Quality Of Life Trainings, Inc. Success Tip

Success Tip

Survival Tip: How to Delegate

Pam is the president of a volunteer service group. She oversees the operation of the group's annual conference. Pam is not happy with Kim, her vice-president, because she doesn't seem to have a handle on which jobs need to be done and the proper time to do them. In addition, Kim thinks that when you delegate a task, you can forget about it, because the task will be completed correctly without any supervision. Kim's attitude makes Pam very nervous. Pam tests Kim by asking her to make some phone calls and giving her a deadline. Kim does not complete the calls. With that in mind, it is understandable that Pam does not trust Kim to do anything right. So Pam takes on the tasks that traditionally fall to the vice-president. Pam has her tasks, Kim's tasks and overall responsibility for the conference. Pam takes her position seriously and gets a monthly status report from the other group members. Fortunately for Pam, the others are reliable. But what about Kim's work? Pam takes it on herself, doing the jobs of two people. By the time the day of conference arrives, Pam is exhausted and Kim is ready to jump-start the next conference. Pam should have delegated some of Kim's work to the other members of the group. Instead, she decided that everyone had too much to do already and would refuse her, so she didn't ask.

The situation described above illustrates how the lack of delegation skills can have a negative impact in a volunteer group. Pam forgot that the volunteers are a team and everyone on the team pitches in to get the job done. She reasoned that the others wouldn't share the workload before she asked for assistance. The truth is that she may be refused by some of the team members, but there would be others who would assist her.

In the business environment, not having these skills can have an even greater negative impact especially if you find yourself performing tasks that can be passed along to someone else rather than those that are crucial to your business (or job) and requires your attention.

Tip for the Self-Employed: If you are overwhelmed, it may be appropriate to consider outsourcing the most time consuming tasks or hiring part time help. Look at the equation this way: What, ultimately, will cost you more, outsourcing the task or using your valuable time performing these tasks instead of doing what is necessary to build your business?

Tip: How to Delegate: The process of delegating includes the following:

Deciding which tasks can be given to someone else.
Deciding who would be the best person to perform the task. Assigning the task, making sure to give the assignee a deadline for completion, and letting the assignee know that you are available if he has any concerns or questions.
Checking in with the assignee to make sure that he has everything he needs (skills and equipment).
Depending on the time frame, check in with the assignee a week before the task is due.
Accepting the assignment when it is completed and providing any constructive feedback, if necessary.