Delegation of Authority

BASIS DELEGATION DECENTRALIZATION

MEANING Managers delegate some of their functions and authority to their subordinates

Right to take decisions is shared by top management

Responsibility Responsibility remains of themanagers and cannot be delegated

Responsibility is also delegatedto subordinates.

Freedom ofWork

Freedom is not given to thesubordinates as they have towork as per the instructions of their superiors

Freedom to work can bemaintained by subordinates asthey are free to take decision

Nature It is a routine function

It is an important decision of anenterprise

Withdrawal Delegated authority can betaken back.

It is considered as a generalpolicy of top management and isapplicable to all departments.

Definition

“The process by which a manager assigns a portion of his total work load to others”

Nature of DelegationTwo-sided relationshipAct of trustDependency relationshipA challenging task- on senior’s side mostlyForward thinking principle- opens a new

chapter for senior subordinate relationship

Steps in Delegation

1. Assignment of Duties -Clarity of duty as well as result expected has to be the first step in delegation.

2. Granting of authority - superior divides and shares his authority with the subordinate.

3. Creation of an obligation- accountability is the liability for the proper discharge of duties by the subordinates

Principles of delegation1. Principle of result expected- suggests

that every manager before delegating the powers to the subordinate should be able to clearly define the goals as well as results expected from them.

2. Principle of Parity of Authority and Responsibility- Both of them should go hand in hand

3. Principle of absolute responsibility- authority can be delegated but responsibility cannot be delegated by managers to his subordinates.

It does not means that he can escape from his responsibility.

superiors cannot pass the blame to the subordinates even if he has delegated certain powers to subordinates

example if the production manager has been given a work and the machine breaks down. If repairmen is not able to get repair work done, production manager will be responsible to CEO if their production is not completed

4. Principle of Authority level- suggests that a manager should exercise his authority within the framework given.

5. Principle of unity of command- for any given activity an employee should be made accountable to only one superior

6. Scalar principle- line of authority should be clear from top to bottom so that delegation decisions can be made clearly

Advantages of delegationReduces the burden of the superiorHe has more time for other imp activities‘tonic effect’ on subordinatesImproved superior-subordinate relations

Problems of delegationReluctance to delegate

Better performance- I can do it better myselfNo trust- I cannot trust others to do the jobSubordinate may get creditContinuous guidance is difficult- I cannot

coach everything

Reluctance to accept delegationEasy to ask- easier to ask rather than taking

decisions oneselfFear of criticism- if failure superior may put

it on subordinateLack of information sources- lack of

necessary informationToo heavy- I am already overburdenedLack of self confidence