We delegate the way we were managed

In a group coaching session on delegation, a recurring pattern came up across several leaders.

They described how they were supporting their team members on delegated work. They all had genuine intentions and it was clear they had made significant efforts.

A manager who needs a detailed briefing before starting work was providing exactly that, to a team member who wanted to be trusted with the brief and left to begin. A manager who values being kept informed was sending regular updates upward and expecting the same flow downward, from a team member who wanted structured review conversations instead, not a constant stream of check-ins. A manager who liked how his own manager coached him, was applying the same to his young team that needed a mentor.

The delegation was well-intentioned, but the assumptions behind it were the manager's own preferences.

We tend to delegate the way we wish we were managed. What we would have needed becomes the template for what we give. The gap, between that template and what the person in front of us actually needs, decides whether a delegation is effective or not.

The fix - ask the team member how they work best before deciding how to support them. Have a conversation.