Mehrzad Manuel Ferdows stated that leadership is the art of influencing people. This art requires delegation which is the art or process of assigning specific duties and responsibilities to subordinates in an organization. Leadership requires delegation (which comes in different forms) to be effective. He stressed that it is one of the mot difficult transitions for a leader to make the shift from doing to leading when responsibilities become more complex, the difference between an effective leader and a super-sized individual contributor with a leader’s title is rather evident. Either in “general delegation” or “crisis delegation”, leaders need to delegate responsibilities and duties while being responsible and accountable for the delegated duties with all mistakes or errors rested with the leader.
Mehrzad Manuel Ferdows pointed out some benefits of the process of delegating. He stated that the first advantage of delegating duties is that by delegating the leader passes the duties on the subordinates to perform so leaders could concentrate in areas where the organization will benefit most like the negotiation of contracts that benefit the whole organization. Furthermore, by delegating tasks leaders will be able to groom future leaders when subordinates learn how the organization works at a higher level and take over the necessary skills for the position. In addition, properly done delegation will raise the subordinates’ morale in the organization entailing that they can be trusted by the leadership to do the delegated work. Proper delegation will also improve trust between subordinates and leadership leading to a more cohesive organization. Mehrzad Ferdows mentioned the relationship between delegating and efficiency in an organization which increases because duties are given to people whose skills match the delegated duties, thereby time will be freed for the leader to concentrate on other important duties.
Mehrzad Manuel Ferdows stated that although leaders and organizations at large can benefit from delegation there are still many reasons as to why some fear to do it. The first source of fear is being outshined by the subordinates who are good at performing delegated work which leaders find challenging. Secondly, some leaders find it to their dismay that they will not be recognized for the work done by the subordinates and, thus, disallow the task delegation. He pointed out that some leaders refuse delegation because they assume they will lose the trained subordinate to a rival organization to compete with the leader’s organization. Apparently some leaders fear to pass some important responsibilities to their subordinates because it makes them feel the task may be out of their control. In some organizations, leaders develop preconceived ideas about subordinates that prevent them from delegating duties to them which in the long run affects productivity. Above all, it is distressing for some leaders to be exposed to a delegated job that they know little about or they have limited competencies in the position. This means no leader feels confident when exposed by subordinates for not understanding how the organization runs and they will lose control of them meaning that subordinates know too much of going on in the organization. This becomes worse when the responsibility lands on the leader’s desk for approval resulting in unfounded fear. Furthermore, in some organizations, there is no staff shortage, so leaders keep all duties and responsibilities that pertain to their job. Finally, uncertainty arises when there is inadequate training of staff; leaders refrain from delegating because they might presume staff will not do the delegated duties as per the instructions given.
Mehrzad Manuel Ferdows stated that many leaders get the confidence from being involved in all the tasks while being involved does not necessarily end in task accomplishment or productivity. There are controversies between being involved and being essential. Leaders need to be essential and sometimes involve in the responsibilities they delegate. There are a number of ways to make delegation effective. It is significant for an organization to manage delegating effectively by giving clear instructions on what needs to be done and undoubtedly make sure to whom should the completed task be reported to. Mehrzad Ferdows expressed that over delegating can work as an obstacle because it results in over relying on the subordinates, thus, affecting the performance of subordinates in general. Subordinates must always be praised by leaders when they successfully complete the delegated duties and tasks. This boosts subordinates’ morale and thereby increases productivity. It is strongly recommended to monitor from far and avoid micro-managing the subordinates when duties have been delegated since it will increase mistrust conveying that the leader does not have confidence in them to complete the assigned tasks. Mehrzad Manuel Ferdows stated that effective delegation is obtained when leaders provide adequate information on the responsibilities of the delegated positions. In case the delegated tasks are not performed at an acceptable level, leaders must ensure that the staff is in a safe side reassuring the subordinates that any failure to reach the acceptable level is a teachable moment that will improve their later performance on the same task. Once the fear is removed, subordinates will be encouraged to perform a cut above without the fear of retribution. In addition, receiving feedback by the subordinates will play a key role for them to monitor their own performance. Moreover, it aids the leaders to make corrections where more resources are required for improving performance of the delegated duties and responsibilities. Mehrzad Ferdows stressed the importance of training subordinates and stated that in the absence of proper training, subordinates will be hesitant to undertake delegated responsibilities due to a fear of failure.
Mehrzad Manuel Ferdows concluded that although there are a number of concerns regarding delegating tasks and duties, leaders cannot carry all burden and thus, they need to choose to be essential rather than being overwhelmed by duties that might be done well by subordinates. Leaders must trust, and train subordinates while building up new opportunities for employees to proceed with their assigned duties and free more time to make a profit by engaging in more weighty tasks like negotiations for the organization.
