Welcome to the June Resource of the Month, The Art of Delegation! This month's topic will be extremely helpful to you as you continue to balance the wide variety of demands on your time.
Below are some tips from humanresources.com on ways to effectively delegate...
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Cynthia D'Amour: "A lot of leaders focus on doing too much work – rather than leading."
Meet Cynthia D’Amour, MBA
Leadership strategist Cynthia D’Amour, MBA is the president of People Power Unlimited, LLC. She’s also the author of seven books including The Lazy Leader’s Guide to Outrageous Results and How to Turn Generation Me Into Active Members of Your Association. Cynthia also blogs at Cynthiadamour.com. Cynthia has served more than 67 total years on boards and recruited more than 250 members. Cynthia specializes in working with associations that want to get more volunteers involved and leaders who want to achieve better success. She is a frequent speaker at leadership events and founder of the Chapter Leaders Playground – an online community for volunteer leaders from across organizations.
1. Tell us a little about your work on delegation as a component of The Lazy Leader, your new book.
CD: A lot of leaders focus on doing too much work – rather than leading. They are martyr leaders who give 110% and are very passionate about their organization.
The problem is they end up doing all the work, others don’t get to do anything and both walk away frustrated.
The Lazy Leader approach is to truly embrace being a leader and to allow others to join you in helping to get the work done. Delegation is a critical skill for involving others successfully.
2. Have you ever experienced a challenging delegation experience? What was it like?
CD: Yes. I once took over an area where the previous leader was a major martyr leader. She had to approve all the work – and no one ever did it up to her standards. She redid almost everyone’s work.
The team I inherited was burned out on trying to make a difference. I had to retrain them on what delegation meant – and prove to them when they were committed to doing something it was theirs to do.
It took some time to get to a functioning team. I spent a lot of time managing the delegation process – and supporting them in stepping back up to the plate with confidence.
3. Why is delegating difficult for so many people?
CD: There can be a few issues. First of all they may not really mean to let others do the work. So it is delegation in name only. And then they get mad when no one does anything.
Secondly, they don’t know how to delegate for empowerment. You’ve got to tell people what the must-haves are for the project and outline the big picture. You’ve also got to check for understanding.
For example, staying within a budget or using a logo properly may be must-haves. Beyond that, there’s wiggle room for folks to put their thumbprint on the work.
Frequently ineffective delegators will tell people what they need to do. They assume they are talking the same language and do not spell out the must-haves.
When the work is not completed to the assumed but not communicated standards, frustration boils over.
Finally, poor delegators don’t spend time managing the delegation they’ve done. Just assigning work and expecting it to be done by deadline can be foolhardy. Using mini-deadlines helps to keep everyone moving forward.
You also need to know what level of supervision is needed based on experience and newness of the project. Not all people should be treated the same.
4. Do men and women view delegation similarly?
CD: Successful delegation depends on so many factors – experience, communication skills, and more. I’m not sure what the research says.
I’m not fond of leaning on stereotypes such as women are better at relationships and communication therefore they are better delegators. Good delegation also takes direct language – which women stereotypically are not always the best at.
Therefore, my answer is it depends.
5. What are some of the benefits of delegating?
CD: When you delegate effectively, your team gets to make a meaningful difference on projects. They enjoy the work more and stick around longer.
You also free up time so you can focus on the real work you should be doing – not doing the work of those who work with you.
6. What are some best practices for effective delegation?
CD: Share the big picture of how the work your team is doing fits in. When they understand the big picture, they can be more effective, may have some valuable insights from their perspective, and feel like they are making a difference even if the work is simple to do.
Make your big picture something that gets your team excited. You are not stuffing envelopes, you are saving lives. Why does the work your team is doing matter? Get good at creating a compelling vision and sharing it with your team.
Work with your team to create a process for what to do when life gets in the way. Talk in advance what to do if it looks like someone can’t make a deadline. Who do they communicate with? How soon should they do it? How do they keep the team moving forward?
Manage your team with enthusiasm and as individuals in the actual delegation. Someone new to the effort will need more quality control to start and then more frequent check-ins until competence is established than someone who has done the task for years.
7. Do you feel there are situations where one should never delegate?
CD: You should never delegate responsibility for your team failing to do their work. If a team is successful, give them full credit for a job well done. If your team has drops the ball, it’s your responsibility as a leader to have made sure they were on track.
Blaming a team member will train your team to become very political and focused on covering their backs – rather than getting the job done.
8. What do you value about your work?
CD: I value many things about my work. I get to work with amazing leaders who want to do better. I have the flexibility to choose where I focus my research and time. I jive on the ability to be creative all the time. Plus I love the travel and speaking audiences across the country.
9. What do you value outside of your work?
CD: My family. I have an amazing husband who shares my life and works with me as well. We also have an adorable, bossy dog named Raindrop who keeps us on our toes. I’m an avid reader, volunteer with interesting groups and am getting into fitness and healthy eating.
10. Are there any web sites or additional resources you would recommend for readers on delegation?
CD: They should check out The Chapter Leaders Playground. There are several articles in the Playground Library and we periodically do webinars on delegating for outrageous results. Membership is free and the webinars are free for members.
11. May readers contact you with questions?
CD: Of course. They can reach me at damour@peoplepowerunlimited.com
... when working with staff.
Leadership Style Tips
- Whenever possible, when delegating work, give the person a whole task to
do. (If you can't give the employee a whole task, make sure they understand
the overall purpose of the project or task. If possible, connect them to the
group that is managing or planning the work. Staff members contribute most
effectively when they are aware of the big picture.)
- Make sure the staff person understands exactly what you want them to
do. Ask questions, watch the work performed or have the employee give you
feedback to make sure your instructions were understood.
- If you have a picture of what a successful outcome or output will look like,
share your picture with the staff person. You want to make the person
right. You don't want to fool the person to whom you delegate authority for a
task, into believing that any outcome will do, unless you really feel that
way.
- Identify the key points of the project or dates when you want feedback
about progress. This is the critical path that provides you with the
feedback you need without causing you to micromanage your direct report or team.
You need assurance that the delegated task or project is on track. You also need
the opportunity to influence the project's direction and the team or
individual's decisions.
- Identify the measurements or the outcome you will use to determine
that the project was successfully completed. (This will make performance
development planning more measurable and less subjective, too.)
- Determine, in advance, how you will thank and reward the staff person
for their successful completion of the task or project you delegated.
http://humanresources.about.com/cs/manageperformance/a/delegation.htm