“Be selfish. Don’t think about anyone else. If you could delegate more effectively, what would be the major benefit, to you, as a manager?” I asked.
The class was quick. We charted their responses on the board. I drew a careful red line across the page and asked the second question.
“And for your team member, what would be the major benefit for your team member if you were able to delegate more effectively?”
Again, the class responded and we filled the rest of the page thinking about the team member. I stood back. The top was all about the manager, the bottom was all about the team member. And the themes were distinctly different.
“What is the major theme when you think about yourself?” I continued.
“Time,” the class replied. They had twenty responses, but they were all connected to time.
“Indeed, delegation is your most powerful time management tool.” I stopped and surveyed the faces as I pointed to the bottom of the chart. “And what is the theme, here? When you focus on the team member, is this about time?”
Heads were shaking, eyes squinting, some sat back. “It all has to do with learning, self-confidence, growth and recognition,” they finally replied.
“Indeed, as a manager, you think about delegation as a time management tool. In fact, delegation is your most powerful people development tool.“
Exactly. Delegation is a didactic tool that managers can use to teach and benchmark any number of important concepts to employees. It’s not that it has a dual purpose. If you’re looking at it that way then you’re probably not helping your employees become better. If you are always looking for ways to teach, test, or challenge them (through delegating tasks and responsibilities) then their development is at the forefront of your thinking. The manager has to decide what they can handle and when but he must always be teaching. Delegation is the primary tool for the manager to teach with.
Great post, Tom. Thanks for sharing a really important point.