Delegating Work Takes Practice but Pays Off

Successful delegation is like a successful pass play in football. Both have a sender, something to be delivered and a receiver. And when done right, it looks easy. But when done wrong, the failure to execute is obvious.

“Delegation?” You might be thinking. No way. It’s too chancy. But fundamental to business success is the ability to delegate and make it work.

Delegation enables people to do more and organizations to achieve higher goals. Through specialization and delegation of work, organizations are able to increase their productivity. And through delegation, we create a path for learning and experiencing different, and ideally, more meaningful work.

Delegation is a skill that requires thoughtful practice. Delegation is giving work to others, along with the responsibility and the authority to accomplish desired results.

And in these times when additional work keeps piling onto our already full plates of “to dos,” effective delegation is essential.

Throughout our lives, we have assigned work or had it assigned to us. Why, then, is it common to observe difficulties when work is delegated? For example, have you ever observed someone afraid to delegate an important task for fear it won’t get done right? Or seen a project fail because thoughtful effort to communicate the assignment did not occur? Or experienced difficulties when authority and resources were not delegated along with the responsibility for the work?

Yes, delegation might not be as simple as we would think. Let’s explore some common delegation problems between passer and receiver.

1. The passer doesn’t trust the receiver.

Trust is fundamental to successful delegation--and any relationship. If you don’t trust the receiver, a number of problems can occur. You might decide not to delegate. Or you give the work and responsibility but not the authority to get the work done. Or you micro-manage instead of delegating.

Lack of trust by the passer can reflect the passer’s uncertainty of the work requirements and what is reasonable to expect.

So define the successful outcome. Determine how this outcome could be achieved by acceptable receiver performance. And then match these expectations with the skills and abilities of the right person. In addition, expect mistakes--although not major disasters--and use these mistakes as learning opportunities.

2. The receiver doesn’t trust the passer. Delegation also won’t work if the receiver doesn’t trust the person delegating. For example, a person who has a reputation for taking all the glory for delegated work or who keeps all the fun work and delegates the uninteresting and tough work probably will not be trusted.

A lack of trust will leave the receiver unmotivated, and the person delegating probably will experience resistance. Complaints to others about the process, coupled with a fountain of excuses for poor results, are common symptoms for unresolved trust issues.

If you are meeting with resistance when you delegate work, share this impression with the receiver and try to resolve the problem in an open and direct fashion. Otherwise, success will be difficult to achieve.

3. The ball is not thrown correctly. Passing work correctly means taking several specific steps. The person delegating needs to clearly communicate the desired results and the range of authority and responsibility to the receiver. Empower the receiver to make decisions. Be tolerant of a style or approach that is not the same as you would use. Avoid specifying the methods to accomplish the desired results unless circumstances or needs require this. In addition, the person delegating should inform others who may be affected by the delegation.

4. The catcher doesn’t have the right equipment. Selecting a person who has the capabilities, time and motivation to achieve the desired results is critical. Besides considering the fit of skills and experiences of the potential receiver with the work requirements, think about the fit with career goals.

One litmus test in selecting the right receiver is whether you feel compelled to specify how the work should get done rather than just the desired results. If you think you might have to do this, maybe you are considering the wrong person for this particular task.

5. The ball is thrown back to the passer. When problems arise, you want to help your receiver. But be careful. Make sure you are not taking back the ball--that is, you are not solving the problem for the receiver. Listen and coach, but don’t make decisions the receiver should be making. The receiver should know that you expect a recommendation to solve a presented problem and not just a litany of further problems for you to resolve. If no recommendation is provided, make sure you ask for one.

6. The passer and receiver are not synchronized. Despite starting together, the passer can throw the ball to a place where the catcher is not. This could be due to a problem in the initial communication or a failure to adjust to the dynamics of the environment or competition. Sometimes our assumptions on such things as availability of resources, competitive response or degree of difficulty are different from the realities. In those cases, adjustments have to be made.

Beyond the initial communication of desired results and range of authority and responsibility, define periodic checkpoints that will provide a forum to communicate progress, issues and expectations. Effort needs to be made to keep the passer and catcher in synchronization.

7. The passer fears losing control. You may worry that by delegating, power and influence will diminish. Or you may think you are not doing your job by delegating work.

On the contrary, by successful delegation you will be adding more value to the organization, not less, and as a consequence your influence will grow. And your most important bases of power--respect, trust and possession of critical skills--will be enhanced, not diminished, through successful delegation.

Successful delegation skills are developed and honed over a lifetime. Yet we think we can do it without much thought, like walking and talking. It seems easy but takes effort, practice and care to do well.

Getting work done correctly and on time is important. And we can’t do it all ourselves.

Expand your capabilities. Help others develop. Deepen your delegation skills.