Authority & Delegation

1. Authority & Delegation Responsibility, Accountability

2. Authority • Formal and legitimate right of a manager to make decisions, issue orders, and allocate resources • Vested in organizational positions, not people

3. Line & Staff • Line employees: directly involved in fulfillment of the primary mission of the organization • Ex : Operation, Sales • Staff employees: provide specialized service to support line efforts • Ex : HR

4. Line and Staff Responsibilities • Line Personnel • Those organizational members that are directly involved in delivering the products and services of the organization. • Staff Personnel • Those organizational members that are not directly involved in delivering the products and services to the organization, but provide support for line personnel.

5. CEO VP Marketing VP Production VP Finance Chain of Command An unbroken line of authority that links all persons in an organization and shows who reports to whom. Unity of Command A principle that each employee in the Organization is accountable to one, and only one, supervisor.

6. The Vertical Dimension of Organization Structure • Authority – The formal right of a manager to make decisions, give orders, and expect the orders to be carried out. • Line Authority • Staff Authority • Unity of Command – a subordinate should have only one direct supervisor. • A decision can be traced back from the subordinates who carry it out to the manager who made it.

7. The Vertical Dimension of Organization Structure • Responsibility • the manager’s duty to perform an assigned task. • Accountability • the manager (or other employee) with authority and responsibility must be able to justify results to a manager at a higher level in the organizational hierarchy.

8. Delegation • Process to transfer authority and responsibility to positions below • Delegate authority to the lowest possible level.

9. The Delegation Triangle Perform an assigned task Responsibility Formal and legitimate right of a manager to make decisions, issue orders, andallocate resources Justify outcomes to those above in the chain of command. Authority Accountability

10. Delegation • Delegation • The process of transforming the responsibility for a specific activity or task to another member of the organization and empowering that individual to accomplish the task effectively. • Scalar principle • A clear line of authority must run throughout the organization.

11. Delegation • The Process of Delegation • Assigning responsibility • Responsibility refers to the employee’s obligation to complete the activities that he or she has been assigned. • Granting authority • Authority is the formal right of an employee to marshal resources and make decisions necessary to fulfill work responsibilities.

12. Delegation • The Process of Delegation • Establishing accountability • Where there is accountability for performance, employees understand that they must justify their decisions and actions with regard to the tasks for which they have assumed responsibility.

13. Delegation • The Benefits of Delegation and Empowerment • Leads to a more involved and empowered workforce. • Leads to better decision making. • Provides opportunity for employee to develop analytical and problem solving skills. • Provides managers the opportunity to accomplish more complicated, difficult, or important tasks.

14. Delegation • Reasons for Failing to Delegate • The “time crunch.” • Lack of confidence in the abilities of subordinates. • Managers try to avoid the potential pitfalls of dual accountability. • Managers may be insecure about their own value to the organization.

15. Delegation: Learning to Delegate Effectively • Principle 1: • Match the employee to the task. • Principle 2: • Be organized and communicate clearly. • Principle 3: • Transfer authority and accountability with the task. • Principle 4: • Choose the level of delegation carefully.