Professional Development Why Do We Find it Hard to Delegate? By marty stanley Why is delegation such a big deal for a lot of people? Some managers may be apprehensive about delegating tasks or projects to others because of the many things that can go wrong. How often have you thought to yourself that you could do something faster or better; or that it would take too long to tell someone else how to do it and that you should just do it yourself? Unfortunately, what happens when you feel this way is that you become swamped or overwhelmed with too much to do. Only until the very last minute do you delegate a task to someone just so you can meet a deadline. With such little time, the person you delegated responsibility to may get something wrong, prompting you to think you shouldn’t have delegated the task in the first place. But remember, a key to a manager’s success is the ability to develop other people, and delegation is one way to do it. Failing to Plan is Planning to fail Plan the delegation process well in advance of the due date. Unless you’re very skilled at delegation, it’s not a good idea to shoot from the hip. Some questions to guide you in this process may include: The following are four tips on how to delegate properly. 12 Contract Management | March 2011 What are the outcomes you want to achieve? What potential problems can arise? What skills do the person(s) who will carry out the task need? What are appropriate checkpoints to see how things are going? Looking for Mr. or Ms. Right Pick a person to delegate the task to who has the essential skills to do the task. For example, if the project or task is detailed and requires accuracy, choose a person who ‘‘ I need For more information, scan this QR code with your smart phone. engineering services acquisition support ‘‘ ROI analysis auditing services survey support inventory management ...and to save money. We’re GSA. 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One way to look at delegation in terms of development is to think about delegating for skill development or for professional development. Generally speaking, a person who has just started his or her career will benefit from delegated tasks related to his or her immediate work performed. People who are looking to climb the corporate ladder will benefit from tasks or projects that are outside of their immediate scope of responsibility and will help them go to the next level. tation, do a thorough walkthrough with him or her a couple days in advance. Make sure the room is set up correctly, that audio visual aids and handouts are ready, and then practice the content and flow of the material to be presented. Having a dry run of the presentation can prevent a lot of problems and provides a great coaching opportunity. Remember to always keep the lines of communication open so any glitches can be detected early. Debrief Depending on the scope of the project or task being delegated, it can be a good idea to do a post-task debriefing with the person to whom you delegated the task. Good questions to ask are: build skills for everyone involved, and will build solid relationships if done well. Empowerment, not Abdication Effective delegation empowers a person to take on more responsibility and it empowers the manager to a higher level of management finesse. Unfortunately, some managers simply walk away after delegating, and for the other person, it’s sink or swim. Abdication of responsibility is a quick ticket to failure. The more you coach and train others, the easier it is to delegate, and everyone involved will benefit. CM About the Author MARTY STANLEY of Dynamic Dialog, Inc., is a What went well in the process? national speaker, trainer, executive coach, and What could have been done differently? sions. He can be contacted at 816-822-4047 or What can we do in the future to improve the process? Send comments about this article to [email protected]. facilitator for planning and teambuilding ses- If you have confidence in the person, and he or she has an established track record of successful performance, it may be easier to delegate more complex projects that are outside of his or her skill set. These types of situations are good for delegating projects to expand a person’s depth or range of skills. However, if the other person is relatively new to the job, avoid making assumptions that he or she is able to take on a complex project or task of this type. Closer supervision may be required. 14 Communication is Key It’s important to start with the things that went well. Ask the person to describe all the things that went well first. Most people have a tendency to gloss over this and start on what didn’t work, so take the time to acknowledge and give praise for work well done. Even in the most disappointing of circumstances, finding the good points and discussing them first will help the person’s morale. After selecting the right person to do the work, set expectations. For example, what’s the expected level of quality or quantity? What is expected regarding the completion times that are needed to be successful? Discuss how you will monitor the new process or task. It’s important to be available for questions and guidance. When discussing things that could have been done differently, again, ask the person for his or her input before providing your own. This will provide additional coaching opportunities, particularly if the person is overly self-critical or if he or she tends to blame others for his or her own mistakes. Another way to ensure success is to make sure the person has the appropriate tools, information, and/or resources. Are they readily available? If not, how will he or she find them? When possible, walk through a few examples. For instance, if you have asked someone to do an important presen- Finally, if the person will be doing similar tasks or projects in the future, make a list of ways to improve the process. Are there additional resources needed? Are all the materials or information available to make it smoother next time? Is more advance time needed? The debriefing process will help Contract Management | March 2011 [email protected].