How To Really Make Delegation Stick
Most organizations have multiple layers of people. The largest organizations can have 6, or 7 or even 8 layers of leaders… and every layer is different. It has a unique purpose, and a unique time horizon that those leaders need to focus on.
During my corporate executive career, not working at the right level was probably the most common problem that I saw holding leaders back – and I’m talking about leaders at all levels, from front-line supervisors to CEOs of major companies.
Lots of leaders say they want to delegate more… to give their people more responsibility, and not have to do so much themselves… but even before those words have passed their lips, they manage to shoot themselves in the foot.
There are a few obstacles that stop you from delegating successfully, and making it stick… things that are going to distract you from what you ultimately want to achieve.
The first is that perfectionistic streak you have! You truly believe that no one can do it as well as you, and this is especially common at the lower levels of leadership.
Let’s face it, when you were first promoted, it was for a reason… you probably were the most capable technical person in the team… but once you’ve been promoted to lead that team, if you continue to do the technical work, rather than delegating it, your people never grow, and you will never be able to elevate yourself above the detail.
The second obstacle is that you may get into the bad habit of delegating the task, but not delegating the accountability.
You let the people below you do the work, but you expect them to come to you with problems, to run their decisions past you, and to make sure you are intimately involved in everything they’re doing.
The third obstacle is trying to control the outcomes. It’s really scary when you first work out that you aren’t holding the delivery levers yourself… you have to convince your people that they should hold those levers, and then show them how to use them.
Initially it’s way more time-consuming and way more frustrating than just rolling your sleeves up and doing it yourself.
But if you don’t learn to trust your team to do their jobs, and you succumb to your insecurity, you will never get the most out of your people.
The fourth obstacle is micromanaging… wanting to understand the work at a level of detail that is entirely inappropriate for the level you’re being paid to work at.
The fifth and final impediment is unconsciously usurping your people’s decision-making rights.
I used to do this all the time. When people came to me for advice, I’d say, “Look, this is completely your decision, and I’m happy to go with whatever you decide… however, if I were you, I’d want to think about these things.”
I had my thumb on the scales… Whenever you overfunction for your people, they learn to ease off… you’re training them to be dependent and weak.
To be fair, this is rarely fatal… but you’ll find that you have to work a lot harder than you should, and your people won’t grow!
So, how do you delegate so that it really sticks? The place to start is by being attuned to, and eliminating those 5 obstacles.
Once you’ve done that, it’s just a matter of stopping the dumb shit… don’t get in your people’s way… coach them, guide them, and support them… but whatever you do, don’t dip down.
There are 3 things that will stop you from dipping down, while still allowing you to inspect progress diligently:
- Focus to the greatest extent possible on the outcomes, not the inputs
- Whenever someone comes to you for help, don’t give directions – ask questions
- When you ask questions, make sure they’re pitched at the appropriate level
If you say it fast enough it sounds easy… but believe me, working out how to really make delegation stick is a life-long quest… Once you master it, though, the performance that your team can deliver will be as different as night and day!