Manager's and The Art and Science of Delegation
(4 Min Read) What, how, and to whom to delegate work effectively.
Many managers need help with delegation. That's because delegation is a complex skill, but like any skill, we can learn and master it. And this post is going to explain how.
Delegation is tricky because it seems simple, but if done incorrectly, it can severely impact the delegated task, the delegatee (who gets the task), and the delegator (who delegates the task).
Over the years, I have encountered, debugged, and solved many delegation problems for myself and my team of managers/individual contributors.
Based on the insight so far, I feel confident in categorizing all delegation-related problems into the following 3 categories:
Delegating too little
Delegating too much
Delegating to incorrect team member
Isn’t it simple? And that's the trap, the bad news.
The good news is that all three can be corrected, starting with coaching/mentoring the delegator.
The first two problems are easy to identify and fix. In fact, most new managers can self-diagnose them. The third one is the complicated one. It's a mix of art and science.
So, let's look at each of them closely and understand why they occur and how to self-identify and correct them.
Delegating Too Little
New managers are often the ones who need to delegate more. If you are one and feel like you delegate too little, don't worry. Your leadership expected it. This is a new skill that all new managers have to develop. This is not the worst place to be in.
Why it occurs:
The most common reasons are:
Small team size (less than 4 reports) so manager feels like they are helping the team by not overloading them.
Manager switching from individual contributor to new manager role. In previous role, the task ownership solely relied on them as individual contributors. Rarely they had to delegate, and even then, very little. It's a continuation of a behavior that has to be unlearned.
Lack of trust in the team to deliver at the same high level.
How to (self-)diagnose:
As a manager (delegator):
You feel overwhelmed all the time.
You and your team members feel the team skills could be utilized more.
Things pile up on your plate, and working long hours doesn't lessen the load.
Managers can usually self-diagnose this when team size grows beyond 4-5 team members or after feeling overwhelmed for a long enough time. That's when things become unsustainable, and delegation becomes critical.
If you are managing a manager who is delegated too little, wait a few months. Give them the opportunity to self-diagnose, but do drop hints here and there.
How to correct it:
Develop trust in the team's ability to deliver.
Delegate small tasks. Start with delegating the tasks that you (as a manager) can do with your eyes closed. This makes it easier to set expectations and monitor the progress/quality of the work.
Delegate consciously and intentionally.
Be patient and rise and repeat. Always remember that delegation is a skill you are trying to get good at.
Delegating Too Much
In this case, the pendulum swings in the other direction. The manager delegates almost everything, including project tracking and team scope expansion.
This is the worst-case. It's almost equivalent to not having a manager.
Why it occurs:
The most common reasons are:
The manager is burned out/doesn't care.
The team scope of ownership is significantly smaller than the team size.
The manager leaves the team or the team moves to a manager who has yet to learn what the team does.
How to (self-)diagnose:
The team feels overwhelmed and overworked.
The team needs more direction, i.e., what to do next, the priority of the current task, and why.
As a manager, you feel replaceable, or as a manager of manager, you ask, " "What is that manager doing?"
This is more common in big organizations. Not surprisingly, these managers were impacted during the recent layoff cycles when companies decided to reduce the hierarchy, a.k.a. cut the fat.
How to correct it:
Be more involved.
Take back work, especially that is around project tracking and stakeholder discussions.
If you are burnt out, leave the role.
Finally, let's look at the most complex category.
Delegating to the incorrect team member
This is most complex because it's a mix of art and science.
Delegating correctly is a matching problem.
To delegate effectively, we need to understand the complexity of the task and match it with the right delegate who has 70-80 percent of the skills needed to get the task done. The remaining skills are what they will learn when they do the task.
And this is why it's a mix of art & science. The art part is identifying the right delegate, and the science part is knowing the complexity of the task.
It takes a lot of work to get this exactly right all the time. And honestly, we don't need to.
Why it occurs:
The manager needs to gain the skill to estimate the delegated task complexity.
The manager needs to gain knowledge of delegate skills and the skill gap.
Managers are delegating something that they don't understand.
How to (self-)diagnose:
Task making no progress.
The delegate seems to need help with tasks, making incorrect or insufficient progress and has no idea why.
Delegates are unaware that they own it.
How to solve it:
Learn the necessary skills to understand the task and team.
Coach the delegatee:
When the complexity of the task is more than anticipated, which results in a more significant skill gap, help them break it down to the right level so it matches 70-80 percent.
When the task complexity is less, change other dimensions, such as pulling in the timeline, adding more use cases, or simply delegating some more tasks.
Make it clear and explicit to the delegate that this task is their responsibility.
As I mentioned above, getting this exactly right can always be challenging. The goal is to be something other than an exceptional delegator. The goal is to:
Make progress on the task and deliver impact for the organization.
Grow the skills of the delegate.
Grow yourself in the role by delivering more with the team's help.
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