7 Steps To Effectively Delegate As An Agency Owner

Building a Business

Knowing how to delegate is crucial to scaling your business.

I didn’t truly understand this when I started, nor did I truly understand just how much I sucked at it.

As with many things, it is a learned skill.

Over the years, here’s a few things I’ve learned about effective delegation:

1. The task(s) to be done must be clear.

There is no confusion about what needs to be done.

This eliminates any of the “oh, well I thought it meant that…”. It’s important everyone has the same definition for a task.

2. The timeline must be clear.

There is no confusion about when guiding factor #1 needs to be done.

3. It must be clear who is responsible for each task in #1.

Every task has someone responsible.

4. All parties agree to the above 3 points.

You can’t just assign something to someone and think the task is already delegated.

An agreement must be made, and an agreement is made when both parties agree on the tasks, the timeline, and the person responsible.

When this happens, you can then hold people accountable because they also agreed to the task and the timeline.

There’s no excuse for “well, it was unreasonable” because you just assigned it without confirming the other person agreed to it.

A great way to do this is also to involve others in the tasks creation process, so it's not just you assigning things but rather a collaborative effort where the person is even creating their own tasks based upon what needs to get done.

5. What happens if you do all the above and a task or timeline is not met?

Of course, it won’t always be perfect. If a task isn’t completed properly, it means that the task was not clear enough. If it’s not clear to everyone, it’s not clear enough.

As the one delegating, that’s on you. Make sure it’s clear.

Look back to how it’s written and communicated, and see where the disconnect was. If a timeline is not met, look back and see why.

6. If a timeline is going to be missed, the person responsible needs to make sure everyone knows.

Communicate this immediately so a new agreement can be made on the timeline or an adjustment can be made. Don’t wait until the deadline passes.

7. Check-in to make sure things are on track.

Just because you delegate a task doesn’t mean you can turn a blind eye. Check-in and keep a pulse on things.

Additional learning:

A good book I read that helped influence some of these principles is called The Collaborative Way. It’s a short read. I think you’ll find tons of value in it :)

Now, there’s an interesting tackle on the topic of delegation I read very recently.

It was a tweet:

“Master the art of creating checklists and teaching others how to perform a task. Then pay them to do it. This simple formula has worked for eons and built the largest fortunes on the planet.”

And while I have to agree with this...

I think that just creating a checklist and getting someone else to follow it is scratching the surface of what’s possible.

But…

What’s the level up?

IMO, building a team composed of the right people…

Fostering a great culture that empowers (and encourages) high-accountability and self-ownership…

AND delegating the creation of systems, processes, hiring, etc.

This is real leverage.

How can you get there, though?

You see…

In the very beginning, you’ll probably start by doing all (or a lot of) the work yourself.

But if you want to scale your agency...

...you should segment a percentage of your time fully dedicated to designing the machine:

Documenting workflows, creating processes, setting up the right tools, etc…

Then, as soon as you can financially afford it, you could hire someone.

You’ll gain leverage, and then you can progressively start firing yourself from doing the daily work until you reach the stage where you’re the long-term architect of your business.

And I can help you get there if you join our community of agency owners.


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