You’re in a rush before the presentation is due. You need some help putting together charts and figures for the presentation, so you ask your trusted number 2. They’re always available and ready to help when you need an extra set of hands.

You give them the raw data tables and ask them to make some visually appealing charts for you to use in a presentation. You stop by, horrified to find charts that aren’t relevant or clear enough for an executive presentation. It turns out your employee had no idea it was an executive presentation or that the charts were supposed to be visible in print versions as well as digitally. Your goal of gaining time back just cost you more than you had to spare.

If only you knew how to delegate properly.

Most leaders dump more than they delegate. They forget to give the context, boundaries, and clarity employees need to stretch themselves, make decisions, and build their skills. Delegation requires you, as the leader, to put in the necessary work to assign tasks properly. You need to provide context, decision-making authority, and feedback to your employees. Without this level of clarity, employees will never be able to think critically and make their own decisions.

Delegation is a tool for development, not a tool to free up your time. It actually takes time & effort to delegate appropriately. You may save some time, but if you do it right, the real benefit is developing your subordinates. Check out the three tips below to stop dumping and start delegating!

In the military, we were always told to follow our Commander’s Intent when faced with a decision we had to make on our own. Commander’s intent is just another way of saying: accomplish the purpose of this task. For example, shovel the sidewalk. I can’t find a shovel, but the same intent could be achieved by using a snowblower to clear the sidewalk. I can make my own decision to use a snowblower instead of a shovel to accomplish the same goals. The intent for this task is to clear the sidewalk. You should assign your employees tasks in the same way. Please accomplish X, but you don’t have to specify how they should achieve it. Figuring out how to complete a task is where employees learn and grow.

Your employees can solve problems; you have to frame it so they can exercise their own judgment to achieve your intent. Your intent guides your employees as they make judgment calls, allowing them to operate independently using their own critical thinking skills.

Give your employees clear authority to make decisions, including setting boundaries, so they can make decisions without seeking approval. This could mean you provide them with a budget and resources, or whatever they need to make decisions on the task without seeking your guidance. That’s how you develop and allow people the chance to learn through experience. Your job as a leader is to set the conditions for autonomy by giving authority within boundaries.

Boundaries, coupled with clear intent, allow employees to work autonomously, with increased motivation typically a byproduct of greater autonomy in their work.

Evaluate their process and help them alter their actions to achieve better results. Ask them what they learned and how that applies to their job. Maybe they learned they want to specialize or take on more responsibility. Maybe they don’t. Development is a journey, and delegation is one tool to develop your employees.

Feedback is the most important part of the process. You should evaluate how well your intent was met, how well your employee exercised the authority they were given, and how well they made decisions to achieve the assigned task. Don’t focus solely on the outcomes. Evaluate how well they took charge of and led the task from start to finish.

Don’t treat delegation as a tool to get more time. It does help you get more time back, but delegation is a tool used for development. Use it to maximize your leadership impact!

Until next time,

Rick