On a radio interview I heard, a management writer defined delegation as getting other people to do what you don’t want to do. Though tongue-in-cheek, he made his point.
Some managers regard delegation as a means of disposal, retaining the things they covet while distributing the leftovers to their subordinates. When workloads mount, they must assign some of the things they enjoy doing, often fiercely micromanaging those who have been given responsibility for them.
It’s a dismal proposition for the staff: either be assigned something that doesn’t matter to the boss and be left alone, or be given responsibility for something of value knowing that the boss will hover over you. No wonder morale under such managers runs low.
Leaders, however, see every task as an intrinsic component of a larger value proposition, no matter how trivial it may seem. They match the skills of subordinates to the organization’s activities to maximize the overall value that can be harvested by the organization. They are conductors of an orchestra, directors of a play. Their gift lies in the realization that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts, and their attention must then focus on developing high-performing teams.
Their staffs are energized, eager, and focused on contributing, being keenly aware that mastering abilities will create opportunities to expand their skills and take responsibility for ever-higher components within the organization’s value chain.
Managers delegate. Leaders delegate masterfully.
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