Being able to delegate responsibilities is an important skill for managers to effectively lead the firms. While it is not always easy – some managers want to remain in control of all aspects of their firm – as explored below, there are some significant benefits associated with becoming comfortable with delegating responsibilities.
Allows your firms to grow
One of the primary reasons to consider delegating responsibilities is that it is critical for your firm to grow. If you retain control of all key areas of the firm, at some point in time your growth will be constrained. You will inevitably be the bottle-neck – your firm unable to continue growing because you simply do not have time to be involved in all aspects of decision making.
Others may be better placed to make decisions themselves
Delegation also can be important in allowing those who are best placed to actually make the decisions. While a CEO may have the best visibility over the whole organization, often lower-level employees have better insight into specific tasks and implementation choices.
Allows others to improve their skills
Another benefit of delegation is that it helps improve the skills of others within your organization. If you are the one making all of the calls, others never build their decision-making skills. Delegating tasks starts to increase the abilities of subordinates that you are delegating to – gradually increasing the overall skill level of your organization.
Increases the commitment of others to the firm
Beyond improving the skills of your employees, delegation of responsibilities can also increase the commitment of individuals to the company. Few people like to be micro-managed. By increasing their responsibilities – gradually delegating work – you may increase employee organizational commitment. Employees who are able to build their responsibilities and skills are more likely to remain committed to the firm than those who feel that they are underappreciated – not able to develop because they are not given any responsibilities for themselves.
Improve your work-life balance
Finally, delegating tasks can be important in improving your work-life balance. As the firm grows, you will face more and more pressure on your time. A danger is that unless you are willing to let go of some activities, your work-life balance will start to suffer. Delegating tasks can help restore this balance – allow you to prioritize your time on the critical parts of the firm while giving you more time to spend on your personal life.
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