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Just listened to original basic intro to delegation. M&M say to delegate at least once a month to each direct at a minimum. Does it matter how long the projects are? For example, if I delegate a 9 month project to my direct today, can I delegate a NEW project/responsibility next month even though she is one month into the one I just delegated?
Michael
Unfortunately, it depends
Michael,
You probably considered this when you delegate the 9 month task, but it would be important to consider the level of effort required for the particular task.
-- Is it an incremental task that requires a little bit of effort each week/month? An example would be the Review prep guidance -- 30 minutes a week for three months prior to the review. If that's the case, then I think you could delegate again the next month.
-- Alternatively, it may be much larger in scope -- develop a marketing plan for a product launch. That may require a constant level of effort -- 10 to 20% out of each work week.
As you might have guess, the O3 are a perfect vehicle for determining where they are on their project and if they are ready for additional delegation. One of the key reasons to delegation is to develop your directs. Yes, we may want to challenge them with difficult "stretch goals", but they should be achievable -- with the right support. If they are ready for more, then give them more. If they look like they are struggling, they may need a little coaching and/or moral support.
Lastly, you may be able to delegate one large task and a couple of smaller ones to "even up the workload" if appropriate.
Good luck with the delegation!
Bill
Balancing out delgations
Bill,
Thanks for the guidance regarding delegation. Makes perfect sense and honestly I had not thought of it in the way you described. The particular project I am delegating will require very low level but weekly to monthly effort for about 6-7 months. Within that window, I believe I can delegate more. However the last two months are intense efforts to pull everything together into a final business plan and I can back off then.
Michael