Why Should I Delegate?

Your latest project just went live, so your boss wants your team to do two things:

• Plan the catered launch party where you'll present your project.

• Decide between two apps to partner with for your next project.

Great! You'll sit down and handle all of the party planning and app comparisons between all of your normal paperwork. You don't mind staying late some nights.

Right?

Right?

It's tempting to do it all yourself, but delegating responsibilities to others will make the most efficient use of skills in your team.

Delegation develops your team, your organization, and most importantly yourself.

Your team comes from a diverse background: different interests, previous experiences, educational paths, and more.

These differences are valuable! Delegate tasks to people with complementary skills and knowledge to complete these tasks more efficiently.

Examples

• Rio previously worked at a local event planning agency. After reviewing the request, you ask him to find catering options since he has experience in this process.

• The slide deck you built on that old project is pretty technical and boring, but Verity has great copy and design skills. She's happy to spruce up your file to present at the party.

Showcase the unique knowledge and skills of your team members! Assign tasks they'll succeed in to encourage their pride and ownership.

Your team members want to build their skills and experiences so that they can develop their careers. Give them a chance to show their ability to lead or handle more complex tasks while you take on a guiding role.

Examples

• Ting thinks that a project management app would make party planning more efficient. Encourage her to set one up. Afterward, you two can look into the benefits of adopting it for the new project.

• Nico is a great organizer. You ask him to handle coordinating the launch party expenses with finance and to make sure it gets into the company announcements. You'll look over the final paperwork, of course.

Coach your team to improve their performance, develop skills, and set them up with new tasks on their road to success.

Now that you have moved some tasks to teammates, your schedule isn't quite so burdened. With this new organization, you can focus on tasks and projects that require your attention and that cannot be delegated.

Results:

• Rio's curated list of caterers not only saved you time but let you see how he works with outside vendors;

• Verity's slide deck looks great and not only do you want to use her style moving forward, but you also want her to handle the next project's aesthetics;

• Ting's team is on board with her project management app, and they'll use it to make the next project more efficient;

• and Nico not only made sure everyone got an e-vite, but he also turned in well-organized expense and reimbursement paperwork.

This left you with time to submit payroll information, keep up with stakeholder demands on your project, proofread a technical report...

...and still leave on time!

Schedule and organize your tasks to make the most efficient use of everyone's time, including your own. Employees with good work/life balance tend to be more positive and enthusiastic.

Now that you know why you should delegate, give it a try this week. Who on your team could take on one of your tasks?

Remember: this doesn't mean others do extra work for the sole purpose of freeing up your time. It means reorganizing tasks to make the best use of skills and to develop growth.