Delegating is a method of accomplishing projects while developing people. You transfer to a sales rep the responsibility for completing a project that you usually do yourself. The sales rep does not help you manage the project; in fact you help the sales rep manage the project by empowering and coaching them. It is also system of organization development that allows people to learn through discovery, guided discussion and performance feedback Barriers to Delegating The biggest barrier to delegation comes from within us. We pass up opportunities to delegate because we believe that it is simply easier and faster to manage the project ourselves. We also think that the sales rep will not do it as well as we do it and that we will find out too late to control the damage. Sometimes we think that if our sales reps learn to do all the things we currently do then we will feel useless, we will lose control of our team and our job may even become obsolete.
These fears are unfounded if you learn to delegate effectively. You must determine who is ready for a delegated project, and you must actively manage the process, thus ensuring that you are indeed in control of the project.
Determining Sales rep Readiness for Delegation Your sales rep must be willing and able to manage the project you wish to delegate. Willing means that they must value the benefits of taking on the assignment and be prepared to learn through your coaching. Able means that they must have the knowledge and skills to manage the pieces of the project though they may not have the roadmap. If they are initially unwilling it may be because they don’t see the “what’s in it for me?”(WIIFM).If they do understand the WIIFM, but still appear reluctant, they are not ready. If your assessment is that they have the basic knowledge and skills for the project (even if they don’t agree with your opinion) and they are willing to learn, they are ready.
How to Delegate Follow these steps and you’ll avoid the pitfalls of delegating and reap the rewards.
1. Set the stage When you are sure that your sales rep has passed the readiness test, have a chat with them about their professional development and career goals. It’s as simple as asking them “What skills would you like to learn ? or “What do you see as the next step in your career?” Then show how the project you want to delegate supports their learning or career goals.” You’ll learn about budgeting by taking on the XYZ project”.
2. Define the goals and scope You must be crystal clear about the goals and scope of the project. Put them in writing. Anticipate any ambiguities in the goals themselves or how they will be measured. Think about the project as though you were taking it on yourself. Prepare to coach your sales rep by anticipating any obstacles that may arise, people who will be involved, timetables etc.
3. Empower your delegate Empowering means expressing directly to your sales rep three “C”s; you have confidence in their competence with the assistance of your coaching. This tells them that you expect them to succeed, creating a positive momentum for the project. You must also pave the way for your sales rep by communicating to other managers and your manager that your sales rep has your full authority with respect to the project.
Empowering also means being “rigid on the goals, but flexible on the means”. Once you have determined the project goals, do not dilute them to accommodate a failing sales rep or change them to accommodate others in your organization. On the other hand you must allow your sales rep to accomplish the goals in their own way, as long as it is in keeping with company values. Recognize and accept that they may not choose to manage the project in the same way that you have. You might not agree with everything that they do and it may be difficult to be flexible on the means. They may experience small failures along the way. Your job is not to protect them or prevent the failures but to ensure that they learn from them. This does not mean that you abandon them, leaving them to find their own way; it does mean that you will be fully engaged with them in a new role as coach.
4. Determine your reporting requirements This very important step is the difference between delegation and abdication.
To maintain control over the project and to continue to be accountable, you must determine when your sales rep may make a decision and then inform you, and when they must first inform you, then make a decision. Either way you must be in the loop on every decision for which you are accountable. How you determine which decisions your sales rep can make without consulting you first depends on your confidence in their ability to make a good decision and on the importance of the issue that requires the decision.
If you insist that they bring every decision to you, then you are not truly empowering them and you risk losing their investment in leadership of the project. On the other hand if you allow them to make every decision without consulting you first your worst nightmare about delegating may become a reality. For example, you may tell your sales rep that they must consult you first concerning any decision that requires expenditures or resources beyond a certain level or one that involves communication with certain senior managers.
5. Coach your delegate Coaching is not spoon-feeding. Keep in mind the old adage “Give a man a fish and he’ll eat for a day. Teach him how to fish and he’ll eat forever”. Think about coaching this way. Your sales rep is embarking on a voyage of discovery, and you are his/her guide. Your sales rep is captain of the ship and you are the trusted “old hand” who has made similar voyages of discovery. You will help your sales rep explore alternatives and think through decisions, supply them with information they need and share with them your own experiences and confidence that they will succeed. You won’t make decisions for them. You will ensure that the goals are reached, but you will not rescue them from wrong turns they may experience along the way. (See previous Coaching Matters newsletters for more on Coaching).
6. Evaluate results When the project is complete, ask your sales rep to evaluate the process and results. What worked, what did not work? Did your sales rep learn what he/she set out to learn? What else did they learn from the experience? What did they learn about themselves? Would they want to take on similar projects in the future? What other skills would they look to learn or improve?
Summary Delegating is an effective way to manage projects while developing sales reps. Mangers have a natural resistance to delegation which they can overcome by following some simple steps and by assuming the role of Coach.
To learn more about this author, visit John Brennan's Website.
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John Brennan
(Visit John's Website)
John Brennan Ed.D.
Dr. Brennan is President of Interpersonal
Development, LLC, a training and
development firm. Interpersonal
Development has provided sales training
and coaching to more than 3,000 sales reps
from over 100 companies.
A native of Australia, Dr. Brennan
received his doctorate from the University
of Rochester. His dissertation researched
the effectiveness of Behavioral Modeling
Technology in training people in
interpersonal skills. While he has spent
most of his career designing or delivering
training, he was also a Vice-President of
Sales of a training and development
franchise with operations in 25 markets.
Dr. Brennan has designed and delivered
sales training in North America, Asia,
Europe, Australia and the Middle East. He
has been a guest speaker at numerous
national and regional professional
conferences.
When Microsoft wanted Best Practices
articles on sales for their web site, they
called Dr. Brennan. The results are at office.microsoft.com/e
n-us/FX011387391033.aspx
His firm’s clients have included Volvo,
The Prudential, Merrill Lynch, Eastman
Kodak, Gannett, Equifax Europe, the
Economist Group and countless small
businesses.
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