How To Delegate Effectively

As leaders, our main function is to accomplish things by using our resources, primarily our people. Doing this effectively not only gets more done in less time, we also motivate and inspire our team members by teaching them new skills. Do it wrong, and you experience the "accountability" of being the team leader.

So the idea of using delegation is nothing new to most leaders. We ask/tell the team member what to do, and later we follow-up if it has been completed? Right? Well you're missing a huge part of the delegation process. Using the right Level of Authority.

Level of Authority takes into account 2 variables when delegating a task or project-how experienced the team member is, and how important the task is. If you have a team member with lots of experience, we use a higher level of authority. If the task is not complicated and most outcomes are OK, we again use a high level of authority. So let's take a look at the 4 Levels of Authority.

Level One-I Ask Team Member To "Look Into" Something And Report Back. In level one, our team member is very inexperienced and you make it clear that they are not to take any action, and the decision is 100% your. You will not ask for suggestions or involve the team member in the decision making process at all.

Level 2-I Ask The Team Member To Look Into Something, And Come Back With Recommendations For Taking Action. Here we are wanting the team member to evaluate potential solutions or actions before coming back to us. We will then "Coach" them to make good decisions. We still hold the final say on the solution or action, but the team member is involved.

Level 3-I Ask The Team Member To Look Into Something, And Come Back And Tell Me What Action They Wish To Take. Here we are skipping the "Coaching" process and just want to make sure we have the ability to "sign-off" on the action BEFORE it takes place. We have a fairly high level of confidence in this team member and have spend a great deal of time in Level 2 coaching them on how to make good decisions.

Level 4-I Ask The Team Member To "Take Care" Of Something, I Do Not Need To Know Before You Act. We want to use level 4 ONLY with those very senior Team Members that have a proven track record for making good decisions. We may use Level 4 if the task is very minor, and almost any action will do.

So now that you understand that there are actually different levels of delegation, how will you begin to apply this in your position? I think it opens the door to delegating more, especially to your new team members. Keep in mind we not only teach new skills through delegation, but we also motivate as well by adding new tasks to our team.

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Is there a significant difference in our level of performance if we choose to perform a task versus being told to perform the task?  You will notice a significant difference if you can gain this certain element from your team members.

Several years ago, I was "advised" by my manager to apply for a new position, one that I really did not feel excited about and did not feel I had the qualifications for.  Because I wanted to be a team player and do what is best for the organization, I expressed my interest.  Because of my track record in past roles, I was fast tracked into this new role.  It took all of 2 months for me to find out that this was a huge mistake.  I stopped looking forward to coming to work.  I lacked any level of enthusiasm while I was at work, and I began to second guess every decision I made.

After 10 long months in this new position, I discovered that the department I really wanted to be in had an opening for a Director level position.  I quickly posted for the new position, but was told by the HR department that I would need to wait another 2 months before I could post for another position.  I needed to be in my current role for a minimum of 12 months.  I did not hesitate to take this back to my current manager.  Why?  I did not feel that "I" made the decision to move in the first place.  I did not feel I was "Responsible" for taking this role in.  I felt I was "told" to move to another position.

My point to using this example is to show the difference in our level of committment when we actually volunteer for something rather than being forced or told to do something.  In my example, for many years after that I did feel it was not my fault I performed poorly. It wasn't my idea to begin with.  Had I taken full responsibility for my decision, I would have felt more accountable for my performance.  I did get the director level position by the way.

So in your role, how can you gain a higher level of committment and responsibility from your team members by asking more and telling less?  Not always possible, but often times we do have this option.  If you have a project that someone needs to do for you, gather the team together and ask for people that may have an interest.  If there is a shift that needs to be covered, start by asking for volunteers.  If you have a daily report that you are ready to delegate, ask people if they have an interest.

By using the ask versus tell approach, you will greatly increase your team's level of committment going into a task or role. A higher level of committment equals a higher level of performance.

When we influence our team members, we are creating a desire to change the thoughts, beliefs, and actions of those we lead. Put down the baseball bat or the pink slip, and learn how true leaders influence people for the long term.The majority of leaders, especially those new to the role, rely on their position of authority to “encourage” people to act or perform in a specific way.

Most leaders never move from this place of authority. Why would they? People not only jump when they are told, but they also ask how high? On the surface, there would be no reason to change when the results are just what is needed. But it's the thoughts our people have that shape their performance long term. Thoughts are the one thing you as a leader cannot force them to change.

I worked for a few leaders in the past that appeared very successful. Change happened quickly, and people did just what they were told. People (me included) wanted to keep their job, so they simply did what they were told. No questions. No clarification. Just perform. So why is that a bad thing?

Well, what takes place long term is that people begin to care less and less about anything other than keeping their job. No supporting other team members. No going the extra mile for a customer. Why? It wasn't something they were told to do. The bigger issue is that all communication from the front-lines stopped. When a new issue came around, no one bothered to share it with upper management.

So let's get back to Influence. We influence people by who we are and what we do. What we say has a very short term effect. It's our actions that people see, and it's the person people get to know, that moves team members to think and feel positively . A leader's personal characteristics will determine if she is able to influence others. Things like how honest they are, the amount of passion they demonstrate, and the amount of integrity they show.

If a leader says that the customer is the single most important thing, but talks about how frustrating it is to have to deal with them all day, what message does that really send? If I say I am always there for my team members, but my door is always shut and I am too busy to talk, do team members feel important? When we have the ability to influence team members in a positive way, it's because our daily actions match what we say is important. We show others how to think , feel, and perform by what we do. Everyday. All the time.

So if you want to become a more influential leader, come up with a personal mission statement. What is important to you? How should you conduct yourself? Once you have this in writing, keep it in front of you and challenge others around you to hold you to those standards.

Be what you want to see!!