What is the process of systematically retaining power and authority in the hands of higher level management?

Organizationally speaking, distributing authority is important in the empowering of lower level employee’s.  Employees without responsibility / authority often feel restrained and unable to think for themselves.  Without authority, the demands on a manager are even greater, as they need to make decisions for subordinates constantly.  By giving the authority to the subordinate, a manager can then spend their time elsewhere doing important tasks like planning.  An empowered employee is often a happier and more productive employee.

What is authority?  Authority is power that has been legitimized by the organization.  Organizations must determine how authority is distributed among positions.

The Delegation Process

What is delegation? delegation is the process by which managers assign a portion of their total workload to others.

Why do managers delegate?

1. Enable themselves to get more work done
2. Allow employees with more expertise than they have to handle the problem or task
3. Develop subordinates managerial skills by participating in decision-making and problem solving
4. Allow subordinates to learn more about the overall operations

Figure 11.4 (Griffin) Steps in the Delegation Process

Problems in Delegation

→Some managers fail to plan in advance

→Some managers are afraid the subordinate may do a better job and pose a threat to their own position

→Managers may not trust their subordinates

→Some subordinates may be afraid to they could fail at the task and as a result get reprimanded

→Some subordinates see no benefit it taking on additional work/responsibilities

Centralization and Decentralization

Centralization: The process of systematically retaining power and authority in the hands of higher-level managers.

Decentralization: The process of systematically delegating power and authority throughout the organization to middle and lower-level managers.

Below are a variety of tools to help you with delegation:

How_to_Delegate : This link provides a short quiz that helps determine if you are a good candidate for delegation.  It outlines the important components of delegation that’s done well.  In addition, it provides a checklist to help with the delegation process.

Successful Delegation Using the Power of Other Peoples Help:  This article discusses the Who, What, When, Why and How of delegating.

This video offers instructions on how to use Microsoft Outlook to delegate tasks out to others.  This tool will be beneficial to managers in order to keep track of the tasks assigned to others as well as when particularly tasks are due.  

This short video touches on quick tips and key factors to keep in mind in delegating responsiblity.

How to Empower Your Employees: This article posted on BusinessWeek from the Harvard Business Review outlines how you can empower your employees.

References:

Illustrations from: http://balooscartoonblog.blogspot.com/2009/10/delegation-cartoon.html  and http://www.everyday-wisdom.com/delegate-authority.html

Griffin, R. W. (2011). Management. Ohio: South-Western Cengage Learning.