Last week we looked at selecting individuals to whom we are going to delegate to the task itself.  This week we are going to look at clearly stating our objectives. This is a massive opportunity to really mess things up, if we don’t clearly explain things then there is a good chance that they either won't understand or that there is misunderstanding exactly what it is they are supposed to do.  We do this in the form of a brief clearly stating our expectations.

When we state our objectives we are explaining exactly what task is and how it should be done, we call this the brief. Some key things to remember in the brief are:

Tell them What it is they are supposed to be doing.

Tell them Why it is important.  When we are doing this ensure we focus on the benefits over the features.  A wise man once told me “Benefits tell & features sell”.  We are much more likely to get their buy-in if we sell it to them.

We must ensure they know Where we expect the task to be conducted.

They must clearly know When it is to be completed.  In other words, clear time scales involved.

And finally, we must ensure they know How to do the task.  Here we may go into coaching or training mode to ensure that knowledge and understanding are present to successfully complete the task.

Ensuring we give a clear brief on what it is we expect will always ensure a successful delegation.  Grey and subjective briefs will ensure misunderstanding which is something we want to avoid at all costs.

Next week we are going to look at stage 3, an appropriate level of monitoring.

Ralph Moody is the founder of Target Training and specialises in trainer and management development.  You can read more about him here.  You can read more about the management courses Ralph delivers training on including the prestigious Foundation Management Development Programme (FMDP) here.