Management Rules: 50 New Rules for Managers

CHAPTER 10

WHAT YOU CAN AND CANNOT DELEGATE

From the manager’s perspective, the simple rule is “delegate everything”.

There is only one thing you cannot delegate: you cannot delegate your responsibility. As the manager, you are always responsible for the outcomes of your department, whether you delegate all the tasks or none of the tasks. That means you can delegate the praise, but you cannot delegate the blame. If your team messes up, you are responsible for the mess. Bosses several layers up the organisation will have no interest in the “he said she said so I said and they promised but we didn’t … ” discussion. All they know is that you were in charge and you did not deliver.

In terms of tasks, there is very little that a manager cannot delegate. ...