The Art Of Delegation By Douglas S Fletcher.pdf

7/29/2019 The Art Of Delegation By Douglas S Fletcher.pdf

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PerformexTHE ART OF DELEGATION

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THE ART OF DELEGATIONby Douglas S. Fletcher and Ian M. Taplin

The basics of delegation have not changed. Delegation is the

process for empowering workers with decision-making authority.Because organizations are moving to team-based structures, operating

decisions are being pushed to lower levels. Therefore, understandingthe principles, concepts, and mechanics of delegation

is vital for today's professional manager.

With the advent of teams, downsizing, andfewer levels and increased numbers of directreports, the kind of work that managers are

being asked to do is changing. In the past, thecommand and control style of management

fostered top-down task assignments inhierarchical organizations. This, however, isnot delegation. Today, lateral coordinationamong cross-functional teams is accelerating.This requires upper management to delegate tothese teams. Given this trend, the work amanager does needs to be clearly defined. Itcan be broken down into four categories.

1. Technical Work - This is the work amanagers position requires. The managermust do this work; it cannot be delegated

to others. Discipline-specific, likeengineering, marketing, and accounting,this work requires that the manager makethe final technical decision.

2. Team Work - This has becomeincreasingly important as alliances,

partnerships, and task force assignmentsoccupy more of a managers time. Theinterpersonal skills of leadership andcommunication fall into this category.Leadership is the ability to influence

others, whether direct reports or peers. It isthe ability to inspire, motivate, and get theteam to see and follow a vision. Managersability to communicate - that is, toarticulate their message in writing ororally - enhances their ability to influenceothers.

3. Management Work - This is a process

skill that can be learned and is necessary fordelegation. Managers could do everythingthemselves - and they usually do when startinga business or taking over a new position. But asthe business grows, both the technical work of

the unit and the management of others requiredelegation. When this is done, decision makingis pushed to lower levels and becomes theoperating work of the unit. Managers leveragetheir effectiveness by planning, coaching, andreviewing the work of others. Ultimately, their

job is to get work done through and with others.

4. Operating Work -This is the work others dobut for which the manager is still accountable.When work is delegated to lower levels it

becomes operating work. As the size and

complexity of a business increases, the need todelegate operating decisions, which were oncemade at the top, becomes vital to leverage andsustain growth. For example, day-to-dayoperating decisions about what need to be doneand problems that need resolution once decidedat the top can and should be pushed down to theteams of people actually doing the work.Pricing decisions, who gets what office andwhat furniture, staffing decisions, and the like,could and should be pushed downwards.

Whenever a group of people work together, theremust be some process of sharing work and decisionmaking. This is why delegation is necessary.

THE THREE ELEMENTS OF DELEGATION

Delegation is the work a manager does to entrust

responsibility andauthority to others and to createnew accountability for results. Delegation is notthe abdication of management responsibility or the


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mere assignment of tasks. Neither is itsynonymous with empowerment.Empowerment is a conceptabout sharingauthority. Delegation is aprocess that ensures

people are empowered. Empowerment definesa management style. To be successful,managers must entrust others with theresponsibility to do their work and the authorityto make any necessary decisions, therebymaking them accountable for delivering thedesired results. Lets take a closer look at themajor elements of the delegation process.

Responsibility - When people dont know whatto do, they do whatever makes most sense tothem. This is why it is critical to define the job.To clarify the delegation of responsibility, thefirst requirement is to distinguish betweenassigning work to aperson and assigning workto aposition. During the early stages oforganizational growth, companies organizearound people. They tend to assign work to the

people they trust and who get the job done.Further, they permit direct reports to take on thework they prefer and, as a result, the content ofthe position tends to change with each new

person.

As organizations mature, a better approach is toassign work to the position. Then, whoeverfills the position assumesthe obligation to do thework. In matureorganizations, it is typicalto find a succession ofhighly capable peoplemarching in and out of

positions over the years,with little change in the

basic responsibilities ofthe position. Assigningwork to a positionincreases efficiency,reduces friction, andgives every person - not

just a few selectedindividuals - anopportunity to grow in the

job. Responsibility is the work, job, tasks, etc.,assigned to, and made a continuing part of, a

position. A typical job description is a list of

these tasks.

Authority - People will not perform much workunless they can make decisions related to it. Forexample, if team members must go to the qualitycontrol manager every time they want to make a

decision regarding product quality or to the plantmanager to get approval for a change in the

production schedule, they will spend most of theirtime checking, and all involved will not get muchdone. Again, if machine operators must go to theforeman every time they want to start or stop theirmachines or reposition their work, they will spendmost of their time talking with the foreman. Thesolution in each case is for the people doing thework to make as many decisions related to thatwork as possible.

The more leeway people have (within certaincontrol limits) to get the work done - including themaking of decisions - the more efficiently they willwork. In addition, those doing the work willdemand much less of upper managements time.As an added bonus, they are more likely to bemotivated and get more personal satisfaction fromdoing the work, ensuring optimum quality ofworklife. Authority is the amount of decisionmaking assigned to a position.

Accountability - Managers are ultimately

accountable for whatever isdelegated. The managercould check everything

personally, but that wouldtake too much time.Moreover, micro-management tends toantagonize people. No onelikes having a managercontinually peering overhis or her shoulder. The

professional manager can

solve this control problemby (1) establishing limitswithin which work is doneand decisions are madeand (2) ensuring that theobligation for results is

within those limits. This means managers mustmake sure that those who report to themunderstandthe job, acceptthe responsibilities itentails, and are committedto deliver the desired

THE 3 ELEMENTS OFDELEGATION

1. Responsibility - the work, job, tasks,etc., assigned to, and made a continuing

part of, a position.

2. Authority - the amount of decisionmaking assigned to a position.

3. Accountability - the obligation todeliver the desired end results inexchange for decision-making


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results (U/A/C). Understandingrequiresdiscussing the actual work to be done, why it isnecessary, and how it ties into largerorganizational goals. Acceptance means thatdirect reports are willing and able to do thework and make decisions. The measure ofcommitmentis the actual results achieved.

To summarize, through the delegation process,managers create new accountability, but theyare still accountable, just as boards of directorsand CEOs -following in the tradition of HarryTruman, whosaid, "The buckstops here" - areultimatelyaccountable, too.

Account-abilityis the obligationto deliver thedesired endresults inexchange fordecision-makingauthority.

THE SIX

PRINCIPLES

OFDELEGATION

There is more todelegating than assigning work and authority.To be effective delegators, managers mustlearn to plan, coach, and review. To that end,they must understand the six basic principles ofdelegation.

1. The more people to whom a person

reports, the less accountable he or she

becomes. This is especially true in matrixorganizations, where a person is assignedto a team yet maintains ties to a functionaldepartment. If a team member isaccountable to two different entities,confusion, contradiction, and inefficiencywill result. Workers who report to twodifferent entities (the team and a functionalmanager) are never quite sure of what

priority each job has. The direction from thetwo different sources may conflict. Too often,the solution is to play off one against the otherso that the individual has enough freedom to getthe job done.

The first principle of delegation is notapplicable in young and emerging organizationsexperiencing rapid growth. Here, people dowhatever needs to be done, taking directionfrom multiple sources in a frantic effort to stayahead of growth. When stability is needed,

delegation isrequired and thenthis principle applies.In a teamenvironment,commitments must

be made to the team.The functionaldepartment manager

becomes like ahomeroom teacherto the team,responsible fortraining anddevelopment, career

planning, andrecommendations fortransfers and

promotions, but notfor overseeing the

performance of dailyduties.

2. The effectiveness of delegation is limited by

the willingness and ability of people to do the

work and make the decisions required.Managers often assume that once delegated,work will be carried out effectively. But peoplecan limit delegation by their unwillingness orrefusal to do the work or to make the required

decisions. People are willingif they lookforward to the challenge. Willingness is a can-do attitude. The concept ofability is tied toskill.

What can be done when workers dont knowwhat to do or how to do it? Motivation and

THE 6 PRINCIPLES OF DELEGATION

1. The more people to whom a person reports, the lessaccountable he or she becomes.

2. The willingness and ability of people to do the workand make the decisions required limit the effectivenessof delegation.

3. The less authority people have, the more difficult it isfor them to assume their responsibilities.

4. The more complete the accountability of individuals,the more effective the focus of control.

5. Delegation is limited by the availability of effectivecontrols.

6. Offering constructive disagreement with loyal supportof the final decision builds two-way communication

and better decisions.


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training are the answers. When good workis done or decisions yield successful results,generous praise properly placed willencourage further constructive effort. Ifefforts fall short, training is called for. This

principle ties back to U/A/C. People willbe committed only if they understand whythe work needs to be done. Further, theywill accept the work if they feel they havethe ability to handle it and wont fail.

3. The less authority people have, the more

difficult it is for them to assume their

responsibilities. Although the degree ofauthority conferred on subordinatesdepends on their competence, too oftendelegated authority is not commensuratewith responsibility. That is, individuals orteams are not given the authority to makedecisions related to the work they do.When this is the case, the managerinevitably makes many of their decisions.This not only overloads the manager, butalso devalues the jobs of direct reports.

If people are not allowed to make decisions,their interest in their work will be reduced.Putting someone elses ideas into effect isnot motivating. Indeed, most of us find itmore difficult to do things the waysomebody else requires rather than in a waywe think best. Individuals or teams that aregiven commensurate authority make andcarry out their own decisions. In the

process, they secure an emotionalownership in what is being done. This isone of the best ways to maintain interestand ensure productive effort.

This principle establishes the importance ofdelegating authority as close to theoperating level as possible. The closer tothe point of action a decision is made, themore effective the decision making tends to

be.

4. The more complete the accountability,

the more effective the focus of control.This means managers must be able to hold

individuals accountable for discipline-specificmethods and the team accountable for the endresults. To delegate effectively, managers mustassume total accountability for everything thatoccurs under their supervision. They will dothis only if they know that they are responsible

for coaching and developing people to reachtheir core competencies. Getting help andservice from the corporate training departmentor from outside consultants is appropriate, butfinal accountability rests with them. Completeaccountability makes it possible for errors anddeficiencies to be pinpointed quickly, and

prevents people from passing the buck. Teamaccountability is the by-product of eachindividuals accountability. When eachindividual fulfills his or her commitment, thenthe team goal is realized.

5. Delegation is limited by the availability ofeffective controls. Managers can assign workand authority only if they have a means ofmaking sure that the work is done properly andthat decisions are carried out within set limits.This principle reinforces the importance ofestablishing effective controls.

The most effective controls are based onperformance standards and control limitsaround those standards. The area within the

control limits defines where the person doingthe work is to make decisions. Results outsidethe control limits are called exceptions. In thesesituations, decision-making authority reverts

back to the next higher level, which isultimately accountable in the first place.Managers can use control limits as guard rails;direct reports can use them to track their own

performance.

6. Offering constructive disagreement with

loyal support of the final decision builds two-

way communication and better decisions. Ifpeople are to do the best possible job for themanager to whom they report, they may have tooccasionally disagree with that manager. The

person actually doing the work can see it moreclearly than the supervisor can and, thus, willhave better-defined views of immediateoperating needs. Because of the difference in


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viewpoint, direct reports may disagree withthe manager about how to do the job andthe decisions to be made.

It is an important part of every person's jobto disagree when necessary and toencourage disagreement on the part ofdirect reports. To be constructive,however, this disagreement should be

offered in terms of the technique of loyalopposition, outlined in the box on page 9.

WHAT TO DELEGATE AND WHAT NOT

TO DELEGATE

Managers must learn to assign to others all theoperating work that could and should be done atlower levels, all routine and detail work, andcertain management tasks.

Operating Work - Most non-managementwork can be delegated, for this is the worksubordinates are paid to perform. Salesmanagers, for example, delegate all selling

possible to salespeople, while continuing toplan, coach, and review the sales effort and leadthe salespeople.

Since managers are often specialists in thetechnical work they supervise, the manager may

be the only one in a given group qualified toperform certain aspects of operating work. Thepurchasing manager, for example, may be anexpert in value analysis, or the industrialengineer in cycle time analysis. When this isthe case, the manager does the technical workfor as long as necessary, but should always be

ready to delegate the work. This, however, can bedifficult to do in a downsized organization wherethere are few middle management positions todelegate to. In this case, the manager mightconsider outsourcing. When managers outsource,they must remember to manage their vendors. Ineffect, they delegate to them and, therefore, must

plan, coach, and review their work.

Routine and Detail - Managers should concentrateon unique actions - that is, work that must be donedifferently each time it is performed. If they do notconsciously delegate routine and detail tasks, thosetasks will monopolize their time and crowd out theirunique position accountability.

Certain Management Tasks - Teams may be ableto handle the detail, routine, and repetitive portionsof planning and reviewing as well as or better thanmanagers. Further, staff groups can handle suchthings as preliminary budgets, cost analysis, andcash-flow projections. In selecting people, thehuman resources department can do most of the

preliminary recruiting and interviewing for themanager. The general rule is to delegate everything

possible relating to management work except theinitiation - that is, seeing to it that the work getsunder way and is carried through with the necessaryvigor - and the final review of results.

Managers can safely delegate everything but thework and authority of their position. Managersshould never delegate final management decisions,decisions on overall operating problems, andtechnical work that subordinates cannot performeffectively.

Final Management Decisions - Managers of anoperating unit can never safelydelegate finaldecisions on the overall plans of the unit. They alsomust reserve for themselves final decisions onoverall controls, organization, and strategicleadership. If they permit others to make thesedecisions for them, they are abdicating theresponsibility of their position, not delegating.

Making the final decision does not mean doing theday-to-day work. Managers should require theaccountable individuals or teams to develop theirown recommendations to the point where themanagers must only study the prepared alternativesand make the final decision. If they wish to test

WHAT TO DELEGATE:-- Operating Work-- Routine and Detail-- Certain Management Tasks

WHAT NOT TO DELEGATE:-- Final Management Decisions-- Decisions on Overall Operating

Problems-- Work that Subordinates Cannot

Perform Effectively


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individual viewpoints, they can do this throughdiscussion. If managers find themselves deeplyinvolved in collecting information, siftingthrough data, or screening facts relating to finalmanagement decisions, they should search outsubordinates or staff agencies to handle these

responsibilities.

Decisions on Overall Operating Problems -Problems will arise concerning the operationswork being carried out by teams and directreports. When these problems involve two ormore units or the team as a whole, the managermust reserve the right to make the final decisionafter trying to achieve consensus. This enablesthe top manager to consider all points of viewand the requirements and prior decisions ofhigher levels of management and of staff

groups with which only the manager may havehad contact.

Upper management must encourage directreports and teams to coordinate operating aswell as management problems to the point offinal decision. But when relying so heavily onothers, the manager must anticipate that

personal preferences and even bias may colortheir recommendations. The manager's bestsafeguard is to test the validity of both facts andassumptions by careful questioning.

Work that Subordinates Cannot Perform

Effectively - If people do not have thecapability or are not trained to do the work,delegation will not be successful. Particularlywhen new work is introduced, managers mustdo the work themselves, have it done by staffgroups, or see to it that direct reports aretrained. The most common approach is formanagers to do the new work the first time. Assoon as they become familiar with it, they trainand coach others who could and should do the

work. This has the advantage of makingmanagerial supervision more effective.Managers must be always on the alert forreverse delegation. This is when direct reportswho are fearful of making decisions try to putthe monkey back on the boss, who is often toowilling to take it.

THE TEN STEPS TO EFFECTIVE

DELEGATION

Managers who want to delegate effectively can startby following these steps.

1. Provide the proper climate for delegation.Have delegation of authority articulated asempowermentand a part of the organizationsstrategic plan. Delegation must begin at thetop. Upper managers must remember that atone time somebody demonstrated faith in theirability by giving them their first opportunity tolearn how to do the work and make decisions.Every manager should be willing to give othersa chance to fail. When people are delegatedchallenging work and are given broad authorityto make decisions, they have a sense of guidingtheir own destiny and can enjoy a feeling of realaccomplishment when efforts are successful.

People who are given authority are certain tomake mistakes. Some of these will beunimportant, others will be significant. Keep inmind that the best way for an intelligent personto learn is to make mistakes and profit from theexperience. Patience is the key word here.Manage your staff members discovery, for thisis the best kind of learning. Also discussmistakes with them. Be sure they have figuredout how to prevent the same mistake again.Then give them their heads once more. If themistake is serious, you may have to recalldelegation for a time. But remember that youwill have to train subordinates or end up doingmuch of their work for them.

2. Recognize and deal with the barriers to

delegation. Managers often fail to delegatebecause of psychological and organizationalbarriers. Psychological hurdles arise when

managers are afraid to delegate. They may fearthat subordinates will not do the job properlyand, as a result, they will look bad. Althoughthis fear is justified if subordinates areuntrained or poorly motivated, the managersresponsibility is to take positive action toovercome such deficiencies.


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Managers may also be reluctant to delegatebecause they expect subordinates to dotheir work and make decisions precisely asthey, the managers would. Managers mustrecognize the fact that, given the properencouragement and training, people can

develop many different ways of doing thesame job effectively. On the flip side,managers may balk at delegation becausethey worry that subordinates may do theirwork too well and, hence, outshine them.This fear overlooks the fact that the mostvaluable skill a manager can possess is theability to develop people who, in somerespects, are more capable than theirmanager. Good coaches are one of therarest and most valuable assets in anyorganization.

Organizational barriers, such as failure todefine responsibility and authority, alsomay block delegation. If managers do notknow what work to perform and do notunderstand the degree of their authority,they will not be able to delegate parts ofthis responsibility and authority.Corrective action here involves clear and

precise definition of the managerialpositions responsibility and authority.

3. Define responsibility, authority, andaccountability. The responsibility,authority, and accountability of each

position should be defined in writing. Thishelps clarify for both the superior and thesubordinate the work that is to be done,the decisions that are to be made, and theresults to be accomplished. Writtenstatements enable managers to determinewhether the workload is properly balanced:whether one individual or component hastoo much work, another too little. They

help eliminate unnecessary work and arean important means of control, for whenmanagers specifically know what results

people or teams are expected toaccomplish, they can best hold them toaccount for achieving them. These written

position guides also help clarify eachpersons responsibilities, making itpossible for individuals to develop theirown area of work and authority as fully as

they are capable, while preventingsubordinates from overlapping the workassigned to others.

Most difficulties in definition arise from theattempt to define how a job is to be

performed. A better approach is to spell outwhat is to be done and to specify this in termsof control limits for key performancemeasures. Instead of attempting to pin downeach decision a manager can make, it is much

better to outline the limits of authority withinwhich the accountable person or team canmake any decisions necessary.

4. Clarify performance standards. To beeffective, accountability must be based onclear, understandable, and measurable

performance standards for the job's keyperformance indicators. These are the areaswhere work is repetitive and can bemeasured. If managers have not developed

project plans or goals that are understoodand accepted by the people who report tothem, it will be difficult to hold thoseindividuals to account. Before delegating,managers should make sure that they have agood planning process and that clearlydefined one-time project assignments guidethe activities of subordinates and provide the

yardstick against which performance can bemeasured.

5. Establish a formal method of review.Focus only on exceptions that are outside theagreed-upon control limits. Requirecorrective action plans that ensure thatreverse delegation does not creep back,trapping upper management into makingdecisions that could easily be handled atlower levels.

6. Create a training plan. Assess the

competency level of the incumbents in thejobs, concentrating on their skill level andability to make final decisions. This will

provide you with a gap analysis and atraining needs assessment. Assess skilllevels periodically and retrain individuals asnecessary to ensure that competency levelsare maintained.


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7. Enlarge jobs in depth as well as

breadth. The capacity of individualsincreases as they become more proficientin their jobs, making them able to take onmore complex and demanding work.When this happens, managers should

delegate new work to the most capablepeople. They should also encourageimprovement in depth. Everybody canthink of new and better ways of doing their

jobs, reducing costs, and increasingefficiency. Encourage people to take onmore decision-making authority andincrease the creative and innovativeopportunities in the job.

8. Reward outstanding performance.People who do a good job want to be told

about it, and theywant others toknow. The bestsource of thisrecognition is themanager. Bygiving creditfreely, managersencourage repeat

performance ofthe kind ofoutstanding

work they want.Sooner or later,this recognitionshould bereflected in anincrease in salaryor othercompensation.Increaseddelegation alsocan build moraleamong

dissatisfied teammembers.Giving people more important work to doand letting them make more importantdecisions clearly shows that you haveconfidence in them and helps them feelimportant.

9. Know when to recall delegation. Whenability to perform diminishes, delegatedauthority and responsibility should betemporarily withdrawn until the situationimproves. For example, when a new personcomes into a position, the manager shouldwithdraw certain aspects of responsibility andauthority until the new incumbent has shownthat he or she has the skill and ability to do the

job. As the manager becomes confident of thenew persons ability, the manager redelegatesthe responsibility and authority. Withdrawal ofdelegated responsibility and authority may alsooccur in cases of emergency, when new unitsare formed, or when a new manager enters a

position. This ebb and flow of responsibilityand authority are to be expected. However, the

manager should beaware of the humantendency to retainauthority. Once theneed for recall has

passed, the supervisingmanager shouldredelegate the power tomake decisions ascompletely as possible.

10. Continue coaching

the organizationtoward a culture of

delegation. Fordelegation to beeffective, it must be

part of a strategicintent. Therefore, topmanagers mustarticulate where theorganization iscurrently and what itwants to evolve to.Moving from a top-down command and

control style to one requiring delegation ofdecision-making authority to lower levels andteams requires a conscious decision on the partof upper management. To have piecemealdelegation in parts of the organization and notin others confuses employees and reveals thelack of an overall and consistent management

THE 10 STEPS TO EFFECTIVE

DELEGATION

Pr ovide the pr oper c l imate f or

del egat ion.

Recognize and deal with the

bar r ier s to del egat ion.

Def ine r esponsibil it y, author ity,

and acc ountabil it y.

Cl ar if y per f or mance standar ds. Est abl ish a f or mal method of

r eview.

Cr eate a t r aining pl an.

Enl ar ge j obs in depth as wel l as

br eadth.

Rewar d outst andingper f or mance.

Know when to r ecal l del egation.


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philosophy. By consciously extendingdelegation, organizations can evolve toexcellence in a predictable manner.

Here are the steps:

* Start easily. Begin in the easiest manner byadopting the habit of requiring people to

provide their own answers to each questionthey bring up. Practice this for a few weeks.Each time a questions is presented to you,respond by asking, What answer do youhave? or What do you think? Thistechnique can reverse a great deal of upwarddelegation.

* Require solutions, not problems. As soon asyou and your staff are in the habit of clarifyingwhat should and could be decided at lowerlevels, go to the next most difficult area, that of

problems and solutions. When a problem ispresented to you, require a recommendedsolution before you give active help. Thisdemands management judgment. In cases ofemergency, you may have to act yourself. Butgradually introduce the requirement, "Please letme have your recommendation," and you willfind that this is a major step in improveddelegation. The best way to ensure that thishappens is to require subordinates to bring toyou, on one sheet of paper, answers to thesequestions:

[] What are the symptoms of the problem?

[] What is the goal?

[] What are the obstacles and root causes ofthe symptoms?

[] What is the corrective action?

This makes subordinates think and positionsyou as the coach, not the final authority.

* Discuss, don't decide. You know part ofyour job is reviewing results. When peoplereport to you or you are working with them, becareful to help them think matters through forthemselves. By inference or by expressing a

personal preference, you may make the decision forthem without realizing it. For a time, the processof helping other people think for themselves will befrustrating both to you and to your direct reports.With perseverance, however, you will find that thisis one of the most effective tools for easing theworkload on yourself and for building confidencein others.

THE TECHNIQUE OF LOYAL OPPOSITION

* Look at Both Sides. Before disagreeing, find outwhat you are disagreeing with. This meansfinding out precisely what is the viewpoint or

opinion of the other person. Questions are thebest means of finding out, and they are mosteffec-tive if asked in person. The skill here is listening.

* Make Disagreement Factual. One's posit ionshould be limited to the facts and how itenhances or hinders progress toward thecommon goal. This is the art of differing, butonly in the relationship to the common goal.Discuss the facts. Avoid criticizing people and

personalities.

*Don't Look for Sympathizers. Whendisagreeing with another person, especially thesupervising manager, avoid banding together withothers of a similar viewpoint. The attempt to findsupporters and to build behind-the-scenesopposition to the boss's viewpoint isdangerous. Itis one of the best ways to win askirmish and lose the battle.

* Give Recognition. If a person steadfastlysupports a point of view contrary to the

managers and, in the process, requires themanager to reexamine his or her premises, thatperson has made a contribution to the managerseffectiveness. The best way to encourage moreof the same is to give sincere recognition both forthe loyal opposition and the spirit in which it wasoffered.

* Support the Final Decision. The accountablemanager's job is to weigh all the evidence,consider every viewpoint, and evaluatedisagreements. Then the final decision can be

made. Once the decision is made, everybody onthe team must accept and support it. This is whatconsensus is all about. If there is stilldisagreement, it should be voiced in private to theaccountable manager. To complain andcriticize after the die has been cast is extremelydestructive.


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personal preference, you may make thedecision for them without realizing it. For atime, the process of helping other peoplethink for themselves will be frustrating bothto you and to your direct reports. With per-

severance, however, you will find that it isone of the most effective tools for easing theworkload on yourself and for buildingconfidence in others.

* Select your assignments carefully. Beginwith simple short projects or goals that can

be achieved. You want people and teams tobe successful. As they become moreproficient, require completed work on longerand more complex assignments.

* Extend the checkpoints. In the beginning,you will require people to check back with

you quite frequently. With practice, training,and confidence, you will find more and morethat the check backs are abbreviated and aresimply a means of keeping you informed of

progress. When this occurs, you can minimize

the person-to-person contacts and rely more onexception reporting.

Eventually you will reach the stage where checkbacks at a midpoint and at the completion of thejob will be the normal procedure for projects.For operating KPIs, results outside control limitsare your control mechanism. Once you have amature team, weekly or monthly operatingreview meetings will become the norm forreviewing delegated authority for results.


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DELEGATING TO TEAMS

The first reaction most new team leaders have is to take on more work. How else can yoube sure your project, the most important assignment youve ever had, gets done right?Like all reflexes, the do-it-yourself model is also a substitute for thinking.

The biggest challenge for people is to let go of their work. You need to start gettingsolutions from other people. But its easier to solve problems yourself because its whatyouve always done.

Todd Conger, 30, fell into that trap soon after he became a team leader at MortonInternational, the airbag manufacturer based in Brigham City, Utah. Conger had spenttwo years in a production job. Last September, he became manufacturing processcoordinator.

His first instinct was to help out. If he saw his 11-member team slipping behind schedule,hed jump in and do the work himself. But the more work he did, the less work seemed to

get done and the less motivated his team became. Theyd return late from breaks andwait for specific instructions before tackling obvious problems. Why? Congers helpwas offending his colleagues. I thought I was helping when Id hurry and pack someparts for them, he says. But they thought I was telling them they werent working fastenough: Look, I can do it faster than you.

Conger learned quickly what every leader learns eventually. Your job is not to do thework your team is supposed to do. Your job is to provide the tools, motivation, anddirection the team needs to do the work itself. The lesson is simple, and all too easy toignore: never do what could and should be delegated.

Manage the process, dont manage the content, urges Anne Donnellon, a professor atBabson College and author of Team Talk(HBS Press, 1996). The real work of a leaderinvolves agendas and information flows, she says. Too many leaders try to control the

details of work. They think of themselves as doers, which encourages team members toassume less responsibility.

Managing content as well as process can do more than drain your teams motivation. Itcan be downright draining, as Intuits Brian Ascher discovered. There simply werentenough hours in the day to attend to his new responsibilities and keep his hand in thedetails of software code. As project manager Im responsible for getting the productscoped out, launched, positioned, and targeted, he says. My biggest challenge wasprioritizing all the things coming at me: What can I say no to? What can I delegate down?What can I delegate up? What needs to be decided today?

Ascher applied an engineering mind-set to his challenge. He identified the three factorsmost critical to the success of Quicken for Windows. Then every morning, as he reviewed

his To-Do list, hed decide which action items contributed to those success factors andwhich didnt. He worked on those that did and assigned the others to one of his 15engineers.

I was spending an excessive amount of time on little things that didnt relate to my majorgoals, Ascher says. I had to ask myself: How do I meet the needs of people on theteam who want help without spending my own time on it?


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FOR MORE INFORMATION ON DELEGATION

Allen, Louis A. Professional Managers Guide (Louis A. Allen Associates, Inc., 1975).

Barbich, Sheryl L. The Quick and Easy Guide to Delegation: Key to Profitability and Growth (Am.

Inst. CPA, 1996).

Fellows, Gary. The Dos and Donts of Delegation (Simon & Schuster, 1988).

Fletcher, Douglas S. Management Control in Todays Teamwork Organization (Kendall/Hunt,1991).

Jenks, James M. and Kelly, John M. Dont Do, Delegate! (Ballantine, 1986).

Maddux, Robert B. Delegating for Results (Crisp Publications, 1990).

Nelson, Robert B. Empowering Employees Through Delegation (Irwin Professional Publishing,

1993).

Payne, John and Payne, Shirley. Letting Go Without Losing Control: How to Delegate and Do More(Pitman Publishing, Ltd., 1994).

Schwartz, Andrew E. Delegating Authority (Barron, 1992).

Steinmetz, Lawrence L. Art and Skill of Delegation (Addison-Wesley, 1976).

Weiss, Donald H. How to Delegate Effectively (AMACOM, 1988).

Douglas S. Fletcher is a principal of Performex, a performance management consulting firm inNewport Beach, California. His area of expertise is management control in contemporary teamworkorganizations and the use of intranets to track team performance.

Ian M. Taplin, Ph.D., is a professor in the Department of Sociology and Graduate School ofManagement at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. His area of interest isrethinking the restructuring of global labor-intensive industries.

Documents

The Art Of Delegation By Douglas S Fletcher.pdf