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Assessing the Team

Once you’ve determined what you want to delegate, responsibilities or authority, or both, you must focus on the who. After all, it’s your backside on the line if you make a wrong choice.

First, resist the urge to delegate the majority of the work to the go-getter on the team. Delegating most of the work, or worse, everything, to one person is a recipe for trouble. It sets your go-getter up for burnout and possible resentment from other team members who may feel that you’re playing favorites.

Remember: Delegation is a group thing. And that means you have to share the opportunity and use it to develop your team as a whole. To do that, start with assessing each team member. Use performance reviews to objectively analyze team members’ strengths and weaknesses, their depth of expertise, and their interest. Also use performance reviews, along with other observations you and others have made, to determine employees’ development areas, such as what skills and experiences they need to help them grow.

After you’ve collected your input, list out the qualifications for each employee, ranging from the technical to the interpersonal, and compare them with the qualifications required for the responsibilities or authority you plan to delegate. The employee who has the most matched qualifications is likely to be your best choice.

This type of assessment may seem like a lot of work, but it is an investment that will pay off in the long run.