Can't delegate! Help me please!?

Question

I'm a VP Marketing for a Corporation (name not necessary).

I always have had issues with delegating work to my team members. How do I trust that they will do the work exactly how I want it to be done without me having to interfere? Can I trust them and leave everything on them after the initial meetings? We set deadlines and progress reports and all but sometimes I don't hear from my team members for a couple of weeks working on a one year project. If I bother them too much, they will hate me and I don't want to be one of those bosses.

I am a very casual and a relaxed guy but when it comes to delegating work to others, I just fail miserably. I don't know how to do that. It is an art that I suck at.

Even when I let it go and leave it to my team, I still have it in the back of my mind. However they perform will affect my position among the Upper Management.

Another thing is that I cannot talk to my secretary. She expects me to talk to her all the time and open up and what not. I'm introvert and don't talk about my feelings and stuff. I don't know how to communicate with her. She is amazing at her work. But I see her all day long, everyday and I run out of conversations aside from the greetings and senseless humour. I don't want to ignore her either.

My wife thinks I'm just being too weird about this whole thing.

Any pointers would be helpful. Thanks.

Answer 1

Delegate that which is a priority and do not be afraid to jump in yourself. An effective manager is one that is not afraid to work and can intricately tell you what the work is about and show another.

Yet, being you are the boss, you have a right to intervene and ask questions, and can do so, without being overbearing.

If you keep those delegated tasks in the back of your mind, do not be scared to share your ideas with your team when you ask for progress. Ask for their input as well, as it is their effort too. Genuinely praise efforts and hard work in your team, as no one wants to constantly hear what they are doing wrong, and most will react the best with positive reinforcement. I know I do. If you tell me what I am doing right, I will bust my rear to do it even better the next time.

Sounds as if you are thinking their abilities or inabilities is a reflection directly on you. In a way, it is, and it isn't. Your problems it seems are fear based, as to what upper management will think about your leadership ability. You have got to get beyond that.

A leader is only as good as their entire team. There is no letter "I" in the word team.

As for talking with the secretary on a deep level, it really is not necessary. Simply genuinely praise her for what she does well and do not worry about the rest especially if she does her job well. Wishing for you to "open up" is simply a potential for office gossip down the road. Be courteous but have professional boundaries!

You can do it. YOU simply have to believe YOU can.

Good Luck!

Answer 2

Well, first of all, let me just say that, as an Administrative Assistant myself, it's entirely not necessary to chit-chat with your secretary.  What you did on the weekend doesn't help her get her job done, so it's totally extraneous.  She'll be a better employee for you if she knows your likes & dislikes better, but that can be learned over time, and in the process of working.  Being friends is entirely unnecessary.  

The only way you can trust that your employees are doing appropriate work is to check up on them.  But there are ways of doing that, that don't feel like they're being micromanaged.  Schedule weekly or biweekly one-on-one meetings with them.  Express to them that it's their opportunity to let you know they need help from others within the department, or to show off the work they've been doing.  Meanwhile, you can get a progress report on the projects that have been nagging at the back of your mind.  

But then, you have to just trust!  Unless you're aware of an issue, resist the urge to ask about the project, because you have capable and competent employees working for you!  If they s***w up, then you'll have reason to fire them, and hire new ones who are more capable, and more competent.  Have faith in your hiring skills, and let them do what you hired them to do!

FYI, on a year-long project, you don't need updates more frequently than every other week!  You're a busy executive, with plenty of other things to work on!  More than that would just bog you down with the minutiae, and that's why you have the employees to handle that stuff!

Answer 3

I'm currently working in a marketing department (although i'm as low on the totem-pole as you can possibly get).  I know how busy things can get with product launches and deadlines.  It's too much work for any one person.  That's the reason you hire a team.  You're the VP, so I'm working under the assumption that you had something to do with hiring the people that work for you.  If you didn't trust their skill and see their potential to help your company through their resume and interviews, you wouldn't have hired them, correct?  if it really makes you that nervous, start by giving them the smaller tasks you would usually do or by scheduling weekly meetings about the project if it's bigger.   (In our department, we have a weekly department meeting for two different projects right now and additional meetings with 3-4 people for smaller projects.)  

Whatever you do, don't question yourself and your abilities.  If you weren't good at your job, you wouldn't have been put in the position of authority that you're in.

Answer 4

a) your wife is right, you being to weird about it.

b) they are YOUR team, YOU are in charge.

c) if you don't have trust in your team, have a backup in mind. (i wouldn't be working with them period)

d) i dont know if you can do this or not, but remind them that you are in charge and that their job security is dependent on your satisfaction. throw in a side note about how crappy the U.S. economy is and, if you pull it off right, they'll be wrapped around your pinky.

e) i agree about ur sec. she is extremely nosy expecting you to open up to her. slap a ho? lol, take time to watch the news channel or something so that if she starts talking, just mention it there.

Answer 5

Know just what you mean. You just have to do it otherwise you end up doing all the work yourself, which can't be right. You need to give ownership of tasks to people so that they do them properly. There is a balance between trying to control what people are doing and taking the brakes off completely, though. I do find I (very) occaisionally have to take responsibility for other peoples mistakes (which mortifies me) , but at least my week-ends are my own.

Don't muddle up being social at work (civil - yes). You need to be a bit more detached I think - and you need to keep delegating to get yourself used to it. Ideally you need to inspire your teams to go that extra distance for you, and discreetly check what they are up to so that you are not imagiing the worst. Have team reviews and collaborations so that everyone feels they are contributing - and more importantly you are getting a handlle on whether they are doing what you need rather than going their own sweet way (it happens) - you don't want to end up with the tail wagging the dog.