Why Managers Don’t Delegate (and How to Fix That)

One of the biggest problems in many businesses is ‘the boss’ won’t delegate. This ‘boss’ could be the business owner, a department manager or supervisor. They spend much of their time doing $20 to $30 an hour jobs when they’re paid for $100 to $500 an hour jobs. And the key jobs of planning, communicating, coaching, encouraging, measuring and rewarding the performance of others don’t get done.

The result is the business lacks clarity, momentum and true leadership. Problems don’t get solved, opportunities are missed, customers become frustrated and go elsewhere, talented employees leave in frustration and the business slowly grinds to a halt.

So, why do ‘bosses’ fail to delegate?

Sometimes it’s because they fear losing control or they want to keep busy so they don’t have to go home to an unhappy situation.

Here are eight other reasons bosses may struggle to delegate and how they can become better at doing so.

1. Fear someone else won’t do it as well as they would.
The fix: Hire people who are ‘wired’ to succeed and then train, encourage and empower them to help grow the business.

2. Fear someone else will do it differently than them.
The fix: Simply realize your way is not the only ‘right’ way. Be open to possibilities.

3. Fear someone else might do it better than them and they like to be the go-to person when problems arise.
The fix: This is a tough one to fix because it deals with insecurity and the need to be the source of all knowledge. To grow a business, you must hire talented people in each specific area and they must know about 10 times more than you do about that area.

4. A fundamental belief that they can’t find good people anymore so they’ve given up looking and just hire whoever shows up for an interview.
The fix: Change your mindset and improve your employment experience, career opportunities and business culture to deserve the people you need. People have ‘four currencies’ in their lives – money, time, feeling safe (physically and emotionally) and feeling special. Be sure to ‘pay’ them with all four currencies because money alone is not enough.

5. They don’t have the ability or process to identify top talent, so they don’t get the highest performers to whom they can delegate.
The fix: Just like in sports, the ability to be a ‘talent scout’ is one of the most important skills you can develop. First, be clear about the talent, experience, skill, attitude, energy level and personality that you need in each position in the business. Next, develop a job description that states the outcomes to be delivered by the person in that position and the key activities required to deliver those outcomes. Then, create a list of interview questions to determine if the candidates you’re interviewing have the qualities you need.

6. They have high staff turnover. Just when they’re about to delegate to someone, they leave.
The fix: Adjust your employment experience, career opportunities and business culture so that good people want to stay and contribute.

7. They don’t have time to train people, so it’s just easier to do it themselves.
The fix: Initially, it takes more time to train people to take on a new project or responsibility. However, in the longer term, you’ve freed up time to plan, manage and have a life while helping and encouraging another person to advance. This is important because one of the top reasons good people quit is because they’re not being trained, developed and supported to grow.

8. They don’t delegate certain tasks because they feel comfortable doing them themselves.
The fix: Making the transition from being a ‘player’ to a ‘coach’ is not easy, but that’s what is needed. ‘Playing’ and ‘coaching’ are two different skill sets. You need to grow and develop as a manager and leader (coach) and for that you’ll likely need outside coaching.

Donald Cooper has been both a world-class manufacturer and an award-winning retailer. Now a Toronto-based business speaker and management coach, he helps business owners and managers rethink, refocus and re-energize their business to create compelling customer value, clarity of purpose and long-term profitability. Donald can be reached at donald@donaldcooper.com.