Effective leadership is truly a multifaceted concept. One critical aspect of successful leadership that probably is not spoken about enough is the art of delegation. Delegation is often regarded as the cornerstone of success for effective management as it maximises the organisational capacity and ensures time – a scarce asset – is utilised best. Mastering the skill can make all the difference in the leader's ability to bring success to the entire team. In this blog, we will talk about the importance of delegation in leadership. We will also bring forth the views of Ajay Srinivasan, a seasoned leader with tenures in ICICI Prudential, Prudential HK and Birla Group on this matter in his blog.
How important is delegation in leadership?
Delegation is extremely vital in leadership for several reasons. It allows the leader to leverage the team's skills and expertise in bringing about innovative solutions and better outcomes. Delegation impacts the team members by offering them the opportunity to grow professionally and take ownership of their tasks. It helps in the development of new skills.
Delegation also has a big role to play in preventing the leaders from becoming overwhelmed with tasks. They can focus on the high-priority tasks while the team members take care of all the other tasks. The importance of delegation has also been highlighted by Ajay Srinivasan, one of the experienced leaders in the world of financial services in India and Asia. He has mentioned that a leader can only be called a good leader if he is well-versed in the concept of delegation.
Some of the major benefits of delegation include:
Enhanced productivity: Delegation helps distribute tasks efficiently, allowing more tasks to be accomplished within a shorter timespan.
Skill development: With proper delegation skills, the members get the opportunity to learn and grow through various new challenges.
Improved morale: Empowered employees remain more engaged and motivated in whatever they do. This paves the way for business success.
Time for strategic thinking: With proper delegation, leaders can focus on strategic thinking and high-priority tasks while the other members of the team can take care of other tasks.
Why does delegation not happen?
Often, we see leaders taking the responsibility of multiple tasks on their own shoulders instead of delegating them. This causes them to get easily overwhelmed, which is not a sign of good leadership.
According to Ajay Srinivasan News, there can be multiple reasons for leaders failing to delegate their tasks. Let us take a look at some of those reasons highlighted in his recent blog:
“Control anxiety” or the belief that “If I don't do it, it won't be right.” Part of this problem is because of personality, and part of it is because what's “right” isn't clearly articulated.
The manager's identity lock-in. People who rose by being the best doers struggle to become the best enablers.
A sense of false efficiency, the belief that it is quicker to do it yourself. But the “one quick fix” repeated 50 times becomes a tax on the organisation.
Poor context setting and support systems. Telling a team member to “own it” without giving context, constraints, or decision rights leads to poor execution. The result is often rework, when these managers say, “See, delegation doesn't work.”
What are the major implications of not delegating tasks?
Failure to delegate can cause the leader to experience burnout. It may result in demotivated teams and stop opportunities for growth. The overall productivity of the company may decrease. So, delegation in leadership should not be treated as an option. It should be regarded as a vital skill for success. Leaders who master the art of delegation can tap into new opportunities and foster overall growth. It can also help drive organisations towards excellence.
What's the solution?
Ajay Srinivasan has also talked about a few ways in which managers can easily master the art of delegation:
Start with clear communication. Articulate the objective, non-negotiables, constraints, deadlines, and the metrics that signal the job is successfully done. Be clear on decision rights.
Calibrate risk. For low-risk items, delegate fully with check-ins only if needed. For medium risk, use “trust but verify”. For high-risk items, co-create the plan, then review outputs at key milestones.
Build a review cadence. Use the same questions each time: What's the objective? What's the current status versus plan? Where do you need help?
Remain a coach, don't become a player. When work misses the mark, resist taking it over. Ask questions that help build capability.
Celebrate wins. Publicly credit the owner, yet continue to refine the playbook. Build the learnings into the system so the next person starts stronger.
To End With:
So, like Ajay Srinivasan has mentioned, delegation is no longer an option for a successful leader. Instead, it is mandatory for leaders and managers in leadership positions to learn and master this. Until and unless the managers learn to delegate, they will not be able to drive growth and development for the teams working under them.
