Insomnia: August 2005

Community Comments

Do What You Do Best, Delegate the Rest; Plus, Turn Rage Into Raves

By Georgene Waterman

Question
I am the general manager of a company in Pittsburg, California, that manufacturers steel roofs. We run three shifts seven days a week. I have six managers and each has a crew of 40 employees. The president is constantly asking me to do special projects that take me away from my usual work duties. I keep getting behind in my work and stay after my shift to try to get caught up.  The longer I work, the more behind I seem to get. I have a relatively new crew of managers due to high turnover. I know I need to delegate some of my usual duties to the managers but I am not quite sure where to start or what to delegate.

Rest Assured...
Like so many management skills, delegation can be learned. The definition of a good manager is someone who gets things done through others. Delegating things that you usually do yourself motivates managers. They then know you trust their abilities.  Give those employees who do the best work special projects to reward them. This sends a message that a good performance equates to more interesting work. 
     Keep the things you do best, the things that will have the largest impact on the business and the things that will give you the most personal satisfaction. Delegate the rest. 
Continued...

• Share
  • Digg This
  • del.icio.us
  • Newsvine
  • Facebook
  • Reddit
  • Furl It
  • !Y My Web
  • Google
• Email
• Print

Recommend This

Community Comments