Responsible Delegation Benefits All

RESPONSIBLE DELEGATION BENEFITS ALL

by Emily Huling

'Have you sent those applications to the company yet?'

'Why did you prepare the proposal that way?'

'It’s just easier to do it myself.'

'He never gives me enough information to do my job.'

If you find yourself saying or hearing comments such as these, you might have a communication breach.

It’s amazing how many people try to do it all. They believe it’s easier to do it themselves, or that another person won’t do the job as well. Proper delegation allows you and others to do their jobs. Successful teamwork comes from working through others and empowering them. Effective delegation begins with TRUST: Training, Respect, Understanding, Support, and Teamwork.

Training. Don’t expect people to do a job they don’t know how to do. Our industry is challenged. We have new people, new underwriting requirements, placement, and pricing challenges. You must educate producers and account managers properly and continually on product, technology, and internal and external standards of performance.

Respect. 'Of course,' you say, 'I respect my coworkers.' But do your daily work habits demonstrate this? Continually interrupting coworkers with questions or time-wasting comments indicates a lack of respect for the job they do. Prioritizing your last-minute work over anything they might be working on indicates that you feel your accounts are more important than theirs. You must respect the time and workload of others to delegate effectively.

Understanding. Put yourself in your coworker’s shoes. Is someone new on the job, doing double work because a peer is out for medical reasons, or working on a huge account that requires uninterrupted concentration? Try to find a reasonable solution.

Support. Show support by doing your job completely and accurately. A producer who doesn’t give the account manager complete information is setting everyone up for failure. An account manager can avoid time-crunching stress by managing incoming work effectively. Review client or producer requests immediately. Work to support each other.

Teamwork. Be sure and use all available resources to get the job done. Get people at all levels to do the jobs for which they’re best suited. Develop employee skills by assigning more challenging work — and provide the necessary training. When employees are brought up through an organization, their satisfaction improves, opportunities for advancement increase, and turnover decreases.

Now that we understand that delegation begins with TRUST, let’s outline the six steps to delegate work effectively:

1. Be specific. Clearly state what needs to be done, by what date and time, how it should be done, and the expected result. For example, a producer needs a proposal prepared. If your agency has several proposal templates, elaborate on the 'how' of the task. Don’t leave anything to chance. Written instructions help to avoid misunderstandings.
2. Furnish context — why it needs to be done. Does the proposal need to be completed earlier than expected because client availability is limited? Failure to communicate the 'why' can lead someone to put off the task because they didn’t understand the situation.
3. Determine the standards of measurement. Spell these out through job descriptions and performance reviews. Hold all individuals accountable for the quality, accuracy, and timeliness of their work. If you expect producers to give updated renewal information to account managers within a certain time period, then that’s the expected standard.
4. Grant authority. This is the most overlooked step. Can your delegated person talk to the insured directly? Visit the account? Speak with the underwriter? You’ll delay the whole process if you don’t relinquish authority.
5. Confirm your mutual understanding of the task. Is additional information forthcoming? Is each party clear on the time frame and the intended result?
6. Provide support and feedback. Always monitor progress. If the individual is trained to do the job and you’re holding them accountable, a simple 'Do you have any questions since you’ve gotten into (this account),' or 'How are you coming along?' will suffice. If the delegated work fails to meet time and quality standards repeatedly, something isn’t working. Review these steps again to ensure that you’ve provided the individual with everything they need to accomplish the task. Take action to correct the situation.

Be sure your agency has the fundamentals to TRUST each other and each person follows the six-step process of successful delegation. Your agency growth and success depend on it.