Happy Monday, folks!

With the end of the year creeping up on us, many leaders are eager to wrap up projects, provide feedback and be prepared to start strong and fresh come 2023.

The ability for most (specifically) mid-level people leaders to be able to carry out a strong close through Q4 comes from effective delegation. If you missed the article from last week, we touched on how to organize your tasks to determine what should be kept and what should be delegated out.

When it comes to delegation, the first step is identifying exactly what the 'call-to-action' for the recipient will be. There are various thoughts on the number of levels of delegation (anywhere from 4-6), however, I follow and recommend the following five:

1. Do as I say - Intention: to execute an important and urgent task. This is a direct, straightforward and low-autonomy style of delegation. Instructions should be broken down into step-by-step instructions for your team members. This level of delegation should be used with new team members who are executing a task for the first time, sensitive or delicate processes that require mindfulness, or in certain instances when introducing change.
   
   
2. Research & Report - Intention: to collect information that aids you in making a decision. This level of delegation entrusts your team member with gathering the appropriate information that you either collectively discuss as a pair, as a team or you are able to then base a decision on. It's important to be very specific about the type of information you're looking to collect, wherever possible! Many miscommunications stem from 'delegatees' not being clear on exactly what the delegator would like them to research. Are you looking for statistics, platforms, best practices, etc.? Be specific and keep in mind, what information would you require in order to make a decision, then ask for that.
   
   
3. Investigate & Recommend - Intention: to empower your team to make important decisions with approval to move forward based on your experience or multiple perspectives and experiences. Keep in mind, there is a time, place, and situation for all of these levels of delegation. This level would be helpful to use for collaborative projects with various departments that need to come together and make a unified decision.
   
   
4. Decide & Inform - Intention: provide your team member with full autonomy, but keep a pulse on what work is being carried out. This is the ideal level to reach as a baseline in order to free up your own time.
   
   
5. Act Independently - Intention: allowing your team to make their own decisions and trust that the work will be executed and executed well. This level is great for seasoned team members who are well-versed in processes and can execute without support or for those that you're looking to move into leadership roles.

It's important to note your experience and the experience of your team along with the context in which you're delegating to avoid micro-managing behaviour or to avoid over-delegating for someone who may still require support or guidance.

Keep these in mind before you even delegate your tasks to make sure you're setting all parties up for success!