Faye McDonough

Do you want to delegate more effectively? You’re not alone in finding it difficult.

If you do manage to get it right, it’s the key to unlocking high-performance.

I’ve spent years learning to delegate in financial services, almost by necessity. The reason I enjoy my work so much is that it is varied and multi-dimensional but that can also mean challenging, chaotic, and emotive (a common theme when money is involved).

My attempts at delegation haven’t always been smooth. I’ve micromanaged when I should have stepped back. I’ve been vague when I needed to be clear. I’ve overwhelmed people by assuming they had capacity they didn’t have. I’ve also been on the receiving end of some confusing managerial direction.

What I’ve learned over time is that good delegation starts well before you hand over a piece of work. It requires groundwork and systems that make delegation feel less risky, more natural and more aligned. Fifteen years in, I’ve got the hang of it.

Here are my 10 practical actions for delegating well. 

Knowing what to do of course is only half the battle. My good friend Kat Hutchings, an executive leadership coach, will be following up with an article about the behavioural patterns that disrupt even the best delegation systems – because sometimes even if unintentionally, we can be our own biggest obstacle.

The Foundation: Know Your Team Deeply

You can’t delegate well if you don’t understand who you’re delegating to. This sounds obvious, but I’ve watched leaders (including myself) rush to offload work without considering whether the person is the right fit for that specific task.

1. Understand your team’s strengths

Personality assessment tools have been valuable for me. I’ve tried a lot of them but it worked best when we used the same one organisation-wide –  the terminology and awareness became part of our cultural language. This was Myers Briggs and we used it to help teams understand how they naturally work and where they thrive, especially helpful in a global remote team. 

Whichever assessment tool you choose, they aren’t perfect, but they start conversations about working styles and preferences which is exactly what you need.

When you know someone processes information methodically and prefers structured approaches, you can delegate differently than you would to someone who thrives on quick decisions and flexibility. 

You can also match projects to their skillsets – I’ve often benefited from the big thinkers in my team to lay the creative foundations, rather than execute solid ideas. Match the work to the strength.

Your reflection: What do you actually know about how each person on your team naturally works? Not what you assume, but what you’ve discussed with them?

2. Understand individual motivations

People want different things from their careers. Some are financially motivated and focused on progression. Others prioritise work-life balance. Some want to build confidence through challenging projects. Others need stability while managing personal commitments.

I ask people directly about their aspirations. What do they want to achieve this year? What are their personal goals? How does their work connect to what matters in their life?

Please don’t be tempted to collect these answers survey style. I’ve seen leaders fire out these questions over email and add the answers to a spreadsheet. This is not the way to do it. 

Conversations like this build trust. Don’t miss the opportunity to do this. When I understand someone’s motivation, I can frame delegated work in ways that genuinely matter to them. A project isn’t just another task. It can be a step towards what they’re trying to build and what’s more motivating than that?

3. Connect work to company vision and objectives

Is your company vision clear? Can your team explain how their work connects to broader objectives?

If you’re asking people to take on more responsibility without helping them see the bigger picture, you’re making delegation harder than it needs to be. People invest more energy in work because they understand it matters. 

I’ve focused on spending time in team meetings connecting day-to-day projects to organisational goals. Not in a corporate jargon way, but genuinely showing how what we’re doing moves the organisation forward.

At a deeper emotional level, this is about purpose. Remember that.

The System: Create Structure That Supports Delegation

4. Schedule consistent, thoughtful 121s that are never missed

I split my 121s into two types, alternating the pattern openly with my team.

Informal, casual check-ins over coffee or in a more relaxed setting: these are about how things are going and to check-in on energy levels, wellbeing and motivation.

Workload-focused reviews: these are to dig into projects, priorities, and development. Practical, hands-on 121s to provide help and guidance where needed and understand performance.

This rhythm means delegation can happen in an ongoing conversation, not as a surprise dump of work in a stressed moment. But I also respond to my team’s needs – sometimes they want a practical run-through on the day we were going to go for a walk. If that’s the case, I swap!

Your reflection: When was the last time you had a conversation that wasn’t about getting through the immediate task list? How is your framework for 121’s supporting delegation? 

5. Question whether the right people are doing the right work

What is each person actually working on? How does it align to company goals? How does it align to their individual development goals?

I had an experience at my previous organisation where someone on the team was working on tasks that didn’t fit their strengths at all. They were capable, so it wasn’t about competence. But the work didn’t use what they were brilliant at. Moving that work to someone better suited to it made both people more effective and enabled me to reshape the roles to maximise the individual’s strengths.

Challenge yourself honestly. Are people working against their natural strengths? Is someone else better positioned for this work? How can you shape roles to match individual skillsets within the infrastructure of your organisation?

The Practice: Delegate Thoughtfully

6. Start with low-risk delegation

You don’t need to begin by delegating your highest-stakes projects. Find something meaningful but lower risk. Something where mistakes won’t have major consequences, but success will build confidence for everyone.

I’ve seen leaders (including myself) jump to delegating complex, visible work too quickly. When it doesn’t go perfectly, they pull back and stop delegating altogether. Start smaller. Build trust through repeated success and stretch your own delegation skills.

7. Be clear about objectives for each piece of work

What exactly are you asking for? By when? What does good look like?

Most delegation fails because of unclear expectations. You know what you want because you’ve been thinking about it for weeks. They’re hearing about it for the first time. Slow down. Explain the why, the what, and the how.

I’ve learned to follow-up key points in writing and in clear language when I delegate something significant. Not to be formal, but to make sure we’re aligned. Then we revisit regularly to achieve total clarity. 

Your reflection: Think about the last time you delegated something. Did you genuinely explain the full context, or did you assume they’d fill in the blanks?

8. Create visibility with technology

Use Trello, Microsoft Planner, or whatever tool works for your team. Make workload and progress visible.

This is about creating a shared understanding of who’s working on what, not surveillance. It makes it easier to spot when someone’s overwhelmed before they burn out. It helps people see the full picture of team priorities. It also shows progress removing the need for regular updates. 

I resisted these tools for too long, thinking they added unnecessary admin. They don’t. They reduce the mental load of tracking everything in your head. There’s a lot to be said for getting that all out and on a screen. 

9. Build in accountability and follow-up

Delegation only works if you follow up. Have they done what they said they would do? Are they stuck? Do they need support?

Use your 121 structure and the supporting technology to create natural accountability moments to ensure work progresses, problems surface early and never to catch people out.

I’ve learned that everyone appreciates clear accountability. It’s the vague expectations and inconsistent follow-up that create stress, not the structure itself.

10. Make space in your own workload

This might seem backwards in an article about delegation, but you can’t delegate effectively if you’re drowning.

When I’m overwhelmed and frazzled, I delegate badly. I’m unclear. I’m impatient. I don’t make time to support people properly. Then I take work back because it’s “quicker to do it myself.”

If you’re too busy to delegate well, you’re too busy. Something needs to change.

A few minutes with The Eisenhower Matrix (urgent vs important)  and a cup of your favourite brew always helps me see the wood for the trees. It’s an oldie but a goodie.

Spend a few minutes working out what needs doing now, can be scheduled, delegated or dropped. This has got me out of many tricky spots and then you are all set to delegate well.

Making This Real

Delegation shouldn’t be a one-time conversation.

It’s a core leadership skill built through consistent actions and honest reflection. When you role model delegation well, you enhance everyone’s performance and pass this skillset throughout the organisation.

Start with one or two of these actions. Pick the ones that feel most relevant to where you and your team are right now. Build from there.

The leaders I respect most aren’t the ones doing everything themselves. They are the ones building high-performing capable teams who can take on increasingly complex work. That doesn’t happen by accident. It happens through deliberate, thoughtful delegation.

Questions for Your Own Reflection

1. Which team member do you find easiest to delegate to? What makes delegation work well with them?
2. Where are you holding onto work that someone else could do? What’s actually stopping you from letting it go?
3. When you think about your team’s workload right now, who has capacity? Who’s at the edge?
4. What’s one low-risk piece of work you could delegate this week to start building your delegation muscle?
5. How clearly did you explain the last thing you delegated? If you asked that person to explain it back to you, would they describe what you intended?

What’s Your Experience?

How do you approach delegation in your team? What’s worked? What’s been harder than you expected?

I’d genuinely love to hear from you, especially if you’re navigating this in complex or highly regulated environments where delegation can feel particularly risky.

Photo by Hannah Busing on Unsplash – If only all teamwork felt like this.