Effective delegation is a fundamental skill every manager and company leader must hone to manage people and achieve organizational goals efficiently. However, not all delegation methods are created equal.
Some of these strategies from the Young Entrepreneur Council might help you find the most effective way to delegate tasks and responsibilities within your team.
Focus on the activities you do best.
Step back and think about: A) what you do really well; B) what you enjoy doing; and C) what is the best use of your time from an ROI perspective. Map this out in a Venn diagram.
There’s likely enough overlap in the middle (the space occupied by A, B, and C) to fill your days and then some. Then, delegate everything else.
Provide clear, concise instructions.
One specific strategy managers can adopt to delegate tasks and responsibilities effectively is providing clear and concise instructions.
When delegating a task, make sure to explain the expectations, desired outcomes, and any necessary resources. Equally important, managers always make sure to make themselves available for any questions that may arise during the task’s completion.
Balance delegation and micromanaging.
The key to delegating tasks and responsibilities effectively to your team is finding the right balance between delegation and micromanaging. Here at Livit, we prioritize autonomy, where everyone is the primary manager of themselves, and the micromanagement level is kept low.
However, managers should still offer constant guidance and support whenever necessary to make things work best for everyone. After all, the end positive result we want to achieve is organizational and not individual.
Assign tasks to the right people.
One mistake managers make is throwing too much work on the wrong person’s plate. As a result, the highest-performing team members with the most unique skill sets fill their time with low-level responsibilities or tedious manual tasks just because they can do them fast. If this sounds familiar, you could be wasting precious resources.
Set once-every-two-weeks meetings to discuss projects.
Delegating tasks and responsibilities should go hand in hand with regular synchronous project discussions to ensure everyone is on the same page and continues to do so. A once-every-two-week meeting to address what needs to be delegated, the priority level for each task, the due dates, and what matters need to be tabled for a later date will help smoothen things up and increase the chance that the project’s end result is satisfactory. This is also a more efficient and consistent way to delegate.
Model the behavior you’d like to see.
Be very aware that if you are not doing what you say, your team will not do as you do. In Livit, we favor transparency regardless of your team and position.
Managers and leaders who delegate responsibilities have to be absolutely crystal clear about what they will be doing while other tasks are assigned. Everyone should wear respective hats according to title and ability, and the company culture should support healthy delegation, but leaders and managers must show up, too.
Assess each team member’s skills.
Assessing the skills and capabilities of your team prior to delegating tasks and responsibilities is one of the most effective strategies. This allows you to find the right person for the right job and minimizes the possibility of any setbacks down the road. Analyzing your team’s traits as per different roles helps increase productivity and makes it possible to identify areas of improvement with ease.
Delegate outcomes, not tasks.
Ask your team members if they have clarity on what success looks like, and then have them repeat it to you. Confirm with them that they have the tools, time, and training to achieve said outcome. Then, get out of their way so they can execute. Hold them accountable for the outcome, not the task or activity.
