"Leadership Matters"
— A Management Newsletter —
Growing People — Big Jobs for Big Results
Probably, part of the reason you became a
manager is that you are a good problem solver. In fact, you probably
get satisfaction out of solving problems, especially the difficult
ones others bring to you.
Now a manager, your focus is on results for your unit, requiring
you, paradoxically, to let others do the work — including solving
many tactical and operational problems you are good at solving. As
one manager confessed after learning how to delegate, "I am a
recovering answer giver." So how can you assign
problem-solving to others when you have spent your career doing it
yourself?
The Nature of BIG Jobs
The first hurdle of becoming an effective delegator is believing
that others can and will take
responsibility for solving significant problems or
challenges. In order for people to truly accept responsibility,
managers must provide them the opportunity to take it. That means
managers must let go of the authority, believing that their
employees can take on more than small jobs or tasks. Managers must
both believe in and be able to create BIG jobs.
Big jobs give managers leverage for achieving the two things
required of them: developing people and achieving greater results.
The inveterate problem solver, where all problems come to him or
her, is handicapped from achieving either.
Big jobs call for the accomplishment of important outcomes.
Significant problems or challenges are inherent in big jobs. While
task-driven work tends to be in constrained problem spaces, big,
outcome-based work occurs in open-ended situations that call for
problem identification, problem solving and decision.
For example, a manager of a sales unit was frustrated that he had
little time to think about the larger issues of the business, mostly
because he spent so much time reviewing and approving contracts
drafted by subordinates. All customer contracts came through him
because he retained the authority for signing off on accuracy; he
had set himself up for taking back the work others could be doing.
Instead of assigning a big job, the manager had assigned a task:
without actually saying so, he had reduced the work to, "Develop a
first draft of the contract." Problems or challenges that might
arise would inevitably revert back to the number one problem solver.
The real problem was that he had not assigned a big job. Small jobs
keep people small.
"The manager MUST accept the
fact that the people doing the work will become the principal
problem solvers."
Assigning Big Jobs
Assigning accountability effectively is about
communicating clear expectations for what is to be accomplished.
That is, the manager must figure out (through planning) what
outcomes are necessary for success. While managers cannot make
anyone take responsibility, they can assign accountabilities —
clear, concrete expectations of measurable results.
In the case of the sales manager "approving" his subordinates'
contracts, he instead could have assigned BIGGER jobs. He might have
transformed the small tasks into a more substantial outcome such as,
"Complete all contracts, ensuring that the format, pricing and
specifications for each sales agreement are accurate and meet all
company guidelines before submission." The manager has now assigned
an accountability for an outcome, setting an expectation that allows
the employee to take responsibility for the results.
In addition to assigning accountability, the
manager must also delegate authority and
allocate necessary resources. In the sales manager example,
he must clarify what the subordinate is expected to decide when
doing the work. If this authority is not delegated, when judgments
must be made the employee will likely bring the work back to the
manager for approval. The manager MUST accept the fact that the
people doing the work will become the principal problem solvers.
"Delegating," observed restaurateur Timothy Firnstahl, "means
letting others become the experts and hence the best."1
Making Sure They Get Results
Big, open-ended jobs should not dictate how things are to be done,
but rather should be very clear and specific about what is
to be accomplished. This clarity provides focus to
those doing the work, and it indicates what should be measured to
monitor progress. Thus, assigning big jobs is part of, not isolated
from, the managerial planning process.
And that is the point: your time is best used to do the hard work of
planning, determining clear necessary outcomes to be assigned and
identifying potential barriers or opportunities. Making BIG jobs —
the kind that grow people — means allowing them to solve key
problems along the way. Letting them become "the best" allows you to
focus on things like contingency planning, industry trends,
competitor activity, technology advances, regulatory environments
and seeking future opportunities. Your real job as
a manager.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
1 Firnstahl, T. (1986,
Sept-Oct). "Letting Go," Harvard Business Review.
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