Page 174 - Becoming a Successful Manager

Delegating Effectively and Empowering Employees to Take Risks 165

Be a good authority fi gure to your employees by extending both
guidance and support while you give them direction and latitude.

Delegate Effectively

Help your employees think through options, and encourage them
to trust themselves. To delegate effectively, you must fi rst realize
that you’re not just doling out work to employees and telling them
to complete it. You’re placing employees in charge of a project
and giving them the responsibility for achieving an objective that
you consider important. They need to understand and accept this
premise before they can take on added responsibility. When you
delegate, you share responsibility for outcomes. Help your employ-

ees understand the significance of their central roles and of your
supporting role. You will help, and they will perform; you will
coach, and they will complete.
Second, tell employees to whom you delegate what you want
accomplished, and then invite them to decide how to do it.
Although their way of proceeding may differ from your approach,
the difference is irrelevant as long as they accomplish what you
want in a timely manner. By allowing employees to come up with
their own solutions or approaches, you’re in effect saying, “It’s
your responsibility; you own it, and I trust you to do the quality
job I know you are capable of performing.”
If it’s appropriate, ask the employee to create a plan for doing the
project. Developing a plan often helps people clarify their purpose
and even identify potential trouble spots before they start. That
will further tip the balance toward success. The more the employee
knows in advance, the better the performance will be.
Finally, establish follow-up checkpoints. In these meetings, you
ascertain how the project is progressing, discuss any aspects of the