As your business grows, which you want to happen, you’re going to need to hire more people. Forming a team means managing those people so they can perform to their fullest potential. That means a lot of delegation.

Delegating tasks to your employees makes workloads more manageable, gives your employees greater autonomy and a chance to show their skills, while freeing you up to do higher-value activities.

In fact, a study has shown that excelling in delegation generates 33% more revenue, and yet a lot of managers are intimidated by it or are not very good at it. If delegating isn’t one of your strong suits, it’s time to learn just how beneficial it is and how to get good at it.

Why should you delegate?

You shouldn’t do all the work of your company yourself or what would be the point of hiring people and forming a team? Delegation doesn’t just free up your time, it means so much more for your company as a whole. 

When you delegate, it empowers your team, lets them know you trust their abilities, helps them develop new skills, and prepares them for bigger responsibilities in the future. Employees that feel trusted also feel respected and commit more to their work. 

Why do managers find it hard to delegate?

Not everyone can take to delegating easily, even if they can recognize its importance. Here are some reasons why managers fail to delegate:

1. They feel like it would be faster to just do the job themselves rather than explaining the task. 
2. They feel guilty about “passing off” work to others.
3. They’re nervous about letting go of control of a project.
4. They think that for the job to be done right, they have to do it.
5. They enjoy completing a project themselves too much.

These reasons aren’t good enough to not hone your delegation skills and the consequences far outweigh them. Refusing to delegate overloads you, deprives your team the opportunity to learn and grow, and your company or business in turn suffers as well.

When should you delegate?

All that being said, it doesn’t mean you should delegate everything to your team. There is a proper time and effective way to delegate properly. You can determine when the time to delegate is appropriate by asking yourself the following questions:

1. Does the task require someone with more expertise or a different set of skills than you?

If the answer is yes, then you should definitely delegate. Always leverage on your employees’ strengths because when they have a higher chance of succeeding, they’re more motivated and engaged which of course benefits your business.

2. Does the task give one of your employees a chance to develop their skills and learn new things?

If yes, give it to them. Showing your team you trust them is powerful and empowering as well as motivating for them to do a good job.

3. Is it a task that will be recurring?

It’s smart to delegate tasks that are recurring so it gets done efficiently. You don’t have to worry about it every time and it frees you up to do more important things for the business.

4. Is there enough time to delegate the task adequately, check its progress, and offer comments?

If the task requires training and resources, it’s your job as manager or team leader to provide those things. These empower your employees to do the task effectively and efficiently. Taking the time to do so is a good investment but if the task is urgent and needs to be done immediately, you can just assign minor tasks. But make sure to train on your down time for the next time the task comes up and remember, don’t micromanage!

5. How crucial is the success or failure of the task?

If the task is too important, it might be unfair to put that much pressure on the person you’re delegating to, unless you are working with them every step of the way. If an ‘okay’  outcome on the task is adequate but it’s still a chance for the employee to learn and grow, go delegate.

How should you delegate?

Delegating isn’t just dumping work on your employees and walking away. You still have responsibilities as a manager to make sure you are setting them up for as much success as possible with the task. Here are some tips:

1. Be clear about what you want done

Provide proper context, instructions, expectations, goals, outcomes, and deadlines for the project you’re handing off. Establish proper constraints and boundaries such as should they wait to be told what to do, do they just recommend solutions but not do them, how often should they report to you, etc.

2. Provide proper resources and training

Like we mentioned above, it’s the manager’s responsibility to provide the employee with the tools and training needed to complete the task the way it needs to be done. Not doing so will only frustrate both the employee and manager as the former will struggle with the task and the latter will most likely end up doing the task themselves.

3. Encourage communication

Let the employee know that they can ask questions and provide progress updates as they work on the task. Make sure not to micromanage but instead just provide feedback throughout the project. Don’t be afraid to provide constructive criticism when and where needed but also give positive comments to show appreciation and help motivation. And of course, ask for feedback from your employee as well so you can also improve with delegating in the future.

4. Give credit

After they have completed the task, give employees recognition for their effort and commend their work. This encourages them to continue doing good work for future tasks.

Who Should You Delegate to?

Here are factors to consider when choosing who to delegate to:

1. Their experience, knowledge, and skills. Are they enough to leave the person to it or do you need to provide training?
2. Their preferred style of working. Do their long-term goals and interests align with the project?
3. Their current workload. Do they have time to take on more work? Will it require redistributing workloads?

Partner with us

Remote Workmate doesn’t just find you the perfect professionals who fit right into your company. We also help with onboarding and regularly check in on you and your Workmate’s working relationship to make sure it’s as successful as possible. 

We provide three-to-six-month evaluations mediated by our Client Success Managers to empower you to be the best manager you can be.

Schedule an obligation-free consultation with us today to talk more about your needs by pressing the button below!