ELEMENTS OF DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY Authority - Authority can be defined as the power and right of a person to use and allocate the resources efficiently, to take decisions and to give orders so as to achieve the organizational objectives. Authority must be well- defined. All people who have the authority should know what is the scope of their authority is and they shouldn’t misutilize it. Authority is the right to give commands, orders and get the things done. The top level management has greatest authority. Authority always flows from top to bottom. It explains how a superior gets work done from his subordinate by clearly explaining what is expected of him and how he should go about it. Authority should be accompanied with an equal amount …show more content…
The top level management is most accountable. Being accountable means being innovative as the person will think beyond his scope of job. Accountability, in short, means being answerable for the end result. Accountability can’t be escaped. It arises from responsibility.
ADVANTAGES OF DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY
1. Minimize the Work Load Of Managers-Delegation of authority minimizes the workload of managers.They can assign regular and routine nature of work to their subordinates while they concentrate more effectively in managerial and creative functions. In this way, delegation of authority helps in improving managerial efficiency and effectiveness.
2. Saving of time-A single person requires more time to do a particular work while the same work cn be done in a less time if the work is delegated between teammates. 3. Benefit Of Specialization-Specialization is the means of success in a dynamic environment.The management delegates authority as well as responsibility to subordinates on the basis of their ability and knowledge. This contributes in the development of the concept of specialization among the
…show more content…
Built Teamspirit -Delegating authority to a group of individuals increases their bonding and mutual understanding. They get a chance to work together towards a common goal, thus building the team spirit.
DISADVANTAGES OF DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY
1. Misuse of Power - In delegating authority, there is a risk of the delegate misusing his power for personal gains. He may have access to confidential information, which he may leak to the competitors, or involve himself in other fraudulent activities. This possibility raises a question mark on the employee's integrity, in which case, choosing such an individual as the delegate would be a wrong decision.
2. Failure to Fulfill the Tasks - The manager's instructions may not be well taken care of by the delegate, or he may not be very particular about following them. This may breed from unwillingness or incapacity of the delegate. 3. Delay - The delegate may take long to understand the new responsibility. As he has authority, delayed actions on his part may hamper his team's performance. A delay in planning or taking decisions may not be affordable for the organization. Hence, it is not advisable to delegate authority when there is a time
• Accountability: We don’t say, “It’s not my fault” or “It’s not my job.” We take responsibility for meeting our commitments – our personal ones as well as those of the entire organization. We take ownership of the
likewise the general manager will have the authority over the managers of each department. Also, written documents and weekly meetings between departmans managers and employees.
This work structure and physical design helped shape each team into one integrated and supportive unit.
Delegating tasks is one area that I must work on in my leadership skills. When a leader cannot delegate task appropriately, this can lead to their downfall. My action is to learn more of the reasons why I chose not to delegate tasks. When that piece is understood, I can then move forward in correcting and adjusting my delegating. The employee specialist along with the Vice President of Nursing give me projects where delegating is necessary. They both follow these projects closely and challenge my moves of when and what I delegate and to whom those tasks are delegated to. Attending a seminar on delegation is also in my action
Leadership is definitely about power and an effective leader is able to utilize both types of powers rather than relying on one or the other. Formal power can be used by leadership to remove obstacles or roadblocks faced by employees and to make both hard and easy decisions regarding the organization. Inspiration, influence, trust, and loyalty are all elements that create a high performing and content staff and all these elements are related to the use of informal power. It is important for an effective leader to create a balance between both kinds of power in order to effectively motivate and influence their staff using power.
108). Elements of this theory include the direction given on tasks by the leader, the support provided by the leader, and the readiness of those tasked to take on responsibilities which works as a leveling mechanism. As the subordinate’s responsibility and ownership increases the leader’s support and direction will decrease. If the opposite occurs then the leveling is reversed. When the leader’s direction and support are high they are considered telling leaders. When the transition to subordinate responsibility is made the leader becomes for of a selling leader. This concept is important because its holds the leader responsible for adapting their leadership style to the development of the subordinates. There are times when leaders are looking for subordinates to take ownership or responsibility and reversing the roles enables the leaders to understand the importance of accountability and
Accountability in the workforce holds each employee responsible for his or her actions. This can include getting to work on time, maintaining a work schedule, and being able to fulfill the requirements of the job.
“Effective delegation leverages the manager’s energy and talent and those of his or her subordinates. It allows managers to accomplish much more than they would be able to do on their own. Conversely, lack of delegation, or ineffective delegation, sharply reduces what a manager can achieve. The manager also saves one of his or her most valuable assets—time—by giving some of his or her responsibility to somebody else.
Usually, the belief is that the managers, administrators, presidents or even the supervisors, have the greatest source of power, because they are at the top of the ladder in the hierarchy of the organization. The reality is that they need
When power becomes legitimate, it is then recognized as authority (Denhardt et al, 2001). Power becomes authority when it is accepted and even desired by society. As stated by the course study notes, “authority refers to a situation where a person (or group) has been formally granted a leadership position”. An individual has authority when everyday norms and regulations support the exercising of power by that individual. In an organizational setting, “authority is hierarchal and vested in positions” (Week 9 Study Notes), which are defined by “organizational charts, positions and rules” (Week 9 Study Notes). Generally, power in authority also involves the possibility of rewards such as promotions and good performance reviews.
A manager cannot just be a leader; he also needs formal authority to be effective. In some circumstances, leadership is not required. For example, self-motivated groups may not require a single leader and may find leaders dominating. The fact that a leader is not always required p... ... middle of paper ... ...
Many organization have structures level of leadership. The person in leadership transforms the employees by inspiring them to follow the vision set by the organization. How do great leaders do this? By the use of power and authority. Leaders influence other with use of power. Authority gives the leader the right exert this power. Both leadership and authority is linked to power but in order to operate effectively; the use of power must be understood.
Being in a position of management, it is your responsibility to ensure that your team of associates are well informed on what they need to accomplish. With poor communication, there may be a lack of understanding of what is expected. This creates a domino effect in which every step down the way is performed. Beyond the consistency of strong work production, the morale in the workplace may be affected. It can be disheartening to an individual to put so much effort into what they are being paid to do just to find out that because of poor communication their work may have all been for nothing. Being a good leader doesn’t only require that you have the ability to communicate, but to be able to listen. Taking in the information and comprehending it is the first step to conveying what you are looking to accomplish. Getting to the point with people immediately with a task at hand can prevent the inability to finish any given responsibility in a timely manner. Sometimes change in the workplace can bring out a side in someone that you wouldn’t normally face with a normal interaction. People become comfortable with how things go on a day to day basis. When changes in management occur or policies change after a longer period of time, the most loyal of employees can take an offense to a change and have it not sit well with them. This ties in to not only being able to effectively
Power is the capacity or the ability for one to influence the behaviors of others in any given organization. In a business setting, those in control of the organization will always give instructions and directives to those in lower ranks when running of the business. Power is always accompanied with authority, control or even commands. Leadership is the process where by a person influences others to achieve certain objective and goals of a business and then guides the firm in a way that makes it more unified and comprehensible. Leaders directly affect the performance of any firm and good leaders are born and not made. There are leadership styles and leadership theories which are very vital in leadership of the organizations for they affect its success. For the success of business to be achieved there needs to be a group of experts and consultants in leadership for they will effectively and efficiently run the business as expected.
Legitimate power comes from a position of authority and increases the higher a manager rises within the organizational hierarchy. Once awarded legitimate power, its wielder has influence because he can set and enforce standards and use and distribute organizational resources. Managers can build upon a legitimate power base through other sources of power, which transforms managers into leaders. Leaders inspire behaviors in others without resorting to their legitimate authority alone.