In our last newsletters, we have looked into micro and macro management as two extreme management styles which, in general, have adverse effects on people and the organization. One of their key differences is the extent to which the manager delegates authority to his team members.
Delegation is the assignment of responsibility and/or authority to another person, normally from a manager to a subordinate, to carry out specific activities. In essence, delegation is all about entrusting a subordinate to carry out part of the manager’s job. The extent of delegation must be clearly stated.
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Delegation has three elements: responsibility, authority and accountability. 
> When a manager delegates, she/he assigns a person the duty of executing a task or to take a decision. She/he, therefore, creates a responsibility.
> The assignment of responsibility is accompanied by a description of: the task, the expected result, the deadline, all relevant parameters, specifications and interfaces.
> However, in order to execute the task, responsibility must be accompanied by the respective authority.
> Authority is the right to give orders further down in the organizational hierarchy and to take decisions. Without authority, it may not be possible to fulfill the assignment.
> Authority usually stems from one’s positioning on the organizational chart.
> Authority delegated in order to fulfill a delegated responsibility may also give a person command across the o
> Delegating responsibility without ensuring adequate authority leads to confusion and misunderstandings in the organization, dissatisfaction of the assigned employee and inefficiency with respect to the execution of the assignment.
> Whereas the manager is free to pass down some responsibility and authority, he/she remains accountable for the outcome of the delegated work.
> Accountability means being liable for the end result. It arises from responsibility.
> No matter how much and far delegation goes into the organizational structure, the manager is still accountable for the final result.
> Even though his/her subordinates are responsible for their own part of the work, the manager is accountable for the result as a whole and further more: for his/her choice of people to delegate to, for the quality of his/her guidance, for the frequency of his/her reviews, for the effectiveness of his/her problem solving.
> On one hand, the manager – a single person - is not in a position to do everything by her/himself, and she/he is not expected to do so.
> Therefore, she/he empowers her/his subordinates to execute tasks and make decisions, acting on her/his behalf.
> This action entails shifting of the decision-making authority to lower organizational levels.
> Delegation improves the efficiency and effectiveness of the organization and saves time and money.
>> It helps people build skills and motivates them.
>> It allows the manager more time to focus on non-routine, managerial issues.
No – or lack of - delegation is often a characteristic of micro-management.
The manager does not trust his subordinates and is reluctant to delegate:
> responsibility, for the fear of failure
or
> authority, just in case people misuse it.
In the over-delegation scenario, featured by macro-managers, the manager may give away too many of her/his responsibilities and may look incompetent or indifferent to her/his staff. She/he is in danger of losing their respect.
Concluding, in order to achieve delegation, the manager needs to:
> Assign activities or tasks.
The clearer the description of the assignment, the definition of the end result and the time schedule, the better.
> The assignment of responsibility is accompanied by a description of: the task, the expected result, the deadline, all relevant parameters, specifications and interfaces.
> However, in order to execute the task, responsibility must be accompanied by the respective authority.
> Authority is the right to give orders further down in the organizational hierarchy and to take decisions. Without authority, it may not be possible to fulfill the assignment.
> Authority usually stems from one’s positioning on the organizational chart.
> Authority delegated in order to fulfill a delegated responsibility may also give a person command across the o
rganizational structure (based on a predefined scope).
> Delegating responsibility without ensuring adequate authority leads to confusion and misunderstandings in the organization, dissatisfaction of the assigned employee and inefficiency with respect to the execution of the assignment.
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Ultimate responsibility, or accountability, cannot be delegated. > Whereas the manager is free to pass down some responsibility and authority, he/she remains accountable for the outcome of the delegated work.
> Accountability means being liable for the end result. It arises from responsibility.
> No matter how much and far delegation goes into the organizational structure, the manager is still accountable for the final result.
> Even though his/her subordinates are responsible for their own part of the work, the manager is accountable for the result as a whole and further more: for his/her choice of people to delegate to, for the quality of his/her guidance, for the frequency of his/her reviews, for the effectiveness of his/her problem solving.
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Delegation is good! > On one hand, the manager – a single person - is not in a position to do everything by her/himself, and she/he is not expected to do so.
> Therefore, she/he empowers her/his subordinates to execute tasks and make decisions, acting on her/his behalf.
> This action entails shifting of the decision-making authority to lower organizational levels.
> Delegation improves the efficiency and effectiveness of the organization and saves time and money.
>> It helps people build skills and motivates them.
>> It allows the manager more time to focus on non-routine, managerial issues.
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No – or lack of - delegation is often a characteristic of micro-management.
The manager does not trust his subordinates and is reluctant to delegate:
> responsibility, for the fear of failure
or
> authority, just in case people misuse it.
In the over-delegation scenario, featured by macro-managers, the manager may give away too many of her/his responsibilities and may look incompetent or indifferent to her/his staff. She/he is in danger of losing their respect.
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Concluding, in order to achieve delegation, the manager needs to:
> Assign activities or tasks.
The clearer the description of the assignment, the definition of the end result and the time schedule, the better.
> Grant authority.
The authority granted should be relevant to the task and sufficient to facilitate its completion.
> Create responsibility. Link the assignment with the requirement to deliver it and
The authority granted should be relevant to the task and sufficient to facilitate its completion.
> Create responsibility. Link the assignment with the requirement to deliver it and
own the result.
> Show accountability.
Accept: overall ownership, praise or blame for the end result and related decisions made.
Ideally, a role or job/post is not only defined by the requisite Expertise (competences, competencies and experience) and Workload (i.e., time-table and level of whole or partial process workload) but also by the requisite Authority and Responsibility for carrying out optimally the respective (whole or partial) process.
> Only a balanced RAEW can ensure the possibility of optimal process execution.
> A holistic Job Description must, therefore, define the whole RAEW and the respective fixed and variable emoluments including any applicable benefits.
> In practice, effective delegation requires that the manager is well aware of the ability of his/her subordinates and makes his/her choice depending on the knowledge, experience, ability and workload of his/her staff.
> The manager needs to provide guidance and obtain frequent feedback. At the end of the day, he needs to assess the outcome and share the lessons learned.
10.6.2016
> Show accountability.
Accept: overall ownership, praise or blame for the end result and related decisions made.
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RAEW and Job DescriptionIdeally, a role or job/post is not only defined by the requisite Expertise (competences, competencies and experience) and Workload (i.e., time-table and level of whole or partial process workload) but also by the requisite Authority and Responsibility for carrying out optimally the respective (whole or partial) process.
> Only a balanced RAEW can ensure the possibility of optimal process execution.
> A holistic Job Description must, therefore, define the whole RAEW and the respective fixed and variable emoluments including any applicable benefits.
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> In practice, effective delegation requires that the manager is well aware of the ability of his/her subordinates and makes his/her choice depending on the knowledge, experience, ability and workload of his/her staff.
> The manager needs to provide guidance and obtain frequent feedback. At the end of the day, he needs to assess the outcome and share the lessons learned.
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Remember: Delegation, in the right dose and with the proper method, is yet one more trait of the good manager.10.6.2016