Time Management - Marc Mancini

How to Delegate Effectively 77
might serve as clues to those things that they’ve never done but
for which they might have a hidden aptitude. The better you are
at assessing the talents of those you manage—or of colleagues—the
more successful you’ll be at delegating.
4. Explain the assignment. Imagine trying to bake something
with only half the recipe. You’re virtually doomed to failure. And
failure to lay out a careful and complete explanation of any task
represents a sure recipe for disaster. Sit down with the person to
whom you’ve delegated and walk through your flowchart’s
steps. Encourage questions. (A monologue rarely achieves
clear communication.)
5. Explain the benefits. Everyone is concerned with the
WIIFM—the What’s in It for Me?—before buying something or
buying into something. If you want to defuse resistance to the
task you’re delegating (and the it’s-not-my-job syndrome),
make liberal use of benefits
language.
6. Specify your standards.
Quality and accountability
are two concepts that
should guide all of your
delegating. As when you
create goals, you must
convince the person to
whom you delegate that
you hold high expectations.
Since you’re sharing
responsibility with him or
her, you expect the best
effort. Until his or her performance
meets your standards,
the task will remain
incomplete.
Features and
Benefits
The following axiom is
basic to almost all sales: don’t sell the
features, sell the benefits. It applies to
delegation, too. Don’t just outline the
aspects of a task without giving reasons
that motivate.
Sure, maybe you have the authority
to delegate the task, but selling it
through the benefits to the person
means that he or she is likely to consider
it less an imposition and more
an opportunity. And any smart manager
knows the difference that makes
in motivation and performance.
7. Discuss deadlines. Has anyone ever given you a job to do
without a completion date? Did it somehow feel less important?