You’ve just started your new role. Perhaps you’re in management, or a department director?
It’s very easy when you begin to try and do a bit of everything when it comes to your role.
However, after a while you’ll start to realise there’s only a limited amount that you can do, however hard you work.
After all, there are only so many hours in a day, and as a result only so many tasks you can complete in your working hours.
If you have a team working under you, or alongside you, you’ll need to consider the steps to take in order to make your time more efficient.
We know that many people in roles like yours will be comfortable making the same decisions you’ve always made.
You believe you can do a better job yourself, or don’t want to risk losing control of a situation and giving authority to your co-workers in case of failure.
But before we give you our tips, what does delegating mean exactly?
What does the word delegate mean?
“To delegate” means to assign responsibility for doing something.
So what can this include in a company setting?
Delegating tasks to employees or members of your team is a practice implemented by efficient entrepreneurs, business owners, and managers, as it can help them focus on more important tasks that require their full attention.
So where should you start? Here are our banking and financial recruitment companies top tips!
Learn to let go
As mentioned before, we know how hard it can be to let go.
It’s may be that you feel so dedicated to completing your own work, that you may refuse to let others help.
On the other hand you might fear that your team may not have the ability to complete the workload themselves.
Initially, this could start with delegating small tasks, and then eventually working your way up.
Always include instructions
Afraid your team won’t be able to complete the tasks you’ve assigned?
A great way to begin getting members of staff integrated into new responsibilities is to include instructions.
This can be provided via written notes, Google Doc files, Dropbox, or even as a video.
Providing a set of instructions will not only smoothly integrate them into new tasks, but will also allow you to teach them your method of completing said task.
If you believe your way is the most efficient, why not teach it to others?
Use feedback to improve delegation
If your team has done a good job make sure to let them know, and if they’ve made mistakes or fallen short, give them some constructive feedback.
However, feedback works both way.
Ask your team their thoughts on how you’re delegating, this is a great opportunity to learn if you’re giving enough information, or giving the right people the right tasks.
Play to your teams’ strengths
When assigning tasks, consider working to your team members individual strengths and weaknesses.
As the leader of your team, you should have had a chance to learn what your staff excel at, including their current range of skills, or areas they could potentially excel at.
Remember to be consistent, if you assign the same type of tasks to one employee, that person will eventually become even better at that role.
Set clear goals, standards, and deadlines for the delegated task.
Then tell people to come back to you only if they have a problem.
Teach new skills
If someone on your team lacks the ability to perform a certain task, that doesn’t mean you can’t delegate to them in the long term.
Teaching skills is an investment.
Although it’ll take time out of your schedule to assign teach, in the long term you’ll be able to give that individual similar tasks in the future.
Therefore it’ll actually save you more time than you spent teaching.
Our final notes
We know that delegating may not always be easy, but the sooner you begin, the sooner you’ll start developing expertise in the area of delegating effectively.
Learn from your mistakes, use the tips provided by our banking and financial recruitment company, and you’ll begin leading a team productively.
Looking to start your hunt for the next member of your company?
Remember you can speak to our banking and financial services recruitment company about where you should start, and we can help recruit the best talent for your position.
