and periodic discussions with the supervisor.
Intrinsic to most employee involvement processes is training in team effectiveness,
communication, and problem solving; the development of reward and recognition systems; and
frequently, the sharing of gains made through employee involvement efforts.
Employee Involvement Model
For people and organizations that desire a model to apply, the best I have discovered was
developed from work by Tannenbaum and Schmidt (1958) and Sadler (1970). They provide a
continuum for leadership and involvement that includes an increasing role for employees and a
decreasing role for supervisors in the decision process. The continuum includes this progression.
Tell: the supervisor makes the decision and announces it to staff. The supervisor provides
complete direction. Tell is useful when communicating about safety issues, government
regulations and for decisions that neither require nor ask for employee input.
Sell: the supervisor makes the decision and then attempts to gain commitment from staff
by selling the positive aspects of the decision. Sell is useful when employee commitment
is needed, but the decision is not open to employee influence.
Consult: the supervisor invites input into a decision while retaining authority to make the
final decision herself. The key to a successful consultation is to inform employees, on the
front end of the discussion, that their input is needed, but that the supervisor is retaining
the authority to make the final decision. This is the level of involvement that can create
employee dissatisfaction most readily when this is not clear to the people providing input.
Join: the supervisor invites employees to make the decision with the supervisor. The
supervisor considers his voice equal in the decision process. The key to a successful join
is when the supervisor truly builds consensus around a decision and is willing to keep her
influence equal to that of the others providing input.
Adding to the Model
To round out the model, I add the following:
Delegate: the supervisor turns the decision over to another party. The key to successful
delegation is to always build a feedback loop and a timeline into the process. The
supervisor must also share any "preconceived picture" he has of the anticipated outcome
of the process.
Increasing the level of employee involvement is situational. The amount of employee
involvement depends on:
the person's skills and experience,
their knowledge of the factors that affect their job and decision making, and
the degree to which they understand how their job is connected to other processes within the
organization.
You can effectively involve employees in decision making about their jobs. These degrees of
involvement tell you how.
Reference: Tannenbaum, R. and Schmidt, W. How to Choose a Leadership Pattern. Harvard
Business Review, 1958, 36, 95-101.
This article is an excerpt from the Michigan State University M.E.N.T.O.R.S. Manual: Monthly
Conversation Guide #9. Copyright Susan M. Heathfield and Michigan State University, 2003-
2004.
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Interested in knowing more about the chain of command? Chain of command describes the way
in which organizations, including the military, religious institutions, corporations, government
entities, and universities, traditionally structure their reporting relationships. When every
employee reports to one other employee, decisions and communication are tightly controlled and
flow down the chain of command through the organization.
In the traditional chain of command, if you look at relationships pictorially presented on an
organizational chart, the President or CEO is the top employee in the chain of command. His or
her directly reporting staff occupy the second line of the chart. Their directly reporting staff are
shown on the third line and so forth down through the reporting relationships in an organization.
At each level of the organization, the power to make meaningful decisions is diminished.
This hierarchical method for organizing information flow, decision making, power and authority,
assumes that each level of the organization is subordinate to the level to which it reports.
Terminology like subordinate to refer to reporting employees and superior to refer to employees
others report to, such as managers, are part of traditional hierarchical language and thinking.
Command and control are intrinsic in the chain of command within organizations. The further up
the chain of command your job is located, the more power, authority, and usually responsibility,
you have. Traditional hierarchical structures have plusses and minuses for organizations.
Positive Aspects of the Chain of Command
Clear reporting relationships exist with employees designated who are responsible for
communicating information, providing direction, and delegating authority and
responsibility.

Each employee has one boss thus alleviating the problem of multiple masters in the chain
of command.

Responsibility and accountability are clearly assigned and each manager has oversight
responsibility for a group of employees performing a function.

Employees are not confused about whom to go to for resources, assistance, and feedback.

There is a certain simplicity and security to organizing people and relationships in a
structured, unbending, controlled hierarchical cascade.

Chain of command communicates to customers and vendors who is responsible for what
decisions in their interaction. Job titles, that define each level of the organization, further
communicate authority and responsibility to organization stakeholders.
Challenges of Chain of Command Organization
Chain of command thinking originated in an industrial age when work involved more
rote activities, information and communication options were limited, and decision
making and authority were clearly placed in the hands of a few individuals at or near the
top of an organization chart. Todays organizations experience a plethora of
communication options, more intellectually challenging and information based jobs, and
the need for faster decision making. The chain of command, in many ways, impedes
these new organizational options and needs.

When information is available everywhere, a hierarchical order that ensures the
communication of decisions and information needed by various levels of employees, is
unnecessary to the dissemination of information.

The need for flexibility and faster decisions in an agile work environment requires that
employees communicate directly with all levels of the organization. Waiting several days
for the boss to be available is not acceptable if a customers need goes unserved or an
employees work is slowed. The employee should be able to talk with his bosss
boss or the president.

If the desire is to develop employees who can immediately respond to a customer need,
because customers require immediacy in this new, fast-paced world, employees must be
able to get information immediately and make decisions without oversight to meet
customer needs in a timely manner.

Jobs are no longer rigidly defined and the current expectation promotes employee
empowerment, autonomy, and decision making authority close to where the need exists.
The hierarchical order may still exist for ease of organization and reporting relationships as laid
out in a chain of command on an organizational chart. But, the lines and the former rigidity are
blurred. In the past, if an employee circumvented his or her boss in favor of talking with the
bosss boss, the employee received clear communication that the chain of command was in
place for a purpose.
While organizations still retain some of the vestiges, the chain of command is much more
difficult to enforce when information is so freely circulating and communication is so easy with
any member of the organization. The span of control of an individual manager has become
broader with more reporting employees than in the past. This change forces the manager to allow
more autonomy. Technology has blurred the hierarchy further since information is available all
the time to any employee. Many organizations are experiencing the value of decentralized
decision making.
Modern management science is exploring other options for organization and customer service
delivery in this brave new world. But, in the meantime, even the smallest organizations fall back
on traditional chain of command, hierarchical models of organization. The future holds out hope
for innovative organization structures that emulate the needs of employees, organizations, and
the marketplace.
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Importance of Delegation
inShare1


Delegation of authority is a process in which the authority and powers are divided and shared
amongst the subordinates. When the work of a manager gets beyond his capacity, there should
be some system of sharing the work. This is how delegation of authority becomes an important
tool in organization function. Through delegation, a manager, in fact, is multiplying himself by
dividing/multiplying his work with the subordinates. The importance of delegation can be

justified by -
1. Through delegation, a manager is able to divide the work and allocate it to the subordinates.
This helps in reducing his work load so that he can work on important areas such as - planning,
business analysis etc.
2. With the reduction of load on superior, he can concentrate his energy on important and critical
issues of concern. This way he is able to bring effectiveness in his work as well in the work unit.
This effectivity helps a manager to prove his ability and skills in the best manner.
3. Delegation of authority is the ground on which the superior-subordinate relationship stands. An
organization functions as the authority flows from top level to bottom. This in fact shows that
through delegation, the superior-subordinate relationship become meaningful. The flow of
authority is from top to bottom which is a way of achieving results.
4. Delegation of authority in a way gives enough room and space to the subordinates to flourish
their abilities and skill. Through delegating powers, the subordinates get a feeling of importance.
They get motivated to work and this motivation provides appropriate results to a concern. Job
satisfaction is an important criterion to bring stability and soundness in the relationship
between superior and subordinates. Delegation also helps in breaking the monotony of the
subordinates so that they can be more creative and efficient. Delegation of authority is not only
helpful to the subordinates but it also helps the managers to develop their talents and skills.
Since the manager get enough time through delegation to concentrate on important issues,
their decision-making gets strong and in a way they can flourish the talents which are required
in a manager. Through granting powers and getting the work done, helps the manager to attain
communication skills, supervision and guidance, effective motivation and the leadership traits
are flourished. Therefore it is only through delegation, a manager can be tested on his traits.
5. Delegation of authority is help to both superior and subordinates. This, in a way, gives stability
to a concerns working. With effective results, a concern can think of creating more departments
and divisions flow working. This will require creation of more managers which can be fulfilled by
shifting the experienced, skilled managers to these positions. This helps in both virtual as well as
horizontal growth which is very important for a concerns stability.
Therefore, from the above points, we can justify that delegation is not just a process but it is a
way by which manager multiples himself and is able to bring stability, ability and soundness to a
concern.
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Monitoring Delegation
Employees who have earned high levels of trust simply dont need the kind of day-to-day
attention that less experienced employees do. In fact, experienced employees may resent a
managers attempts to closely monitor the way in which they carry out their duties. Here are
some tips for monitoring delegation:
Tailor your approach to the employee. If your employee works independently and is able to
perform his or her job with minimal supervision on your part, establish a system of monitoring
with only a few, critical checkpoints along the way. If, however, your employee needs more of
your attention, create a system that incorporates several measurable milestones along the way to
goal completion.
Diligently use a written or computer-based system for tracking the tasks that you assign to your
employees. The system you use for tracking assigned tasks doesnt matter so much as the fact
that you must use the system regularly.
Keep the lines of communication open. Open communication is critical when it comes to
delegating tasks. It is the foundation on which managers and employees build trust. Make time
for your employees when they come by to ask you for help and ensure they know that you want
them to come to you when there is a problem.
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Chapter 9: Delegation
Delegation is a way to appropriately and consistently provide direction to the staff. By delegating
properly, you can teach employees new skills and expertise to help them be more productive and
instill a sense of self-reliance, improving morale and motivation. As a supervisor, you must
assess your staff's current abilities and their potential to accept and complete assignments
through established guidelines. You must know how to plan and coordinate a variety of activities
and how to monitor progress. Delegation brings into play many management functions planning,
organizing, coordinating, motivating, communicating, and leading.
Make sure that you delegate the appropriate level of authority to the task.
Guiding Principles
Choosing Projects or Tasks to Delegate
Making Delegation Effective
Preparing Employees for Delegation
Resistance to Delegation
Other Resources
Training Resources

Guiding Principles
Your goals in delegating are to:
Provide opportunities for growth and development
Empower staff by letting them be responsible for the work
Increase morale and self-confidence
Give yourself more time to concentrate on staff and other management issues
Enhance creativity and skills
Increase staff involvement and commitment to the job
Choosing Projects or Tasks to Delegate
Choose the projects and tasks you delegate carefully to make sure you are balancing the risk with
the potential rewards. You may want to delegate tasks that meet the following criteria:
All necessary information is available to your employee
The parameters are clear
The task does not involve responsibilities traditionally associated with management (i.e., hiring,
performance appraisals, disciplinary action)
Making Delegation Effective
You can do several things to increase your effectiveness in delegation. For delegation to work,
your staff must have a clear understanding of their responsibilities, the extent of their authority,
and the results that they are expected to produce.
Select the employees who have the ability to do the job according to their experience and
knowledge.
Make sure your expectations are clearly understood.
Let employees know you believe in their ability to carry out the task.
Clearly define the employees' authority and responsibility.
Monitor progress and establish feedback mechanisms.
Establish deadlines and milestones.
Empower employees by giving them the latitude to use their own imagination and initiative.
Reward employees for the positive results they produce.
Provide constructive feedback.
Preparing Employees for Delegation
Find out what employees already know about the task. With this knowledge, you can communicate
more efficiently, without losing employees' attention or insulting their intelligence.
Give a reason why explanation. Employees who understand the purpose of projects tend to commit
themselves more fully to completing those projects.
Provide an example or illustration of the task.
Make it clear that you welcome questions. Employees may feel embarrassed or afraid to reveal their
lack of knowledge about a subject or task. Reassure them that you are happy to answer any questions
they might have.
Work with employees at the beginning of new projects to provide the encouragement and instruction
they need.
Resistance to Delegation
Understanding why you may be reluctant to delegate tasks and why staff members may be
reluctant to accept them will help you be a more effective delegator. The reluctance to delegate
tasks is understandable because you still retain accountability. Sometimes you may feel the
transfer of a task involves a certain degree of risk. Your staff may also be thinking about the risk;
they are afraid that they may be criticized if they fail. Some common reasons why managers and
supervisors avoid delegation are:
They are afraid the employee may make mistakes
They think it takes too much time to delegate
They feel that completing the task themselves would be more efficient
They are concerned about losing control
They fear that employees will resent delegation
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MONITORING DELEGATION
There is a difference between empowerment and abandonment. To ensure progress
and success, you need to monitor the tasks that you delegate.
Tips:
Inexperienced staff may need some special attention, closer monitoring, at least
at the beginning of the project
Use mentors to help the new people or inexperienced on the team
Tact and sensibility go a long way when monitoring, to make sure that people are
encouraged and empowered, not micro-managed
Empower them to make decisions that affect their jobs and the methods involved
the process
Give them accolades and rewards on the spot, as you see positive activities
occur what is rewarded gets repeated
Ask the person involved if they feel up to the task dont just assume that they
are prepared
Set up systems:
o Correspondence
o Meetings
o Access to software, systems
o Written reports
o Your accessibility
Assume that every process can be improved, and teach them to challenge the
process
Work with staff to set deadlines and interim milestones
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How to use effective feedback when delegating job tasks (Proceedings)
Aug 1, 2009
By: Amanda L. Donnelly, DVM, MBA
CVC IN KANSAS CITY PROCEEDINGS



Veterinary owners and managers often convey frustration about job performance inconsistencies
and failure of some employees to complete job tasks. Likewise veterinary teams routinely report
problems with accountability in the practice when staff members aren't responsible for fulfilling
their job roles and assignments. Discipline doesn't work well to correct these minor job
performance problems or instances of lack of accountability. Most managers would agree that
firing employees for occasional lapses in job performance or forgetting to complete certain tasks
is not the answer. Practice owners and managers find lack of accountability in to be frustrating
but don't know how to solve the problem.
The best way to improve job performance and accountability is to set up an effective feedback
system with employees when delegating job tasks. Feedback improves communication and keeps
team members on track to meet or exceed expectations when fulfilling their job assignments. The
following step by step process will help you establish a feedback protocol that will pay dividends
in enhanced job satisfaction and increased accountability and productivity for the team.
Steps to establish an effective feedback and delegation process
1. Assess employee skill sets. When delegating job tasks, be sure to delegate to the appropriate
team member. Two basic questions to ask are "Does the employee have the necessary skills and
knowledge to do the job?" and "Does the employee have the interest in performing the job task?"
Sometimes job tasks are not completed adequately or on time because team members aren't
comfortable with the assignment due to a lack of training or skill. Other times they simply may
not be interested in the job duties. While not every job task is exciting, look for opportunities to
make assignments based on the interest and strengths of staff members.
2. Give employees the tools to do job. Team members must have the tools and resources to do
their job whether that is skills and knowledge, time, or proper equipment that is in good working
order. Provide training for both new hires and established employees so they may gain
proficiency in all aspects of their job.
3. Communicate clearly. Sometimes lack of accountability exists because supervisors are unclear
when communicating with staff about their job performance or when delegating job tasks.
Communicate and clarify expectations to employees in a direct, straightforward manner. Be sure
to assess for understanding from employees. Ask them if they have any questions about their
assigned job tasks. Don't forget to give employees deadlines when delegating job tasks. Rather
than asking an employee "Can you please file these records and enter these invoices?" instead
say "I need these records filed and the invoices entered by the end of your shift. Can you
complete this job task by 5pm?"
4. Know when and how to deliver feedback. Once job tasks are delegated, employees need
constructive feedback on their job performance. One of the most important aspects of giving
feedback is to be specific and timely. Specific information about how job duties are performed is
more meaningful than comments such as "Thanks for doing a good job" or "We need for you to
do a better job". Specific feedback tells a team member what behavior you want them to continue
and/or what behavior is unacceptable. While at times it may seem nit-picky, not everyone has the
same definition of what is an "exceptional, good or poor" job performance, what is "on-time" or
what is "clean". Be aware of appropriate times and places to give feedback. Follow the old
adage, "praise in public and criticize in private". If you need to discuss inconsistent job
performance or failure to complete job tasks, then set up a private meeting with employees. Try
to be sensitive to the timing of feedback if employees are going through a difficult time period.
This is not to say that managers should avoid giving feedback but rather that they should convey
empathy if employees are struggling with personal issues and be prepared to offer support such
as employee assistance programs.
5. Focus on the behavior not the person. Feedback given to employees needs to always focus on
the behavior of the team member not on intangibles such as their attitude or intention. We cannot
measure, quantify or see an employee's attitude or intention. But we can witness behavior and
actions. Rather than telling an employee they need to have a better attitude or that they need to
be nicer to clients, tell them specifically what words or actions demonstrate their poor attitude or
poor job performance. When you focus your feedback on specific behavior and actions,
employees will know what they need to do differently as well as what they need to continue
doing well.
6. Relate job duties to the practice's vision and core values. Everyone's job role in the practice
has a purpose and helps to further the vision of the business. Employees benefit from
understanding how their individual job roles and assignments fit into the "big picture" or vision
of the practice and how they help to achieve business goals. Additionally, how you want team
members to act and do their job tasks relates to the practice's core values. Remind employees that
their actions need to be consistent with your core values.
7. Provide ongoing coaching and ask for employees' feedback. Offering consistent, regular
feedback is part of an on-going coaching process. It needs to be offered on a daily or weekly
basis to be sure employees understand job assignments and to reinforce the desired behavior
from team members. Part of the feedback process includes soliciting feedback from employees,
not just giving them feedback. Ask staff members on a regular basis how they are doing, if they
have the tools and resources to do their job, if they have challenges they need help with, and
what ideas they have to make improvements in the practice.
By following the above feedback protocol, you will give employees the information they need to
meet and exceed job expectations and you will be able to delegate job tasks more effectively
which will lead to opportunities to empower team members.
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Providing Feedback Is A Hallmark For Effective Delegation
One of the most difficult and painful growth experience for any manager is giving employees
constructive criticism. There is No way around it. Either it is avoided all together or over-done
and bungled. The consequences for the manager and the employees under the managers care are
negative. Dont kid yourself that this is not important. Future progress and advancement are at
stake. Lack of quality feedback stifles growth. It impedes the progress of the business unit and
the manager. Poor feedback creates a type of Ground Hog Day where the team re-lives its
mistakes over and over and productivity suffers. It really isnt that people dont want to grow and
get better. It is more about the manager not wanting to deliver, what they perceive as, bad
news.Without the needed feedback employees do not improve. The manager suffers the most in
poor team results and a reputation for not having a business unit that excels.
There are very specific skills and techniques that help a manager improve on constructive
criticism. Learning to do this well is a key part of effective delegation. The manager needs to
focus on making a dedicated effort to provide feedback. Leadership is based on giving and
receiving feedback on a consistent basis. When people make work mistakes, it provides a growth
opportunity. What often gets in the way is the managers reluctance to deliver bad news to the
employee. How can this be? Helping people grow by giving feedback is a key to management
success. Trying to shield your people from the truth in how they performed is just wrong. If
people get reinforcement, both positive and negative, they grow.
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When a manager effectively delegates a work assignment or project to someone, they are passing
responsibility and trust to the person assigned. The manager is assigning important work and
delegating the responsibility for getting it done to the recipient. You are, in fact, sayingI
believe you can do this job and I believe that you will do a good job. If you want to destroy an
employees sense of responsibility for achievement, let them off them off the hook for what went
wrong. Worst thing to do. You send the message that the employee really isnt in charge of their
efforts. This removes the want to and need to from the motivation equation. When the
employee makes a mistake and you coach them to own up to it, they realize they had control but
blew it. The next time, they will do better as a result.
The next step, once the feedback commitment is made, is for the manager to acquire better skills
for doing it. The process has some basic elements. first, be very specific and clear about what
went wrong. Give the feedback with an intent to help not an intent to harm. Be direct and out in
the open regarding the errors. Tell them what you believe was not done right. Dont sugar coat it
and dont blow it out of proportion. Get the employee to weigh-in by asking for their
explanation. What happens now is that the mistake is set out on the table for review and
discussion. It is no longer the elephant in the room. The bad result is not the employee. Rather
it is a failed behavior that needs to improve. Make the mistake or problem a third party in the
feedback session that both the manager and employee can discuss.
Committing to providing quality feedback will truly change the environment for the business
unit. People come to expect that their work counts, even the small jobs. Managers will help their
people grow by focusing more on their development than any concern for how they might handle
the feedback. Of course, the assignment should be delegated through the lens of the employee
and feedback should be done this way, as well. Think about how a given employee has handled
feedback in the past. Adapt you communication to each employee but do not sugar coat the facts.
Keep emotion out of the feedback as much as possible. By being very specific, about exactly
what did not go well, the focus can be more on how to improve and less about why did this
happen. Focus on what the employee can do better and isolate training needs for those things
they dont have in their control.
One of the primary causes of poor business unit or individual performance is a lack of effective
constructive criticism. The manger fails everyone when they avoid holding people to task. If a
manager finds people consistently falling short and doing so in the same way, the feedback loop
is broken. By making a real and complete effort to create a work environment where growth and
feedback go hand in hand, the manager an the work unit are well on their way to high-
productivity, high-morale and high hopes.
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