No, you do not need to learn how to delegate to your team, you need to learn how to form the right team.
Many aspiring managers worry too much about their delegation “style”. They worry about the proper way to talk and how to write instructions to their team, but when asked about how the team was formed, there is little concern. As young managers we tend to think that project management is about following the right process, and that good methodology will ensure success.
My advice is that forming the team, the people, is first always. Even if the team is given to you. If the team has the wrong people, it is your duty to detect that and stop the project until the right team is in place. In other words, no matter how you delegate, if you have the wrong person in the other side, nothing will work. And, in the other hand, if you have the best people behind you, you will need to do little delegation, if any. But either way, as a leader, you need to focus your efforts on the people.
Do you think that Werner Von Braun grew from being an intern to leading 500K people at NASA, because of the way he delegates to his team? He probably never saw 90% of those 500K people he lead.
I worked for Amazon. Do you think Jeff Bezos became the richest man in the world by expert delegating? The only text in the emails I got from him was this: “??”. He is famous for that. And, I have not heard good things from Steve Job’s delegation style either…
No, they are not experts at delegating . They don’t need to. They have the ability of finding the best people in the world for each task, and then they just get out of their way. Von Braun, Bezos, they are where they are because of the mighty powerful pyramid of people under them.
So, forget about your delegation “style,” and become a leader today by understanding that you are the bottleneck of your projects, of your career. It is only how many, and how effective are the people under you that sets your limits. Do worry about:
- Find the people with the best experience and credentials.
- Motivate them: Earn their trust, make them buy your dream, make them feel that they are critical for the mission.
- Make sure they are good leaders too, as you will only grow as fast as the leaders under you.
Finally, realize that it will take years of experience and training. If you can find the right people, motivate them, and help them succeed, then your delegation style is not important.
