Some of the common traits sought-after in Construction Managers in the industry are leadership, technical knowledge, and good communication skill. However, one trait that is often forgotten in the qualification process is just as important— the ability to effectively delegate tasks. In a multitude of tasks needed to be completed to deliver a successful project, one might think that a Construction Manager is responsible for doing all the work alone; however, this is not the case anymore.
While great managers usually take matters into their own hands, it doesn’t signify that they have to do everything in the project by themselves. Rather, with years of experience, they also develop the skill of picking out the best people to do specific tasks. Their ability to identify the positive qualities in their team members makes them successful in the long run while empowering the morale of their team to improve in their respective craft.
Now, if task delegation is critical in developing trust between team members, how can construction managers do this more effectively? In this blog, let’s examine what stops a manager from delegating tasks, and walk you through establishing concrete task delegation plans that you can incorporate into your business.
Let’s take a look below:
What Stops Construction Managers from Delegating Tasks?
1. Afraid of Passing Additional Work to Others
Some managers consider task delegation to just pass work off to other people, leading them not to do so. This brings about a waste of valuable time and resources, both of them and the company’s. Instead, it should be perceived as an opportunity for managing tasks more efficiently. Delegation doesn’t translate to weakness but empowers the strength of a confident leader.
2. Not Trusting Other Team Members
Managers are sometimes hesitant about delegating work to subordinates because they think that they could do the tasks better themselves. It’s easy to fall into this biased mindset when one evaluates his work. This behavior is a red flag signifying that the manager needs some trust-building exercises with his construction team.
3. Wanting To Do Everything Perfectly
A leader can’t do everything himself in a company, and he is not required to. The sooner one realizes this, the better it’d be for his company. It’s always an experimental task to let go of complete control over some things, especially when the task is high-risk for the project. Still, it’s essential to constantly remind yourself that your team seeks meaningful and crucial work to be sent their way just like you. You succeed every time they do and vice versa.
In most construction management scenarios, the benefits of task delegation outweigh the risks. Once you’ve entirely accepted this, you can maximize effectiveness and efficiency between the team, leading to better teamwork.
How to Create A Project Tasks Management Plan?
1. Review the Current Task Delegation of Your Company
There are five questions to consider in evaluating this first step:
a. Do we have an available team member to delegate to? This might seem obvious, but you must first consider someone available who can handle the delegated task. If there is no one, then the resolution NOT to delegate becomes quite simple. However, if one or more staff are available, you will want to continue to the second point.
b. What is the time frame for this task and the construction scheduling of the overall project? In other words, do you have the time to delegate, or does the completion schedule require your immediate action ASAP?
c. What project details are confidential or not? Some projects require your involvement and execution only. If a specific task is not confidential, then it might be best to delegate.
d. What is the complexity level of the task? Quite similar to the time allowance, some tasks will require more transition and training time to ensure an individual will be able to handle the complexity of the task. Depending on the time frame, you might or might not see it as worthy for delegating.
e. What is the assigned level of accountability? While it might be delegated to have an employee finish at least a part of the needed work, in more instances, managers must determine whether or not they can assign the accountability to an employee
2. Define What Task You Can Delegate and What You Can’t
The second step in creating a good project task management plan is setting a clear boundary between the tasks you can and cannot control. For instance, some tasks may contain confidential information that should not be distributed to your staff’s organizational level.
Moreover, some of your team’s tasks may not be qualified to perform, then setting them up for failure. Finally, don’t dump undesirable activities onto your staff to get them off your plate. Your team members will eventually figure this out, and it will taint your credibility as a manager.
Task delegation is a helpful tool to maximize your construction team’s productivity, improve their skill set, support them to grow professionally, and free up your schedule to perform higher-level tasks. To conclude this second step— make sure that you are delegating the right tasks, to the right people, for the right reasons.
3. Choose People You Can Delegate To
Now that you already know what to delegate, the next step is to develop a delegation plan outlining the tasks and to whom they should be delegated. When choosing who gets which tasks, consider the following questions:
a. Who has the set of qualifications to do the task at hand?
b. Who could perform the tasks with proper mentoring and instruction with the goal of improving their skillset?
c. Who should not be given the tasks because of political biases or professional weaknesses?
d. Who deserves to receive the task based on the company’s years of experience and seniority level?
e. The importance and visibility of the tasks to certain departments or teams
Delegating the specific tasks to the right people is not always an easy step to take. Still, your team members will surely accept your decisions if you do it with transparency, consistency, and fairness.
4. Delegate Task According to The Competency Level of Your Team Member
At this point, you have made your decision on who will be assigned for the delegated task. It is critical for you to consider the amount of preparation you will need to do for the person to succeed — so no rework should happen. Consider what prepping work you might do depending on the kind of worker you have selected.
- Experienced Staff: Show the big picture to what is expected for the task, identify the resources needed (if the worker doesn’t know) such as technical and contact information, set the objective and goal for the completion with the deadline, and then let him operate on his own.
- Challenged Staff: Set clear expectations for completing the task, present the timeline, ask and discuss any follow-up meeting schedule to ensure that the work is done correctly, and then let him operate on his own.
- Unskilled Staff: Define the importance and purpose of the task, then work through every portion of the delegated task to ensure that the worker is on the right track. It would also be smart to define any needed resources, set any standards for clarity, and establish an action plan for monitoring that includes regular “check-ups.” Finally, after getting him started, let him operate on his own.
5. Monitor and Regularly Follow-Up
Employees have more respect for their manager if that manager, when delegating work, actually follows up and follows through according to the schedule and when needed. Such an effort by the manager reinforces the importance of the delegated task to be executed. Follow the steps below to empower and encourage the worker to whom you entrusted.
- Check-in and ask for the updated status of the task on a set schedule.
- Review what challenges have surfaced and how they might be mitigated, if not eliminated.
- Establish the needed authority for the task so that the employee can complete as much work without coming back to you to ask questions.
How Construction Scheduling Software Can Streamline Task Management
With a proven construction management software at hand and ample knowledge on how to delegate tasks effectively within your team, you are giving yourself time to focus on more critical tasks in the project and gain extra time for yourself to enjoy. It can significantly boost your team’s overall productivity and allow you to build trust and accountability with your team members, leading to a successful construction project.
Manage construction projects with Pro Crew Schedule, so you can delegate tasks effectively and conveniently like a real pro and ultimately increase productivity and efficiency in your projects from now and beyond.
