Delegate with confidence

Supervisors need to be able to delegate work. They may not delegate due to lack of trust in subordinates, the feeling that they can do tasks better, new/old employees not being fully trained, a need to dominate, and/or fear that their bosses will think they are lazy. Employees may engage in one or more games to avoid delegated work: whine, miss deadlines, do incomplete or sloppy work, be unavailable, and/or appear busy. To delegate properly, supervisors should ensure that all employees are properly trained; ignore whining; establish deadlines; schedule follow-up meetings; communicate fully; and, possibly, use discipline.