Rule 1: Plan it

If you are going to have any chance of effectively delegating you need to plan it.  Delegation is not about passing on something to the fist person who comes over to your desk just to get rid of it.  It is about identifying who would be best equipped to deal with a particular piece of work, ensuring that they have they have the capacity and the skills to do it. A little bit of thought can go a long way towards effective delegation.

Rule 2: Invest the time to train

I chose the word invest deliberately as a decision to delegate is really an investment decision.  Think about it you assign a period of time once to train someone else to do something and get the benefit over and over again.  Don’t see the time that you take to train as a waste of time but as a real log term investment.

Rule 3:  Set the boundaries and get out of the way

There is nothing more de-moralising than having a situation where a piece of work is delegated to you but the person delegating is checking up on progress every five minutes.  The answer to this is to set out boundaries or things that need referring back to you and then leave the person to get on with it.

Rule 4: Establish review points

As the manager you do obviously have to have some form of reviewing progress.  When delegating set some milestones and diarise meetings where you and the person to whom you have delegated since down and discuss progress and problems.

Rule 5: Create a buffer

Things rarely run perfectly to plan so it is important to recognise this and build in some buffer or contingency so that slippage or delay does not create havoc.  Make a point of leaving some space between the time when you need something and the deadline you set for those that you delegate to.

Bottom Line – Effective delegation can help you deliver better results.  So what do you need to start doing to be a more effective delegator?

Rule 1:  Get to know your people

Yes you probably know who all of your staff are, their job title and what they do.  On the other hand do you really know what it is that motivates the people you manage.  While everyone needs to earn a wage, each of us has different things that motivate us.  For some it will be being supported, for others it will be about having autonomy and others might thrive on challenge.  If you don’t know what motivates people you could easily end up de-motivating people by using inappropriate strategies.

Rule 2: Make time for those that you manage

Most managers are busy people and no doubt you are to.  When you have your deadlines to meet and results to deliver it is all too easy to forget about the people that you manage.  If you fail to set aside time for interacting with the people that you manage it simply will not happen.  If your boss never made any time for you, how motivated would you be?

Rule 3:  Make a point of noticing effort and achievement

The best mangers realise that time spent letting people know that you are aware of the effort they are making or the result that they have delivered is time well spent.  All of us to a greater or lesser extent thrive on getting feedback so don’t lose out on the opportunity.

Rule 4: Create a sense of excitement

All jobs after a while become more routine and less fresh and exciting.  As the manager you need to try and keep that sense of excitement in roles.  This might be by challenging people to find new or better ways of doing something or giving them more freedom to do things their way.

Rule 5: Remember it is rarely about money

Yes everyone needs to earn what they view is a reasonable rate of pay for the time, expertise and effort that they have given.  On the other hand study after study into what matters to employees reveal that the source of dissatisfaction is rarely just about money.  Make a point of keeping the things that make people tick at the forefront of your mind.

Bottom Line – A happy, motivated team of people who you manage can help you deliver great results.  So what do you need to give more attention to in order to be a more successful manager?