Delegation

I recall in my Naval Academy leadership courses, probably in my first year, I learned what delegation was. Since then, I have never forgotten the phrase, "You can delegate authority, but not responsibility."  Over my career in uniform, and now, as a civilian, I've seen numerous examples of delegation, literally from one extreme to the other. Obviously life on the extreme ends can be disastrous, so the goal certainly would be to find a happy medium.

On one end, you have a micromanager, who refuses to delegate anything.  I've worked for micromanagers, who seem to have the need to do everything themselves.  This is not very efficient and it is not good for morale.

On the other end, you have someone who delegates everything; well, as much as they can anyway. This is not efficient either.

When I worked on a numbered fleet staff, my department head, an O6, was a very intelligent man who was constantly thinking outside the box. He had great ideas (and some not so great). Believe it or not, he actually delegated the reading of his email. He gave us all full access to his inbox, and he tasked us with checking and reading his email, and if there was anything of importance, we could respond, on his behalf, then backfill him. This was an interesting concept that actually worked quite well for the officers in his department at the time.

Now, the reason I am writing about delegation today is here at work we have a department head in another department that appears to delegate everything. I may be wrong, but you can never go to this person with a request for information without him having to check with one of his subordinates.  This is not efficient, from my perspective, and it is quite frustrating.  Of course I have stopped going to him for information, because I have learned it would waste my time.

I've always appreciated the supervisors I have had who have trusted me enough to do as much as I could, while holding me accountable. It kept me busy, provided me training for future jobs, and it was quite rewarding. I am glad I work for someone like that now.

When I was in command, I certainly delegated a fair amount, but holding my people accountable was the key. Over time I learned what I could delegate and what I needed to retain for myself. When you empower your people, they will shine!!


On a side note, I just finished a great book entitled Destroyer Captain, by Admiral James Stavridis. I highly recommend this book!!