Learn to delegate
Definition
● Delegating is a critical skill for supervisors at any level. Delegating involves working with an employee to establish goals, granting them
sufficient authority and responsibility to achieve the goals.
● Delegation is one of the most important and effective management skills.
● Delegation is a concept when a senior gives or delegates certain specific tasks or duties to a subordinate along with some powers to take
decisions. When delegation is done by a senior, it gives the subordinate decision making powers, certain responsibilities and accountability
for a certain task.
Advantages of delegation
1. Manager / Supervisor Benefits of Delegation
Reduced stress for supervisor as the work can be performed by the junior
Improved time management as the supervisor has more productive time
Increased trust between the senior and subordinate
2. Employee Benefits of Delegation
Increase in professional knowledge and skill development
Elevated self-esteem, motivation and confidence of the employee
Sense of achievement when a subordinate is delegated different tasks
3. Organizational Benefits of Delegation
Increased teamwork between the senior management and subordinates
Delegation helps in increased productivity and efficiency leading to better business
Advantages of delegation
1. Best Use of Human Resource –Proper delegation means effective use of work force. Task assigned keeping in mind
the skills of an employee often gives good results.
2. More Time – Effective Delegation Skills work gives managers extra time to do other work that are of more critical
nature.
3. Speeds up Decision Making – Empowering subordinates to take decisions in their area of expertise speeds up the
work process as they don’t have to seek approval at every step.
4. Builds Team Spirit – Working together generates team spirit, develops team involvement and understanding of the
business.
5. Improves Interpersonal and Intrapersonal Communication – Employees through daily interaction get
opportunities to learn from each other and reflect on their own work.
6. Inflow of New and Innovative Ideas – Different ideas and perspectives inspire people to see things from a different
angle, motivate them to explore other areas of development and keep them engaged.
7. Helps Build Bench Strength – The work environment trains and prepares the employees to face adverse situations so
that the work does not get hindered under any circumstances.
Disadvantages of Delegation
Disadvantages of Delegation
Effective Delegating work can have a flip side if the responsibilities are over, under or wrongly delegated. To avoid adversities the knowledge of what
to delegate, whom to delegate and how much to delegate is extremely important.
1. Lack of Knowledge of Employees Skills –Wrong delegation of task can prove fatal for a project and business.
2. Lack of Trust – Many managers either lack trust or do not want to trust their subordinates. They try to do everything themselves due to
which their work pressure never gets eased out.
3. Lack of Interest – Managers who keep the interesting work to themselves and assign routine and monotonous to others give rise of
discontentment and disengagement.
4. Lack of Credit – When multiple people work on a single project the credit of the work often gets distributed. The true contribution of each
person is at times not recognized.
5. Lack of Authority – It is also important to delegate sufficient authority along with responsibility. Only then can employees work their full
potential.
How to delegate The Right Tasks To The Right
People
1. Pick the right person: Picking the wrong person for a key task is a major reason for failure.
2. Match the requirements of the job to the abilities of the person: Be sure that the person you delegate the task to is capable of doing the job.
3. Delegate effectively to the right person :This frees you to do more things of higher value. The more of your essential tasks that you can teach
and delegate to others, the greater the time you will have to do the things that only you can do.
4. Delegate smaller tasks to newer staff to build their confidence and competence.
5. Delegate the entire job: One hundred percent responsibility for a task is a major performance motivator. The more often you assign
responsibilities to the right people, the more competent they become.
6. Delegate clear outcomes: Make them measurable. If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it. Explain what is to be done, how you think it
should be done, and the reasons for doing this job in the first place.
7. Delegate with participation and discussion: Invite questions and be open to suggestions. There is a direct relationship between how much
people are invited to talk about the job and how much they understand it, accept it, and become committed to it. You need to delegate in such a way
that people walk away feeling, ‘‘This is my job; I own it.’’