Delegating is the highest leverage activity you can undertake in leader development – to move from doing to managing and then to leading. The faster this cycle is propelled the more opportunity is provided for personal and business growth. The quality of the delegating conversation determines the quality and quantity of the ultimate business results produced and the level of engagement felt by people within the business. 
Delegation is the lifeblood of productivity, quality, stakeholder satisfaction, growth and staff motivation and retention – therefore a very critical conversation for anyone who manages and leads. Yet most people who manage and lead, if they are really honest with themselves do not delegate with the level of effectiveness that they could because they do not devote the time and thought it truly requires.
Delegating is critical to move you from being a member of a team to managing the team and eventually to leading the team, the business unit and then the organisation. Managers and leaders assign tasks for someone else to complete. They must rely on the efforts of other individuals to achieve results and delegating makes this happen. Delegating requires a solid process, strong task focus backed with clarity in delivery of the message and the engagement of the people involved. It needs clarity and rigour in three things – the right:
- Mindset
- Person and level
- Conversation
For the conversations you have when delegating to others to be creating the right experiences for everyone then:
- Create the “space” to have these conversations at the right time
- Be absolutely “present” during them
- Make them completely “real”.
Courageous leaders devote the thinking, apply the process and challenge their involvement in the delegating conversations. Constantly challenge yourself to improve the way you engage in these conversations – they can be done so much better!
I use delegation to motivate and mentor my team