delegating with purpose: linking tasks and goals
Delegation is an essential function of leadership, and yet I find that many leaders perceive it in a negative light. This seems reasonable to me because, at one point, I too perceived it negatively. Perhaps this was because I had experiences where supervisors had given me tasks that seemed mundane and irrelevant to my work. Delegating appeared to be a way for them to lessen their load by taking tasks off their plate and putting them on mine. It seemed to benefit them, not me. And so, when I became a supervisor, I avoided delegation to prevent my colleagues from feeling the same way. My tactic of avoiding delegation was wrong. I just needed to learn how to do it right. It was not until later that I realized delegation is a strategy for empowering others and growing together—it is a leadership asset.
One day, when conducting a performance appraisal, a supervisee mentioned she would like to eventually take on a leadership role in early childhood education. I considered ways that I could mentor her and how she could learn the leadership skills she would need for such a role. The next day, I met with her again and shared several ideas for how she could gain experience in leading. I asked her if she would like to facilitate a few agenda items during the next meeting, if she would like to coordinate part of an upcoming event, and I invited her to meet with me as I worked on the budget for a project that was currently part of her workload. She would spend one-on-one time with me, first to learn the tasks, and later to reflect on her experiences. These tasks were part of my job responsibilities, and opportunities for her to learn skills directly related to her goal of taking on an administrative role. Just framing the work from that lens made a difference. Yes, I was delegating—I was delegating tasks that were meaningful to her professional growth. She was appreciative and excited about these new opportunities to learn and took them on!
I realized that as she was given greater autonomy, responsibility, and decision-making power, she became more invested in the work. In this particular example, I soon recognized she was better suited than I was for coordinating events. The result was a shift in both of our job responsibilities that left each of us satisfied. I was also getting her perspective and ideas related to the tasks she was doing, which helped to improve them. Another benefit of delegating was that I was being a more inclusive leader—I was not just giving her tasks to do, I was sharing power with her. She was becoming more accomplished in leadership knowledge and skills. Our conversations as thought partners and my follow-through with her suggestions demonstrated that I valued and respected her ideas and expertise. Her contributions during discussions increased. Eventually, she became more responsible for the tasks, relieving me to work on other responsibilities that only I could do, and creating a succession plan. We now had someone on staff who could cover those duties if necessary.
When done with an intentional connection to growth, delegation is meaningful and can lead to small- and large-scale individual and organizational improvements. However, when done without an intentional connection to growth, delegation can be perceived as power over. And, while some leaders misuse their authority by assigning meaningless tasks on a regular basis, it is important to recognize that not all delegated work will directly align with an individual’s goals—that does not diminish its value or necessity. For example, you may need to delegate a task that does not directly relate to someone’s role during an emergency, or in order to meet a deadline. When this is the case, explain the reason to the staff and how their support is helpful to the situation.
This experience of delegating thoughtfully and meaningfully underscored the significance of cultivating growth and building leadership capacity throughout the program. I began considering ways to help all the staff achieve their goals by sharing responsibilities—not just mine. When another staff member was responsible for tasks related to someone else’s goals, those staff members were invited to serve as mentors. Staff became much more supportive of one another, and this cross-training approach broke down silos between teams as well. The organization also benefitted from having multiple people trained in various tasks.
Now you try it! Reflect on several staff members as you think about meaningful tasks to delegate by completing the following resource, Delegating Tasks Based on Goals.
©Bella, J.M. (2025, July 29). Delegating with Purpose: Linking Tasks and Goals. bella mattina. Retrieved from https://www.bellamattinaconsulting.com/blog/delegating-with-purpose. This document may be printed, duplicated, and distributed freely with attribution. Permission for the inclusion in publications must be obtained in writing from the author.
