5 levels of delegation

“If you want to get it done right, do it yourself”.

How many times have you heard this and said this? The fact is, it isn’t true.

Delegation is very crucial to leadership.

You can’t focus on what matters and take on more responsibility if you’re not willing to delegate.

In 2021, I was assigned a leadership position as the Music Director of the church. For the first couple of months, the work was extremely hard and I was struggling. The major reason for this was that I was doing almost all the work myself.

From scoring songs to working on arrangements, planning and handling training sessions and retreats, and so on. Sometimes I even forgot the most important things and it took time for other things I had in my professional and personal life.

Aside from the effect it was having on my personal and professional life, my team was not learning and growing as they should.

So I decided to delegate tasks and authority to certain individuals in the team.

Now, delegation is more than just giving out tasks to be completed.

It’s about empowering your team, helping them grow, and freeing up more time for you to take up other responsibilities. It increases the time you have and helps everyone on the team be more productive.

It sounds easy but you have to be strategic about delegation.

Michael Hyatt’s Five Levels of Delegation has helped me to navigate delegation easily.

You have to put 2 things in place first.

1. Set clear expectations on the delegated task.

2. Clarify the level of authority/autonomy given to the individual to whom you delegate.

If you don’t put this in place, instead of results you’ll get errors and unpleasant surprises.

FIVE LEVELS OF DELEGATION

LEVEL 1: Do as I Say

This means to do exactly as you have instructed. Make clear instructions that must be carried out to the letter.

I have determined what I want and this is how you do it.

This has zero level of authority and it’s mainly for new hires with little or no experience.

LEVEL 2: Research and Report

This means researching the topic, gathering information, and circling back to report was is discovered. The result is discussed then I make the decision and tell you what is to be done.

LEVEL 3: Research and Recommend

This means to research the topic, bring the options, point out the pros and cons, and recommend what you think the decision should be. If I agree with you, I authorize you to get it done.

LEVEL 4: Decide and Inform

This means to take a decision and tell me what you did. This must be someone you trust their judgment and you’re sure they’ll do the job just fine. Do the research, make the best decision you can, and make me aware of your decision.

LEVEL 5: Make decisions independently

This means to make whatever decision you think is best. No need to inform me of your decision. This is complete trust and 100% authority. Do it, you have my full support and I’m confident you’ll do what’s right.

Most times when delegation goes wrong, it is the leader’s fault. The leader must be clear about the expectations and level of authority.

For instance, you delegate a task to a team member who is at level 2 but you didn’t communicate clearly and they think they have a level 5 clearance. They might make grave errors you would be shocked to see the error because you didn’t clarify things well.

Your team members are not mind readers. In the absence of clear expectations delegation doesn’t go so well but if done right, the team gets better and stronger.