Importance Of Delegation In An Organisation

Delegation is defined as the transfer to a competent individual, of the authority to perform a specific task in a specified situation. Accountability is the principle that individuals and organisations are responsible for their actions and may be required to explain them to others.

Accountability refers to the management philosophy whereby individuals are held liable, or accountable, for how well they use their authority and live up to their responsibility of performing predetermined activities.

DELEGATION:

Delegation is the actual process of assigning job activities and corresponding authority to specific individuals within the organization.

Important Dimensions of Delegation include:

1. Steps in the Delegating Process
2. Obstacles to the delegation Process
3. Elimination of obstacles to the delegation process.
4. Centralization and Decentralization

STEPS IN THE DELEGATION PROCESS:

The delegation process consists of 3 steps:

1. Assign Specific duties to the individual. Manager must be sure that the subordinate assigned to specific duties has a clear understanding of what these duties entail. Whenever possible, the activities should be stated in operational terms so the subordinate knows exactly what action must be taken to perform the assigned duties.
2. The delegation process involves granting appropriate authority to the subordinate -i.e. the subordinate must be given the right and power within the organization to accomplish the duties assigned.
3. The subordinate must be aware of the responsibility to complete the duties assigned and must accept the responsibility.

GUIDELINES FOR MAKING DELEGATION EFFECTIVE:

1. Give employees task to pursue tasks in their own way.
2. Establish mutually agreed upon results and performance standards for delegated tasks.
3. Encourage employees to take an active role in defining, implementing and communicating progress on tasks.
4. Entrust employee with completion of whole projects or tasks whenever possible.
5. Explain the relevance of delegated tasks to larger projects or to department or organizational goals.
6. Give employees the authority necessary to accomplish tasks.
7. Allow employees’ access to all information, people and departments necessary to perform delegated tasks.
8. Provide training and guidance necessary for employees to complete delegated tasks satisfactorily.
9. When possible, delegate tasks on the basis of employee interests.

Responsibility, Authority, Accountability.

An organization stands on three pillars of strength. Responsibility, Authority, Accountability. Unless you are literally a one-man army, you have to rely on others down the line to deliver results. The best organizational heads know the benefits of delegation. They pick the right person for the job and then resist the temptation to micro-manage.

The three pillars of delegation:

• Responsibility: Responsibility indicates the duty assigned to a person in an organization. It refers to the obligation of a subordinate to perform the duty as required by his superior. It is a continuing obligation.
• Authority: No organization can survive without authority. The defence forces are an excellent example of how authority can be given and not questioned by subordinates. Authority is the right or power assigned to an executive in order to achieve an organization’s objectives. This authority allows for decision-making, enables the person in charge to give orders and instructions and expect them to be obeyed. It sometimes happens that the person given the authority finds that his wings are being clipped by a superior who undermines his authority. If subordinates realize that the person in charge can be over-ruled they will not give immediate and unquestioned obedience.
• Accountability: In an organization a person given a task is held accountable and is obliged to complete the job assigned to him or her as per expectations. That person is responsible for the actions of the people or group under his or her supervision even if there are several layers down the hierarchy. The person accountable has an obligation to report formally about the work done to his superiors, explain any factors responsible for non-performance and take full responsibility for the actions taken.

These three elements – Responsibility, Authority and Accountability – are inter-related. In the process of delegation, the superior transfers his duties or responsibilities to his subordinate and also gives the necessary authority for performing the required task. It is the ideal way to delegate. You can only hold people responsible when they have been given enough authority to do the job well without any interference from their superiors.

Source : Google