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The benefits of delegation 

It is easy to fall into a trap of thinking if you want something done right, then you must do everything yourself. But one person can't do everything, and trying to accomplish or micromanage too many tasks may lead to burnout, poor quality of work or missed deadlines (not to mention time-management problems).

If you are a new manager, it may be that you fear delegating because you: 

• lack the confidence to direct others
• lack confidence or trust in who you need to transfer the project to
• think it would take longer to explain the task than actually completing it yourself
• want to feel indispensable to their team by being the keeper of specific knowledge
• enjoy completing certain projects so prefer not to reassign them
• think that your manager may judge that you cannot cope if you delegate to other people
• feel guilty about adding more work onto another employee’s to-do list

Many of the above reasons are valid, but there are so many more reasons why delegation can be beneficial to you, your team and the University.

What tasks to delegate

It’s not always easy to identify which tasks you should be delegating. Try mapping your tasks using the following model.

If you have a task that has high importance/urgency and you don’t have the skills within your team, then don’t delegate.

For tasks that are of high importance/urgency, it may be safe to delegate the task to a skilled team member, but make sure you monitor the work.

Tasks that are of low importance/urgency are ideal to be delegated to a skilled/willing team member. However, for similar low urgency tasks where there are not the right skills within your team, you may still delegate, but will need to monitor also. This can be a great development opportunity for the staff member.

Simple steps for effective delegation

1. Define the task

   Confirm in your own mind that the task is suitable to be delegated.

2. Select the individual or team

   What are your reasons for delegating to this person or team? What are they going to get out of it? What are you going to get out of it?

3. Assess ability and training needs

   Is the other person or team of people capable of doing the task? Do they understand what needs to be done? If not, you can’t delegate.

4. Explain the reasons

   You must explain why the job or responsibility is being delegated. And why to that person or people? What is its importance and relevance? Where does it fit in the overall scheme of things? This is an opportunity for development and empowers the individual(s).

5. State required results

   What must be achieved? Clarify understanding by getting feedback from the other person. How will the task be measured? Make sure they know how you intend to decide that the job is being successfully done.

6. Consider resources required

   Discuss and agree what is required to get the job done. Consider people, location, equipment, materials, other related activities and services.

7. Agree deadlines, feedback and how progress will be measured

   When must the job be finished? Or if an ongoing duty, when are the review dates? How often will you need to meet for them to update you on progress and for you to provide constructive feedback? Where else might feedback come from? How else do you need to be kept informed?

8. Support and communicate

   Think about who else needs to know what’s going on and inform them. Involve the other person in considering this so they can see beyond the issue at hand. Remember that the outcome of delegation is still your responsibility, so you will need to provide the right level of support, appropriate to the task you are delegating.

9. Feedback on results

   It is essential to let the person know how they are doing, and whether they have achieved their aims. If not, you must review with them why things did not go to plan, and deal with any problems. You must absorb the consequences of failure and pass on the credit for success.