Delegation and co-ordination
Contents
We are all angels with one wing, it is only when we cling to one another that we can truly fly
Basics of Delegation
Delegation is necessary because you cannot do all jobs yourself. Delegation does not mean shirking your responsibilities or palming off your work. It is the wise use of the assests of team members to ensure maximum benefit to the organization.As an educational manager, delegation allows you to make the best use of your time and skills, and it helps other people in the team grow and develop to reach their full potential in the organization.
Pre-delegation process
Before work is actually delegated, it is necessary to find if it is worth delegating.
| Choose an upcoming event in your institution where you would want to delegate responsibilites.Ask yourself these questions.
1.Is there someone in my team, who given the necessary information and opportunity, will be able to complete the task? This will help you decide if the task is fit to be delegated or is it something you need to do yourself. 2.Does the task provide an opportunity to nurture the skills of your team members? 3.Is this a task that will recur, in a similar form, in the future? 4.Do you have enough time to delegate the job effectively? Time must be available for adequate training, for clarification, for checking progress, and for revision of work if necessary. 5.Is this a task that should be delegated? (If as a Principal of a school, you have to make a new appointment, I wonder if the task can be delegated. However arranging an inhouse elocution competition , definitely is a task to be delegated.) If most of the answers are Yes, then it could well be worth delegating this job. Carry out the above exercise and decide on a task to be delegated before you go to the next phase.
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Delegation Process
Finding the right person to delegate a task is most vital. A good way would be to consider the following assets of the team members: Experience, knowledge and skills of the individual, resources you can offer to support the person, time available to train if necessary, committment displayed by the person in the past, interests in the task, work style of the individual, present availabilty and workload of the person, expectations of the person. You may not find someone ideal fulfilling every expectation of yours, but settle for the most viable option. In case the task involves interacting with people , be mindful of the person's rapport with others. In case it is a task that means interacting with computers, be aware of the tech-savviness of the person.If you find difficulty you can use the tool shown below.
| Team member | Expertise | Interest in task | Task and Workstyle compatability | Status of present Workload |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aaron | very good | average | well matched | quite free |
| Bessie | poor | average | poorly matched | quite free |
| Cindy | very good | high | perfect match | a bit busy |
In the above example, you can keep adding columns under different heads. It is seen that Cindy is the best choice to delegate the task to, that is if her present workload is taken care of. Now that you have chosen the person, comes the actual delegation time. Be mindful of some principles. Read through the following case study and see if you can identify these principles.
Principles of good delegation
| Mr. Johnson is the Principal of a High School. The school is preparing to host an inter-state teachers' conference. Brochures have to be prepared. Mr Johnson has delegated the task to Ms. Suzie and Ms. Karen.This is the conversation that has occured. Mr. Johnson: Good morning ladies. We need to prepare a good brochure that will explain details of our forthcoming conference. Remember it should be attractive enough to have good participation. We need the brochures by the end of next week, so the designing ought to be done in the next couple of days. |
What features of good delegation did you notice in the above conversation?
Match your observations with the Principles listed below:
1.Clearly state the desired outcome
2. Clarify all limitations, restraints and conditions.
3. When you delegate, check on the work from time to time.
4.Even if you delegate, you still remain accountable.
5. Answer queries. Provide support to the task.
6.Motivate
7. Make adjustments in schedules if required.
Above all, remember.... the task may not be done the way you do it. Everyone works differently. Fine tuning is always possible. Review work submitted and revise if necessary.
| Delegate a task to one or more members of your team bearing in mind the principles of good delegation. Reflect over the outcome. Ask your team members to help you evaluate your own delegation skills. |
| Traits displayed | Agree (3 points) | Unsure (2 points) | Disagree (1 point) |
|---|---|---|---|
| The desired outcome was clear while the task was delegated | |||
| Adequate resources were supplied | |||
| Doubts were clarified | |||
| Necessary supervision was done before the task was completed | |||
| Motivation was provided. | |||
| Adjustments were made to ensure that the task was well executed. |
If you score below 7 points it means you have delegated poorly. A score between 7 and 14 indicates average skills of delegation. Scores above 14 mean you are quite good at delegating.
