I’m a fan of delegation. In fact, I consider myself somewhat of a professional delegator, if there is such a thing. I certainly love to delegate.
Have you ever given away a project, though, and then wished you could take it back?
Recently someone emailed me with the question of how to do it.
Maybe it was the wrong fit. Perhaps the person was overloaded with other responsibilities. It could be they simply weren’t cut out for the task. You may have misjudged their potential, so you gave them the delegation. Now you wish you hadn’t.
What do you do?
How do you take back a delegated project without causing hurt feelings, injuring a valued team member, or causing disruption in the organization? Many times the person has assumed a certain sense of ownership and pride in the assignment, even if they haven’t done a good job with it. Taking the project away from them may feel like personal rejection. What do you do?
Here are 5 ways to take back a delegated project:
- Set up the right to remove on the front end – The process should really be clear from the beginning. The culture of a healthy organization has everyone operating as a team. It’s easier to do the right thing on a healthy team, even reassign a project. You may not be able to do that this time, but certainly work towards establishing that environment for the future.
- Make sure you delegate well – Effective delegation will eliminate much of the need to take back a project. Basically, try to help. This can happen at any stage in the project, but ideally should come before and during the process of completing a delegated project. It could be the person doesn’t have all the answers or all the resources to complete what’s been assigned. They may be afraid to ask for help.
- Do it quickly – As soon as you realize the person is not going to be able to complete the task, if you’ve tried working with them and it hasn’t helped, address and re-assign as soon as possible. The longer you wait, the harder it will be for everyone.
- Do it graciously – If done correctly, it could be a relief for them, as well as the organization. You may be able to refocus the person’s attention on other things, but certainly you should try to encourage their overall potential in the process.
- Help them learn – They may not have been able to do this particular project, but, if handled correctly, It could end up being beneficial for their personal development. Help them see what they did wrong, why the delegated task is being reassigned, and how they could do things differently in the future.
The bottom line is that the organization must move forward. Sometimes this means that tasks have to be reassigned. Good leaders are willing to make hard decisions, even if that means taking back a delegated project.
