WINTER 2014

Effective Delegation For Rosco

Laboratories by Laura JacobPro Way Development

prowaydevelopment.com

laura@prowaydevelopment.comA Primer for Managers to practice Delegation successfully

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Objectives

By the end of this session you will be able to:

� Appreciate the importance of delegating to others as a way to offloadwork and get more done in your busy life

� Face your fear of delegation and learn to think positively of delegatingtasks to others

� Adopt an appropriate strategy to delegate the right task to the rightpeople at the right time and in the right way

� Use a systematic step-by-step approach to brief people on what youwant to delegate to them

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What is Delegation?

Delegation is the assignment of responsibility to

another person for the purpose of carrying out

specific job-related activities. Delegation is a

shift of decision-making authority from one

organizational level to another.

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Benefits of Delegation

� Manager / Supervisor Benefits

� Reduced stress

� Improved time management

� Increased trust

� Employee Benefits

� Professional knowledge and skill development

� Elevated self-esteem and confidence

� Sense of achievement

� Organizational Benefits

� Increased teamwork

� Increased productivity and efficiency

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Why Not?

…its too hard!

…it takes too much time!

…nobody can do it as good as I can

…nobody else has any time either……

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Knowing When to Delegate

Delegating can be especially helpful in the following situations:� When the task offers valuable training to an employee

� When an employee has more knowledge or experience related to the task than you

� When the task is recurring and all employees should be prepared or trained

� When the task is of low priority and you have high priority tasks that require your immediate attention

� When you need/should have back-up

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To Whom Should You Delegate?

When deciding who to select for the task,

you must consider:

� The current work load of the employee

� The employee’s strengths and weaknesses

� The training and experience levels of the

employee

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6 Levels of Delegation

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Steps in Delegation

I – Introduce the task

D- Demonstrate clearly what needs to be done

E - Ensure understanding

A - Allocate authority, information and resources

L - Let go

S - Support and Monitor

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Introduce the Task

� Determine the task

to be delegated

� Determine the tasks

to retain

� Select the delegate

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Introduce the Task

� Determine the task to be delegated

� Determine the tasks to retain

� Select the delegate

� Those tasks you completed

prior to assuming new role

� Those tasks your delegates

have more experience with

� Routine activities

� Those things not in your core

competency

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Introduce the Task

Use What-Why

Statements:

I want you to do…..

Because you……

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What-Why Statements

In your groups, brainstorm 5 tasks you are

currently doing that could be delegated.

Determine who would serve as your best

delegate for each of the tasks.

Compose what – why statements for each

of the 5 tasks brainstormed.

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Demonstrate Clearly

� Show examples of previous

work

� Explain objectives

� Discuss timelines, set

deadlines

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Ensuring Understanding

� Clear communication

� Ask for clarification

� Secure commitment

� Don’t say no to them

� Collaboratively determine methods for follow-up

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Allocate…

authority, information, resources

� Grant authority to determine process, not

desired outcomes

� Provide access to all information sources

� Refer delegate to contact persons or specific

resources that have assisted previously

� Provide appropriate training to ensure success

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Let go…

� Communicate delegate’s

authority

� Step back, let them work

� Use constrained access

� Don’t allow for reverse

delegation

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Support and Monitor

� Schedule follow-up meetings

� Review progress

� Assist, when requested

� Avoid interference

� Publicly praise progress and completion

� Encourage problem solving

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Support and Monitor

In your group, select one task from

your previous group work. Determine 5

techniques that would be effective for

supporting/monitoring the progress of

a delegate.

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Delegation Stressors

Loss of control?

If you train your subordinates to apply

the same criteria as you would yourself,

then they will be exercising your control

on your behalf.

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Delegation Stressors

Too much time spent on explaining the

tasks

The amount of time spent up front is, in

fact, great. But, continued use of

delegation may free you up to complete

more complex tasks and/or gain you

some time for yourself.

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Delegation Stressors

Compromising your own value

By successfully utilizing appropriate

delegation, your value to the

group/organization will grow at a greater

rate as you will have more time to do

more things…….

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Delegation Obstacles

� Lack of support� Managers and employees must be fully supportive of

the delegation efforts in order to be successful

� Failure to plan� Taking the time to follow the steps for delegation

can avoid any pitfalls that might otherwise be

overlooked

� Lack of communication� Communicating the plan in a clear and precise

manner prevents errors caused by miscommunication

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Delegation Obstacles (cont’d.)

� Fear of relinquishing control� Management may be resistant to delegating at first,

but delegation can build trust and morale among

managers and employees

� Micromanagement� Micromanagement prevents employees from

completing their assigned tasks and defeats the

purpose of delegation

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Signs of Micromanagement

� Micromanaging occurs when a manager

assigns a task to an employee, but

prevents the employee from successfully

completing the task on his/her own

� Micromanagers usually:

� Resist delegating

� Prevent employees from making decisions

� Revoke tasks after they have been assigned

� Avoid letting employees work independently

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How to Avoid Micromanagement

� Clearly define the roles and responsibilities of managers

and employees

� Create a written plan and timeline

� Include scheduled meetings and evaluations rather than

frequent ‘check ins’ that can be viewed as

micromanaging

� Allow employees and managers to openly communicate

any concerns or questions they may have

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Practice Makes Perfect

It gets easier the more you do it

You become more familiar with your delegates

Flow-through task delegation

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Consequences of poor delegation

� Information and decision-making not shared by the group

� Leaders become tired out

� When leaders leave groups, no one has experience to carry on

� Group morale becomes low and people become frustrated and feel powerless

� The skills and knowledge of the group/organization are concentrated in a few people

� New members don’t find any ways to contribute to the work of the group.

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And, finally…..

“The secret of success is not in doing your own

work but in recognizing the right [person] to

do it.” ~Andrew Carnegie