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Jeff Colvin
Management Consultant & Founder of Link,
a Management Consulting Group
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Welcome
back from the holidays! Now that the reality has hit, you are looking
at a mountain of tasks that you need to do… or get done!
Here is a new-year's resolution to consider. Try not to do it all
yourself? Stop and look at the list of tasks that you need to do
or to get done and think about the ones that you might be able to
have someone else do; to be delegated. Why wouldn't you delegate
some of these tasks to some one else? I know… It's easier to
do yourself, you don't trust that they will do the job as well as
you, you don't have time to train them, or maybe you just like all
of the credit, and the pressure that goes with it.
Instead of being the hero who does it all, appreciate that the
real leaders in the business world are those that surround themselves
with others who can do their work (better than themselves). Remember,
those people who have others fill their shoes are the ones that
have paved a way for their promotion and advancement. Don't forget
what the benefits of delegation offer to the delegate.
- Opportunity to learn and grow
- A chance to contribute and feel needed
- Preparation for a new role or promotion
- A means to earn trust
The toughest part of delegation is to let someone fail. This is
nearly identical to letting them succeed. In both cases the individual
has to be allowed to make their mistakes and learn from them, as
well as to do it right without being hounded or micro-managed.
The simple solution to this dilemma is to not really allow either
failure or success to happen without your awareness. Proactive checks
and offers of reassurance and reinforcement will allow you to catch
and recover early from a potential failure or stimulate the opportunity
for reinforcement and positive strokes.
Using the four C's of delegation will create a process for ensuring
success and allow you to do more delegating to get work done instead
of shuffling through your to do list to decide what will not.
1. Communication: Provide clear and concise direction and expectations
when you delegate a task.
2. Comprehension: Ensure full understanding of the task, the timeframe
and the output desired.
3. Compliance: Check for compliance at short intervals to ensure
success and catch early failure warnings.
4. Consequence: Provide both a positive and/or negative response
to the success/failure of a delegated task.
In the best case scenario you can be like Tom Sawyer and get Huck
Finn to white-wash your fence and love every minute of it. With
delegation… everybody wins.
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
How to Get it Done
List & Segregate
· Clearly define all tasks to get done
· Determine the priority of each (A, B, C)
· Circle tasks that could be done by a delegate
Identify Contributors
· Delegates don't have to be subordinates
· Pick those who have earned or need to earn trust
· Use delegation as an incentive
Take a Risk
· Accept less than perfection
· Clearly establish minimum expectations
· Allow for small and early failures
Ensure Success
· Offer assistance in midstream
· Remove barriers that will prevent success
· Provide timely & necessary reinforcement
Learn Something
· Be open to different and novel ways of getting the job
done
· Provide guidance and accessibility to other resources
· Realize that "easier" in the long run may be
to train others to do your job
Jeff Colvin (Jcolvin@linkllc.com)
founded Link, a management
consulting group in 1997 whose mission is dedicated to the Systems,
Structures, and Behaviors that make people and companies successful.
Link's bottom line focus on process improvement is achieved through
the facilitation and training of cross-functional teams to address
key strategic goals. Learn more about Jeff
Colvin & Link...
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