Delegation: When to Delegate, Who to Delegate to

There are some very simple guides for delegation.

Most people delegate based on not wanting to do something. They simply walk out to their secretary or the closest sub-ordinate and ask them to do/finish the project. These people use delegation as a means to schlep off unwanted work.

Almost all work within any organization is important. That does not mean that all work with in an organization is A) fun to do or B) exciting to do or C) challenging or D) any particular person's favorite thing to do.

So when can you / should you consider using delegation? Well the obvious is when the pile of work has grown to large to be accomplished accurately and in a timely manner. However, you may also want to use delegation at other times.

  • When stress has gotten to a level beyond manageability.

  • When you repeatedly stall or avoid specific duties.

  • When you know other people could do a specific task much faster & far more proficiently than you will manage to complete it.

  • finally, you may also choose to use delegation simply as a tool of motivation for employees that show potential for advancement.

Sometimes delegation ends up like an old fashioned day of bartering: "If you do 'XYZ' ; I will take care of 'ABC'. With this type of arrangement both parties may be much happier with their work performance and productivity that day / week.

Now-- Who to delegate to: Well instead of walking out your office door and finding the first person that must take orders from you-- try thinking this through for the benefit of both the company and your own reputation. Try this order--

  • Those who have the talent & the time

  • Those who have the talent but no time-- (you might barter with them)

  • Those who have the comprehensive ability to be trained & have the time

  • Those who have the comprehensive ability to be trained but do not have the time (again tradeoffs might work)

---STOP--

After this would come yourself again (this is what we are trying to eliminate)

After this would come no skill but plenty of time ( this is NOT helpful nor prudential)

After this would come no skill and no time (again-- do NOT do this)

For efficiency and quality-- try delegating in this order. Look around and think these categories through. Surely you have people within your establishment who fit these categories. And if not-- get to the HR dept and see what can be done.

Until next time--- all the best,

Kate

About The Author

Kate Hufstetler is a well established business & personal coach who has helped many individuals like yourself to beat "the blues" and gain control over their lives. Her clients come from both the United States and overseas. She offers coaching services via email and phone consultations at flexible timing and financing to meet your every need. Through personal, business, spiritual mentorship, she could help you too! Please visit for available packages within your range: http://www.comedreamwithme.com/start_today.html

Kate@comedreamwithme.com

In The News:


pen paper and inkwell


cat break through


What 80% of Businesses Don?t Know: Tips for Improving Your Working Capital Management

What is the number one way to prevent failure in... Read More

Birds of a Feather May Be Turkeys

Birds of a Feather May Be TurkeysBy Gene Griessman, PhD... Read More

Performance Appraisals: Nightmares or Sweet Dreams

Some managers think of performance appraisal meetings and recollections of... Read More

The 10 Realities of Change

I've seen several articles that begin with lines like "the... Read More

Uncommon Common Sense ? Know What is the Most Important Thing in Your Business

Over 3 of my meetings with 3 business owners last... Read More

Management Procedures Usability ? How to Improve

Are your people consistently following your procedures? Each year, organizations... Read More

Business Innovation ? Improvisation

Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation... Read More

Unravelling the Data Mining Mystery - The Key to Dramatically Higher Profits

Data mining is the art of extracting nuggets of gold... Read More

Vampire Meetings and How To Slay Them

Meetings can be like mythical vampires ? sucking the life... Read More

Five Defining Characteristics of Great CEOs

1. Personal insight. Great CEOs are great leaders. They know... Read More

Preparing For ISO 9001 2000 Registration

The steps need to be taken to prepare an organization... Read More

Use QA As Your First Step To Outsourcing

Quality Assurance, or QA, is often given short shrift in... Read More

Innovation Management ? what are the practical impediments?

Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation... Read More

Top Ten Tips for Outstanding Customer Service

Remember the 80:20 rule? You may not get everything perfectly... Read More

4 Tips on How to Avoid Communication Lines Breakdown

For example, in a small, two-person company, there is often... Read More

A Journey of a Thousand Miles

You can't build a reputation on what you are "going"... Read More

Think Twice Before Selling ROI

When we're selling to business people, our value proposition has... Read More

Your Appraisal System Can Be Better ? Overcome These Nine Serious Failings

This article is directed at senior managers. As a senior... Read More

To Meet or Not to Meet - What are the Questions?

Meetings can be a total waste of time or a... Read More

Teaching Large Companies To Think Like The Little Guys

Q: I am an executive at a large company and... Read More

Three Business Lessons From The US Postal Service

There was a buzz in the air recently about the... Read More

In Leadership, The Critical Convergence Drives Great Results

The Leader's Fallacy lives! We subscribe to the Fallacy when... Read More

Dont Get Side-Tracked By The Nay-Sayers

You, the Entrepreneur, are 'normally' a type-A individual. One who... Read More

Management Development - Micromanagement Works!

Getting into the detail of everything each of your people... Read More

Comparing Ancient Programs from the East to Modern Programs like Stephen Covey.

Comparing Corporate and Personal goal attainment programs that have developed... Read More

Weaknesses of Wishing

When you're starting a business, you might wish for a... Read More

Tales from the Corporate Frontlines: Human Resources at Work

This article relates to the Human Resource Functions competency, commonly... Read More

Work Environment Tidbits

Color is a big factor effecting all indoor... Read More

Hiring for Success

Hiring someone new to work in your business is one... Read More

Smart Choices: How to Hire the Best

Your organization's continued growth and success depend on making smart... Read More

Leaning Toward Change

Seduced by the publicity surrounding the impact of Lean on... Read More

A Management Strategy

I witnessed some interesting behaviour from one of our premier... Read More

Innovation Management ? Six Crucial Steps

Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation... Read More