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.