Delegation is the assignment of any responsibility or authority to another person to carry out specific activities. It is one of the core concepts of management leadership. A leader must empower people to assume increasing responsibility. This enhances organizational capacity. Effective delegation increases employee motivation and engagement. Before delegating a task to an employee, employee readiness should be assessed. There are potentially four scenarios of employee readiness for a given task, which a leader may face. In each case the leader must delegate as appropriate to the context. However, at every step you should be able to use English conversation skills to demonstrate clearly.
Clear Delegation with Use of English Conversation Skills
In the first instance, the employee has a low level of readiness for the task. He feels insecure about his ability. This may be due to a number of reasons such as having been unsuccessful when he previously attempted a similar task or having never done it before. In addition, he doesn’t have the requisite skills. In such a case, the leader has to delegate in a very “controlling or directive” way. He must provide clear “how to do” instructions and maintain a close contact with the employee as he conducts the task. In this case it is necessary to have a detailed discussion about the task with the employee. The leader should also take periodic reviews and also boost the confidence of the employee. English conversation skills play an important role here as English is widely spoken in workplaces today.
Train Your Employee
Moving on, this same employee may begin to gain in confidence even as the skill required for the task is not yet at par. The leader’s style remains controlling but the communication changes from directive to encouraging. It is important to note the leader must not stray away from the action. The low skill of the employee may negatively impact outcome unless the leader keeps a close and watchful eye. The leader also should provide training to the employee. For example if the employee’s English speaking skills is not up to the mark, spoken English training should be provided. It is beneficial to learn English, as it is a global language.
Provide Support
The third stage of readiness is tricky. In this case, the employee has actually attained a certain level of ability. His skill may be at, or reasonably close, to the desired level. However, he is nervous taking on independent responsibility. He needs a sense of assurance that help is at hand when needed. He may make mistakes and needs to know he will be supported when needed. The leader should always be there to provide the needed support and should try to boost the confidence of the employee.
Be Clear About Your Expectations
Finally, if the employee is confident and is skilled for the task, then it is simply a matter of framing the “contract”. The leader and the doer must be clear about expectations. They must agree on the rules of the game. These may include elements like reports and updates, milestones indicating progress and definition of success.
Thus, delegating simply on the basis of the rulebook i.e. role, title or nature of task should be avoided. Effective delegators gauge task based readiness level of each individual and adjust their style accordingly. This minimizes the risk of not achieving results and leads to high employee satisfaction with the job. Before delegating a task to an employee, a leader should have a detailed discussion about the task with the employee. Communication and English conversation skills play a vital role.
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