How to delegate responsibilities as a manager

Knowing how to delegate work among your team members is an essential part of being a manager. Otherwise, a few weeks down the road, you will realize that you are the one doing all the work, and that is not a good scenario for the business. Effective delegation is a great organizational skill for your resume as a manager.

As the manager, if you are the only member of your team who knows how to complete a certain task from start to finish, you will bottleneck the entire team. It is imperative that you empower your team members with the knowledge to hold down more responsibility in order for the business to grow and succeed.

Here are some great strategies you can try to delegate work to your team members:

Stop doing everything by yourself

The one thing that hinders effective delegation the most is the manager’s inability to let go of things. Most managers like to do everything by themselves. When you delegate tasks among team members, it helps them be more efficient as a group and explore new knowledge. You also get to encourage and challenge your team members when you delegate tasks among them. Besides, handing out work among team members will also help you have better time management during your projects.

Be clear about what needs to be done

Invest time in really finding out what you want your team to accomplish. Most of the time, task delegation goes off track because the manager does not have a clear idea about what must be done. Before you start handing out responsibility, think the project through. Ensure that your team member understands your expectations of them and the deadlines when you ask them to perform a task.

Plan everything

Risk assessment is important when you want your team to succeed with a project. Use your strategic thinking skills to forecast any twists and turns the task will face in the future. Do you see any financial risks on the horizon? Or do you fear that the team will encounter any pitfalls? When you plan ahead, you can produce strategies to deal with potential risks.

Ask yourself. “Can they handle the job?”

Don’t create anxiety among your team members by giving them tasks that they cannot possibly manage. Whenever you delegate tasks among your employees, you must equip them with the tools, information, and knowledge they need to complete them. A weekly coaching session or monthly one-on-one meeting with each of your team members will let you know everything you need to know about their skill levels and the troubles they face at work.

Be ready with the questions

Don’t be the manager who tells an employee to get something done and never talks to them again for the week. Understand that employees may sometimes be too intimidated to come to you for the help they need. Whatever the management style you use, asking questions is very important. The next time you hand out tasks, try some of these questions:

• Do you have any questions about the project?
• Is there anything unclear?
• Do you see any problems with the task?
• Are you capable of taking this task on right now?