Delegating involves five distinct steps for you as the manager:
- Deciding on objectives
- Selecting the right mode
- Following up
- Following through
- Tracking the results
A lot of people start by delegating tasks, which can be very demoralizing. Everyone — regardless of their level of experience— needs to understand why they are being asked to perform a particular task. So the first step in delegating is to translate the task into a higher level objective. Objectives should be SMART:
- Specific
- Measureable
- Action oriented
- Realistic
- Time sensitive
So “generate 10,000 sales of Product X by March, 2002” is a SMART objective. “Demand generation” is not.
| Style | Best For | Do | Don’t |
| Loose | Seasoned people | Make it clear you are available to help | Provide detailed directions at the task level; for an experienced person this feels like (and is) micromanagement. |
| Moderate | Experienced people tackling new a new type of project
New hires who have “been there and done that” … just not on your team |
Ask to see a detailed work plan … that breaks the project down into bite-size chunks | Make the person show you that one task is finished to your satisfaction before they go on to the next. If you do, this will feel like micromanagement. |
| Tight | New Hires
People experiencing performance problems |
Be prepared to help the person prepare the work plan delineating all the tasks involved in a particular project | Let the person move on to the next task in the project without your say so.
Do the work yourself. |