We all know what delegation is supposed to be. Getting stuff done through others. Easy. But particularly in the Charity sector it gets bogged down with all sorts of emotional stuff that can get in the way.
When I ask people in my workshops what are the downsides of delegating, they are not slow in filling sheets of flipchart paper. Problems of quality, not sure if it will get done, not completed the way I want it to be delivered etc. And yet these issues and more can logically be dealt with.
When I ask people in my workshops what are the downsides of delegating, they are not slow in filling sheets of flipchart paper. Problems of quality, not sure if it will get done, not completed the way I want it to be delivered etc. And yet these issues and more can logically be dealt with.
I think there are deeper psychological issues at play particularly for new charity managers.
Firstly, who am I to ask someone else to do stuff? Many new managers have been
promoted internally from within the existing team. They are now managing staff who yesterday were colleagues and friends.
Secondly, doubts about the manager's own competence to manage makes it easy to move back into the comfort zone of doing tasks relevant to the old job rather than delegate it out to team members.
Thirdly, managers are keen to help and provide solutions to issues and they often see
delegation as creating problems not solving them.
Fourthly, managers can be worried about their image to staff of being lazy by delegating work out that rightly or wrongly some members of the team perceive to be the manager's job.
Firstly, who am I to ask someone else to do stuff? Many new managers have been
promoted internally from within the existing team. They are now managing staff who yesterday were colleagues and friends.
Secondly, doubts about the manager's own competence to manage makes it easy to move back into the comfort zone of doing tasks relevant to the old job rather than delegate it out to team members.
Thirdly, managers are keen to help and provide solutions to issues and they often see
delegation as creating problems not solving them.
Fourthly, managers can be worried about their image to staff of being lazy by delegating work out that rightly or wrongly some members of the team perceive to be the manager's job.
why delegate?
There are two main reasons for delegating.
Firstly, and the one most people focus on is delegating tasks to get a job done. It is often given to someone with short deadlines and is usually a response to a problem. Someone hasn’t turned up or the manager has to go to a meeting so “could you just finish this for me”. This kind of “goffer delegation” as Stephen Covey called it in the book “Seven habits of highly effective people” is when small bits of work are handed out to be completed and then reported on. “Go for this” or “go for that” type of work. This is the image that is often in the manager and staff minds when we raise the issue of delegation.
And yet when I ask workshop attenders about occasions, they have most developed at work it is when they were delegated to. Sometimes this delegation was not at all well managed.
Often a crisis response to a failure or someone leaving. Being thrown in at the deep end and managing to swim. What a great learning experience but often very stressful and many staff have been damaged and sink not swim!
But the fundamental truth is that the delegation of work is a great opportunity to develop staff as individuals and as a team.
Good managers delegate and delegate well and often.
Firstly, and the one most people focus on is delegating tasks to get a job done. It is often given to someone with short deadlines and is usually a response to a problem. Someone hasn’t turned up or the manager has to go to a meeting so “could you just finish this for me”. This kind of “goffer delegation” as Stephen Covey called it in the book “Seven habits of highly effective people” is when small bits of work are handed out to be completed and then reported on. “Go for this” or “go for that” type of work. This is the image that is often in the manager and staff minds when we raise the issue of delegation.
And yet when I ask workshop attenders about occasions, they have most developed at work it is when they were delegated to. Sometimes this delegation was not at all well managed.
Often a crisis response to a failure or someone leaving. Being thrown in at the deep end and managing to swim. What a great learning experience but often very stressful and many staff have been damaged and sink not swim!
But the fundamental truth is that the delegation of work is a great opportunity to develop staff as individuals and as a team.
Good managers delegate and delegate well and often.
strategic delegation
This is where managers turn into leaders. Managers need to use delegation as a strategic not just operational tool. What does this mean in practice?
Start by planning what needs to be delivered and what skill set you have in your team. Is there a gap? What can you do to fill that gap over the coming months? Is it formal training, coaching, working with a more experienced staff member, time to read technical information and others?
By preparing individuals to be delegated to you are preparing them to develop and improve their own performance as well as the capacity of the team. As part of your leadership work you look at not only who is capable now but who has potential. This helps to grow the team and is also as a safety mechanism to ensure you don’t become over reliant on any one individual.
Delegation well planned is one of the most powerful ways to develop a team.
This requires the manager to spend time thinking through the needs of the team and the needs of the charity to make sure they can be matched. Delegation should be an approach rather than a last resort. I have seen leaders develop an annual plan with their teams with each member of the team being prepared for a delegated and stretching piece of work to develop and deliver.
I have recommended to hard pressed managers that they change their to do list into a “to delegate” list to free up time. This time can then be spent in what Stephen Covey called quadrant two (not urgent but important) and better plan for delegated projects in the future by preparing individuals to have the capacity and confidence to lead themselves.
Start by planning what needs to be delivered and what skill set you have in your team. Is there a gap? What can you do to fill that gap over the coming months? Is it formal training, coaching, working with a more experienced staff member, time to read technical information and others?
By preparing individuals to be delegated to you are preparing them to develop and improve their own performance as well as the capacity of the team. As part of your leadership work you look at not only who is capable now but who has potential. This helps to grow the team and is also as a safety mechanism to ensure you don’t become over reliant on any one individual.
Delegation well planned is one of the most powerful ways to develop a team.
This requires the manager to spend time thinking through the needs of the team and the needs of the charity to make sure they can be matched. Delegation should be an approach rather than a last resort. I have seen leaders develop an annual plan with their teams with each member of the team being prepared for a delegated and stretching piece of work to develop and deliver.
I have recommended to hard pressed managers that they change their to do list into a “to delegate” list to free up time. This time can then be spent in what Stephen Covey called quadrant two (not urgent but important) and better plan for delegated projects in the future by preparing individuals to have the capacity and confidence to lead themselves.
motivation to take on delegated tasks
Some of your team members seem to naturally want to be helpful and take on additional work yet others are very reluctant. Be careful that you don’t fall into the trap of over delegating to particular individuals and burning then out or it being considered that you are treating them as favourites.
Daniel Pink in his excellent book “Drive” identified three major aspects of motivation. These can be used when thinking about delegation.
Mastery.
Identify what people are good at and use this to develop them. Remind them of their current skills and experience and find ways to delegate to expand and develop this skill set. Get the rest of the team to be aware of and recognise this skill set.
Freedom to act.
A delegated project is a potential motivating experience if they are given room to be creative rather than having a very prescriptive way of working laid out for them with no room to flex. A leader’s job in this situation is to manage boundaries and set the criteria for success. Then help the individual or team that have been delegated to explore the areas for creativity and freedom to act. Boundaries are often simple but important such as time and budget. Success criteria can be a more challenging to tease out and often benefits from several conversations between the leader and the staff member.
Connection to Purpose.
This should be easy for a charity. It must be harder if you are trying to sell another million coke cola bottles. Nevertheless, it is still important for the leader to help link the delegated work to a wider purpose. This can be the team itself. By doing the work this will help the others produce X for our service user. Or the wider charity itself. For example, by cleaning up this database you will help the marketing team target donors that brings in more money that helps us transform the lives of Y. Often a combination of all three motivational drivers can be used to encourage staff to take on delegated tasks.
Daniel Pink in his excellent book “Drive” identified three major aspects of motivation. These can be used when thinking about delegation.
Mastery.
Identify what people are good at and use this to develop them. Remind them of their current skills and experience and find ways to delegate to expand and develop this skill set. Get the rest of the team to be aware of and recognise this skill set.
Freedom to act.
A delegated project is a potential motivating experience if they are given room to be creative rather than having a very prescriptive way of working laid out for them with no room to flex. A leader’s job in this situation is to manage boundaries and set the criteria for success. Then help the individual or team that have been delegated to explore the areas for creativity and freedom to act. Boundaries are often simple but important such as time and budget. Success criteria can be a more challenging to tease out and often benefits from several conversations between the leader and the staff member.
Connection to Purpose.
This should be easy for a charity. It must be harder if you are trying to sell another million coke cola bottles. Nevertheless, it is still important for the leader to help link the delegated work to a wider purpose. This can be the team itself. By doing the work this will help the others produce X for our service user. Or the wider charity itself. For example, by cleaning up this database you will help the marketing team target donors that brings in more money that helps us transform the lives of Y. Often a combination of all three motivational drivers can be used to encourage staff to take on delegated tasks.
leading delegation |
The solution for both is to have a plan of support for delegation. This means that delegation costs time and effort from the leader that needs to be scheduled. Delegation doesn’t get rid of the job it transforms it from a “doing task” to a leading and developmental opportunity.
At the start leaders need to help the person delegated to be clear about the work. This often takes more than one conversation and many managers cop out of this with simple closed questions such as “do you understand what I want?” or “do you have any questions?” Staff often respond with a closed answer either yes or no and the manager thinks they have effectively delegated. Leaders need to ask open questions to help the individual to think about the work analytically. For example, “what will be the most challenging/interesting/worrying part of the work for you?”
Two simple questions that I have used before to get into helping and clarifying delegated work are:
If ten would mean you will be able to do this work perfectly and easily, what would you score it?
The follow up question is “what help do you need to make it a ten?”
At the start leaders need to help the person delegated to be clear about the work. This often takes more than one conversation and many managers cop out of this with simple closed questions such as “do you understand what I want?” or “do you have any questions?” Staff often respond with a closed answer either yes or no and the manager thinks they have effectively delegated. Leaders need to ask open questions to help the individual to think about the work analytically. For example, “what will be the most challenging/interesting/worrying part of the work for you?”
Two simple questions that I have used before to get into helping and clarifying delegated work are:
If ten would mean you will be able to do this work perfectly and easily, what would you score it?
The follow up question is “what help do you need to make it a ten?”
delegation needs managing
Successful delegation requires follow ups. What Professor Ockenden, who developed the
concept of Monkey Management in an article for the Harvard Business Review, called
Health checks. These health checks are important to provide psychological safety for both parties.
However, there is a crucial difference between leaders and managers in the way they
structure these meetings. Managers will rush to give solutions to any problems the individual brings to the meeting. This feels great at the time. Provides quick answers, shows the manager is engaged and supportive and lets the individual know what to do. The downside, if done to excess is that the delegated person can become dependent, doesn’t think through the potential solutions and in reality, becomes a “goffer”.
A leader will use these opportunities to coach not tell. They will ask the individual for their
thoughts and help them to think through the implications of their ideas. This in itself is a
development moment which builds confidence and skill and, on many occasions, produces better results than if only reliant on the manager giving old ideas.
concept of Monkey Management in an article for the Harvard Business Review, called
Health checks. These health checks are important to provide psychological safety for both parties.
However, there is a crucial difference between leaders and managers in the way they
structure these meetings. Managers will rush to give solutions to any problems the individual brings to the meeting. This feels great at the time. Provides quick answers, shows the manager is engaged and supportive and lets the individual know what to do. The downside, if done to excess is that the delegated person can become dependent, doesn’t think through the potential solutions and in reality, becomes a “goffer”.
A leader will use these opportunities to coach not tell. They will ask the individual for their
thoughts and help them to think through the implications of their ideas. This in itself is a
development moment which builds confidence and skill and, on many occasions, produces better results than if only reliant on the manager giving old ideas.
next steps
If this blog has given you, or a colleague, a chance to reflect on how and what you delegate, I am pleased. I suggest you develop a modest action plan to experiment with delegating to your team in different ways.
