101: Delegating work
Delegating tasks at work is not as easy as it seems. There is a temptation to say, “Oh, it's just faster to do it myself.” But in doing that, employee involvement and empowerment can suffer. Plus, no matter how hard you work, you can't do it all. That limits your success, and the success of your group. Here are three ways to take a deep breath — give up a bit of control — and delegate tasks at work:
Track it. When you delegate to an employee, communicate key feedback dates. Susan M. Heathfield at HumanResources.About.com says this will accomplish two goals. One, it “provides you with the feedback you need without causing you to micromanage your direct report or team,” she writes. Also, you will have the chance to influence the direction of the project if need be, or decisions at crucial phases.
Ask the right questions. In deciding if a task is appropriate to delegate or not, an article at MindTools.com suggests these considerations: Does someone else have — or can they be given — the correct information to do the job? Does the task present an opportunity for the person to develop their skills? Will this task reoccur in a similar form in the future? Do you have time to dedicate to training, questions and rework if necessary? Should I really delegate this task? (e.g., Recruiting people for your team may be best handled by you.)
Give the entire task to one person. It's a better practice than giving pieces of the job to different team members. One person put in charge breeds ownership of the project, says an article at ManagementHelp.org by Carter McNamara. “This gives the person complete responsibility for doing the task and increases the person's motivation to do the task, as well,” he writes.
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