Fear of decreased personal job satisfaction.
Because the type of tasks recommended to delegate are those that are familiar and routine, the delegator’s job satisfaction should ac- tually increase with the opportunity to explore new challenges and obtain other skills and abilities.
An Unwilling Delegate Inexperience and fear of failure can motivate a potential delegate to refuse to accept a delegated task. Much reassurance and support are needed. In addition, the delegate should be equipped to handle the task. If proper selection criteria are used and the steps of delegation followed, then the delegate should not fail. The delegator can boost the delegate’s lack of confidence by build- ing on simple tasks. The delegate needs to be reminded that everyone was inexperienced at one time. Another common concern is how mistakes will be handled. When describing the task, the delegator should provide clear guidelines for handling problems, guidelines that adhere to orga- nizational policies.
Another barrier is the individual who avoids responsibility or is overdependent on others. Success breeds success; therefore, it is important to use an enticing incentive to engage the indi- vidual in a simple task that guarantees success.
When the steps of delegation are not followed or barriers remain unresolved, delegation is often ineffective. Inefficient delegation can result from unnecessary duplication, underdelega- tion, reverse delegation, and overdelegation.