The art of delegating
Eine Kollegin oder ein Kollege kann Ihnen sicher helfen, ein zu großes Arbeitspensum zu bewältigen. Aufgaben sollten aber nicht einfach auf andere abgewälzt, sondern mit Bedacht delegiert werden. Sieben nützliche Tipps, wie das geschieht, finden Sie hier.
“If I do it myself, it’ll be far easier/ faster/cheaper/better...” Do you recognize yourself in these words? Then you may be guilty of hoarding tasks when you could be delegating them. Delegating work is a huge responsibility. And it’s not something that only leaders need to be able to do well. Anyone who works in a team will probably need to ask a colleague to take on a task at some point. A colleague might need to cover for you while you are on holiday or to stand in for you at a meeting. If you job-share, you will definitely need to delegate tasks. Whatever the situation, it’s important to create the best conditions for someone else to carry out a task successfully.
Delegating is less daunting if you do the preparatory work. We look here at the techniques and language you will need to delegate with clarity and style.
1. Giving reasons
First, explain to the other person why you are delegating a task to them. For example, do you need someone to cover for you temporarily? Or are you delegating something in its entirety? Whatever the case, use language that is appropriate to your position in the organization. A manager can talk about wanting someone to take on more responsibility, but job-sharers will probably need to give more practical reasons for assigning a task to one of their colleagues.
2. Checking the timing
It’s important to check whether your colleagues or team members have the capacity to take on more work. A manager can also suggest freeing up time for a task if it has priority. Be prepared to negotiate on the timing.