Welcome to Issue #8 of Thought Shot - a newsletter where I share essays on impact and leadership for next-generation leaders. Happy reading!
💌 We spoke about the Power of Delegation for Leaders in Part 1 of this essay. Today in Part 2, I share a framework for building your delegation superpower. As a BONUS, I am also sharing my free ready-to-use tracker (that you can download and start using right away).
The Delegation Spectrum
Let’s start with a quick visualization exercise, shall we?
Imagine delegation as a spectrum (as James Steiner suggests).
On the extreme left of the delegation spectrum, managers do 0% delegation of tasks. They might pass on the responsibility of tasks to the team, but they retain all decisions and control. Teams often refer to this as micromanagement.
On the extreme right of the delegation spectrum, managers do 100% delegation of tasks. They completely transfer responsibility and control to the team. But if not properly done, then the teams end up feeling unsupported.
As managers, we always end up being somewhere on this spectrum during delegation. Sometimes we end up being on the extremes and sometimes somewhere in between. What is important is to know the right place to land. And to be mindfully landing there - rather than accidentally.
The Delegation Decision
During day-to-day work as managers, we often make split-second decisions when trying to decide whether or not to delegate tasks.
Here are some typical decision points we use:
Importance: Does this task need my personal involvement or can I get help?
Competence: Do I have anyone in the team who is equipped to execute this task?
Time: How time-sensitive is this task? Will it take more or less time if I delegate it to someone in the team?
Risk: How high risk is this task? Is there an acceptable margin of error possible?
Based on these decision points, we decide to delegate a task. And generally, this decision of when to delegate is fairly easy to make. But it is equally important to focus on how to delegate as well.
It is critical to consider questions such as -
Is the task being allocated to the right person in the team?
Do they have the right skills for executing the task?
Are the team members well equipped for executing this task?
Would they want to work on this task or will it end up being a checkbox exercise?
As a manager, what role can I play in supporting them?
Otherwise, more often than not, we end up either being on the extreme left of the spectrum (as a micromanager) or oñ the right (completely hands-off).
The Secret Sauce of Effective Delegation
There are three most important factors to consider while delegating tasks.
I call this the SAS framework for constructive delegation (S - Skill, A - Aspiration, and S - Support).
While the three factors sound fairly straightforward, as managers we often end up underestimating their power. Each of these factors has its own importance in the delegation process. And each of them is critical for making sure a task is completed in the best way possible.
Let’s break that down now, shall we?
Factor 1 : Skills
Let’s take the simple example of a team that is organizing a fundraising event for their nonprofit. They would need to do many tasks. And each of these tasks would require specific skillsets.
Creating the session agenda would need strategic thinking. Creating marketing collaterals would need copywriting and design skills. Managing delegates would need organizational skills. You get the gist.
But sometimes a task might get allocated to a team member who is not the best suited for it. This could be due to pressing timelines or limited team size.
What happens next? Sub-par results. In fact, way more energy is spent in redoing the tasks.
This is a fairly common occurrence at work. As managers, we end up allocating tasks based on availability and circumstance rather than skillsets. And then end up spending a lot of time redoing/fixing the gaps.
Instead, consider this. Do you know which of your team members are good at problem-solving? Do you know which team members are great public speakers? Do you know which ones have ninja-level PowerPoint skills?
During delegation, aligning tasks with skillsets builds team confidence. That’s how effective leaders drive the greatest results from their teams.
Effective leaders observe and track the skillsets of their team members during the course of everyday work.
They observe and learn from their mistakes of incorrect allocations. And they quickly course-correct either by helping build the skills or tagging the better-suited team members to the tasks.
One way of doing this is by maintaining a Team Skills Tracker. You might be thinking you already do this mentally. But a tracker is especially helpful if you manage teams of more than 3 people.
The team skills tracker helps you with a quick overview of the level of skills available in the team. It also helps you map the improvement of individual team members over time. The Team Skills Tracker should help you answer the following -
How proficient is each team member in the required skills for this project? (Mapped periodically, observation-based)
How can I best allocate tasks based on the available skillsets in the team?
What are the critical gap areas where I can enable skill building for the team members?
If you are looking for something simple and ready-to-use, then you can get my free Team Skills Tracker template below.
Factor 2 : Aspiration
Let me ask you a simple question - how well do you know your team?
Do you know who wants to grow in a strategy vs. product vs. P&L role? Do you know who is keen to work in a particular sector? Do you know who wants to work on what type of projects? Don't worry, if you answered no to any of these questions.
Most often in our project hustles, we end up not connecting with our team members on a personal level. Especially in this digital work-from-home setting, it is even more difficult to build deep connections. Most of the time is spent chasing deadlines rather than connecting as humans.
And this is one of the biggest blunders we can do as managers - not understanding whether a task aligns with the aspirations of the team member. What happens next? The task ends up becoming a burden, a checkbox exercise. No wonder then that often the results end up being sub-par.
During delegation, aligning tasks with aspirations builds ownership in the team members. That’s how effective leaders drive greatest results from their teams.
Effective leaders genuinely care about the aspirations of their team members. They do periodic 1:1s conversations. They intentionally listen. And most importantly, they remember and use it while task allocation.
But, understanding team aspirations is not an overnight exercise. One of the simplest ways to do this is by doing (what I call) an Aspirations 1:1 meeting individually with each team member. At the very least, this should be done as a quarterly interaction. Use this time to ask these 3 simple questions -
What are their personal career aspirations?
How does their current work and tasks align with their aspirations?
Which parts of their current work do not align with personal aspirations?
Most importantly, take note of what you hear from your team members. And keep under consideration during future task delegation.
Factor 3 : Support
Mindful delegation is a superpower to empower teams. It involves the allocation of tasks while creating an environment to perform. Manager support is the bedrock of team performance and growth.
And it can be done by asking these three questions-
How equipped is the team member to handle this task? (Based on their individual skillset)
What support do I need to provide for the team member to complete the task?
How much control should I want to retain? (Eg. Do I stay informed of design/strategy changes? Should I seek daily/weekly progress updates?)
The right support can make or break the end result of the task. And it could mean different things based on the situation. Sometimes a team member might be over-allocated, and it might mean freeing up some of their time. Sometimes if a team member has a lower skill level, support might mean giving extra inputs, training, resources, or mentorship.
The support team members need can be identified by just asking - 'what do you need from me to get this done - while allocating the task.
The level of delegation (or control you should retain) depends on the context. Sometimes if the project is new and no one has the experience, then a lot more handholding might be needed. You might need to retain greater control. But if the team (or team members) have the necessary experience, then it is better to hand over (at least partial) control and ownership.
So, how do I get started?
That's a great question.
The next time you kick off a project or allocate tasks, follow this -
Identify the task you want to delegate.
Map the skillsets you need for the execution of the particular task
Identify the team members best suited for the task ( you can use my free team skills tracker template)
Confirm the support needed to get it done (ask 'what they would need')
Consciously communicate and transfer task ownership
Provide pre-decided inputs and support
Conduct periodic Aspirations 1:1s for reflections
Remember, each task delegation is an opportunity for learning and mentorship for your team.
Now pause and read that last sentence again.
Because that is the key to unlocking the true power of delegation.
That’s all for today - now, go shine!
Read Part 1 of this essay about the Power of Delegation for Leaders.
You can download my free skills tracker here.
Let me know what you think of this essay by leaving a comment or replying to this email. And if you can think of someone who would find this useful, then do make sure to share.
See you in your inbox next time!