THE MANAGER'S JOB: DELEGATING THE JOB

Transcription

1 THE MANAGER'S JOB: DELEGATING THE JOB Ikhtiar Ali Ghumro (Corresponding Author) Assistant Professor Department of Commerce Shah Abdul Latif University Khairpur Riaz Ahmed Mangi Assistant Professor Department of Commerce Shah Abdul Latif University Khairpur Hasan Jawad Soomro Assistant Professor Department of Commerce Shah Abdul Latif University Khairpur Abstract This conceptual research work reviews the process of delegation and proposes some exceptional skills of managers for effective delegation, various standards; suggest delegation path model and describe the benefits to managers and employees. It is asserted that manager success depend upon his ability to get others to do work to achieve predetermined objectives. Delegation is a process of sharing with others the work and decision the manager would otherwise have to carryout himself. This requires distinct managerial skills which are absolutely necessary so that the manager can multiply his strength through delegation. Delegation entail formal standard and proper format of selection of the true person to make it purposeful and result oriented. Both the managers and employees get benefit from the delegation process. The practice of delegation needs periodic evaluation to check the performance of employee; this may help managers in making future delegation decisions. The techniques proposed in this study help managers to reduced sensitivity of delegation and achieve the desired objectives. Key Words: DELEGATION, MANAGERIAL SKILLS, STANDARDS, BENEFITS, EVALUATION 1. Introduction Delegation is widely acknowledged to be an essential element of effective management Yukl (1994). Delegation is a managerial instrument that allows managers to nurture subordinates to capitalize the subordinate s potential and ability to meet organizational goals and objectives. As a form of employee involvement in decisionmaking, delegation describes a category of leader behavior that entails assignment of new responsibilities to subordinates and additional authority to carry them out Yukl (1998). Managers usually find it easier to speak about delegation of responsibility then to accomplish the organizational goals. Problem arises because when' responsibilities are delegated without necessary powers. When we give out work and authority, we must also COPY RIGHT 2011 Institute of Interdisciplinary Business Research 669

2 give out objectives to which we have strong commitment. The practitioner literature promotes delegation as a critical element in leadership effectiveness and it is replete with prescriptive accounts of why and how to delegate (Ford, 1983); (McConkey, 1974).To the extent we lack confidence in ourselves and others, varying degree to insecurity result from delegation, bringing the influence of security drive into play. Much of this research has focused on why managers delegate (Liana, 1986, 1987) (Yukl & Fu, 1998) and the outcomes of delegation such as job satisfaction and performance (Farrow, Valencia, & Bass, 1980) (Liana, 1986, 1987) (Schriesheim, Neider, & Scandura, 1998).When we delegate, we must share part of territory and this often runs counter to both our territorial and acquisitive urges. For these reasons, delegation requires self-confidence and understanding of what is evolved. Manager does not delegate, if they feels fear that the job will not be done properly. Delegation is basically a process of assigning responsibility, sharing authority, and producing accountability in organizations. The process of delegation is adjusted according to the nature of the work itself, and by the type of person who will be completing the work. Delegation is a crucial expertise for managers to use to make the best of their own time and resources. The manager who is skilled in delegation overcomes the problems by establishing clearly understood plans and standards, instructing his people to carry work through. As he knows that result are the final measure and there are different ways to arrive at equally satisfactory results. (Henry Mintzberg 1973) views delegation as the most significant managerial problem. He argues that while managers tend to delegate tasks involving only one specialist function, they feel cold footed on the prospects of delegating tasks that cut across specialties or that involve the managers special information. Empirical research has illuminated our understanding of why managers delegate and the outcomes of delegation, there is a paucity of research on the conditions under which delegation is effective (Leana, 1986, 1987) (Schriesheim et al., 1998) (Yukl, 1998) and why delegation is related to its demonstrated outcomes. This paper is review work in field of delegation; the main purpose is to understand the delegation process and describe the standards, skills of the managers and to suggest the delegation path model and explaining various benefits to managers and subordinates. 2. Literature Review In the modern organizational structure, delegation of authority has become the focus of the researchers and scholars. These are constantly keeping close eye on the decentralization of the organizations and the impact of delegation on the performance of organization in general and employees in particular. (Aghion & Tirole 1997) are of the view that managers are more likely to delegate the authority when they are overloaded with work, such as when they manage large, multi-segment and rapidly growing firms. On the other hand (Batman & Snell 2004) describe that delegation is the assignment of authority and responsibility to a subordinate at a lower level requiring that the subordinate reports back to their manager the results, positive or negative. Delegation provides an employee the opportunity to exercise self-direction and control, which signals to the employee that he or she is considered by the supervisor/organization to be able, task competent, organizationally important, and need satisfying (Gardner et al., 2004); (Pierce & Gardner, 2004). (Dessein 2007) describe that an authoritative decision-making environment, with little delegation to lower-level employees, reduces the cost of COPY RIGHT 2011 Institute of Interdisciplinary Business Research 670

3 time-consuming discussions about projects that lower-level managers might propose. (Van den Steen 2004, 2005a) expresses that delegation increases as employee homogeneity increases within the firm, and therefore that delegation is more common in old companies that are more successful. Jennergren (1981) summarizes the implication from the management literature that it is natural for a company to become more decentralized, and decisions therefore to be more delegated, as the company grows larger. Harris and Raviv (2005) concluded that delegation of decision authority is more likely to occur when a firm expands an existing product line, and will be less prevalent when a firm is expanding into new products. The literature has developed these insights by studying the conditions under which delegated contracting can replicate and sometimes even deliver better outcomes than centralized contracting (Baron and Besanko, 1992) (Melumad, Mookherjee & Reichelstein 1997),(Laffont & Martimort, 1998), (Mookherjee & Tsumagari, 2007),( Martimort & Piccolo 2007, 2009). (Brown 1998) commented that managers who are not confident in their capabilities do not delegate adequately because they feel fear of being of surrendering control. 3. Managerial Skills: On the basis of literature and extensive discussions with all stakeholders, following skills of the managers were established for the delegation of authority. The successful and result oriented delegation requires a skilled managers because the delegation of powers may bring catastrophic results for the organization. Figure No.1 COPY RIGHT 2011 Institute of Interdisciplinary Business Research 671

4 Intuitive Power The way of understanding the circumstances for delegation by using the intuitive powers, the managers select the most appropriate person for the job. Familiarity Acquaintance with the entire condition of the organisation and behavior of the employees make managers better in assigning the powers and duties. Confidence Showing great deal of confidence and trust in the subordinates is integral part of delegation. Enthusiasm The delegation of powers needs managerial interest and continuous enthusiasm. Stimulative Creativity This attribute of the managers make delegation easier and purposeful. The managers need to generate fresh and unique ideas to make delegation an interesting job. Sharing Delegation of authority requires participation of both the managers and subordinates, exchanging ideas, problems and progress of delegated job. Courage Handing over the powers is brave activity of the managers. It is their courage to entrust powers to subordinates. 4. Standards of Delegation: Objective The clarity of objectives to be achieved is integral part of delegation, both manager and employee must be acquainted with the goals of the organization. Justifiable Individual While delegating, the most important thing for a manager is to assign the job to a person who deserve it most in terms knowledge and experience. Explicit Task The employee should be unambiguously defined regarding the task to be accomplished with in due course of time. Compliance The work of the employee and the directions of the managers should in full compliance with the organizational objectives. COPY RIGHT 2011 Institute of Interdisciplinary Business Research 672

5 Answerability The employee should be absolutely answerable for the assignments allocated to him/her. This may help managers in delegating the work in future. Coordination Alternative Options The managers and employee must work together efficiently and effectively in order to achieve the goals, they should exchange their views with each other regularly. The manager should prepare an emergency plan and replacement of the worker as an alternate if the things go wrong. Recognition Records The employee must be appreciated and acknowledged in term cash awards and promotions for the job done well. The manager should maintain a data base of the employees whom the duties were delegated and they have completed the task efficiently and as per directions of the manager. These records may help managers in future assignments and delegation. 5. Delegation Path Model The delegation is one of the most important jobs of manager, so they have to take utmost care in assigning the jobs to subordinates. The delegation path model presents a sequential process of delegation, by applying this model the managers not only get the most suitable employee but also obtain desired results. This model is conceived and prepared with extensive interaction and discussion with the managers and employees of various organizations. The managers have to go through progression of eight steps for effective delegation. The first step is to select a group of employees as future delegatee; these are than filtered on the basis of past performance, general and interpersonal behavior. The selected individuals are classified into good performers and average performers. After the classification the manager chooses the most appropriate personnel for the delegation of the job. The next step is to assigning the job and communicating the objectives and time line. During the assignment the managers assess the performance of the delegatee which may also help managers to make future decision regarding the delegation. The final step is compensation for the job well done in terms of financial benefits and promotion. This help to improve the motivation and commitment among the employees. COPY RIGHT 2011 Institute of Interdisciplinary Business Research 673

6 Figure No.2. Path Model Select Filter Good Performer Classify Choose Average Performer Assign Assess Reward 6. Benefits of Delegation Delegation is beneficial activity in the organization for both managers and employees. Below mentioned model expresses the benefits to managers and employees, it has been concluded that benefits either financial or nonfinancial create motivation and commitment among the employees. Through delegation of diverse jobs the employees can improve the quality of work, perform responsibly, and learn new techniques and procedures which in turn improve their motivation and commitment towards organization. The delegation is not only beneficial to employees but it also advantageous to managers. The job of manager is very hectic; he has to work untiringly to achieve the organizational objective. By delegation of work to suitable employee they can get some relief to rethink the objectives and means to achieve them. The delegation not only provides liberty to managers but also creates a sense of pride and respect among the subordinates which result in enhanced organizational citizenship behavior. By lessening or sharing the burden the managers can spare time for better decision making for improving the overall performance of the organization. The delegation provides learned and skillful subordinates which managers can utilize for obtaining the organizational goals. COPY RIGHT 2011 Institute of Interdisciplinary Business Research 674

7 Figure No 3. Benefits of Delegation to Managers Breathing Space Pride and Respect in Employees Benefits To Manager Freedom in Decision Making Skilled Subordinates Figure No.4. Benefits of Delegation to Employees Quality of work Improved motivation and commitment Benefits To Employee Sense of responsibility Learning COPY RIGHT 2011 Institute of Interdisciplinary Business Research 675

8 7. Evaluation To maintain effective control of the work the managers must carry out periodic check points for progress reports. He must think through questions and problems generated by the reports get them down so that he can discuss with them later. The manager must make sure he is practicing this with his own superior and with others with whom he works. Unless he is setting a good example, requiring completed work other will result in a poor response and hold him up to personal criticism. The manager must discuss problems with his team members particularly with those who are on important positions, making changes as appropriate until he is satisfied that the action represents the most logical and workable. He is now ready to discuss what he has done with his immediate superior, finally the manager agrees with his team members. Before a manager can get others to do complete work for him, he must know exactly what he requires. The best ways to do this is to think through the assignment and identify the key points. The manager should state clearly and concentrate, what results are expected and what objective should be accomplished when the job is finished, moreover secure understanding and agreement on it. The manager should be clear about objective. What are major program, must be carried out in a prescribed order? If so, the manager had better think these through or he will find that what is done differs from what he wants. The most important point, what is the major schedule? If nothing else, he will want to specify the date on which job should be completed. If these are intermediate dates, he must be sure to think these through. Besides this, the manager should specify budget consideration. This is the best way to control expenditures. 8. Conclusion and Discussion In the organizations the managers perform different kind of roles, these includes from individual tasks to team efforts. All these efforts are directed to accomplish the organizational objectives. The delegation of authority is one of the vital jobs of the manager s all responsibilities. First, they identify the job to be delegated and the potential subordinate. For successful delegation, this work recommends some skill that managers must develop. There are some standards of job delegation in every organization, our work also suggest some exceptional standards of delegation which can be utilized during the delegation process. Selection of superior subordinate for result oriented delegation, this paper offer a path model which is sequential process of selection, development and rewarding the subordinates. It is generally believed that managers avoid the delegation of powers but by doing so they devoid themselves from receiving the benefits of delegation. We have described benefits of delegation for both managers and subordinates. The managers duty does not ends by the delegation of some job but it is a continuous process of check and evaluation of the performance of the subordinates in order to avoid any misuse of the powers by the subordinates. The basic to successful delegation is an understanding of what a manager must do himself, what he can entrust to others. This will help him in identify the limit within which he can delegate subordinates and entrust a high degree of freedom in doing their own work and making their own decisions. COPY RIGHT 2011 Institute of Interdisciplinary Business Research 676

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