5 Considerations for Assigning Tasks to Team Members
From the The Money Files Blog
by Elizabeth Harrin
A blog that looks at all aspects of project and program finances from budgets, estimating and accounting to getting a pay rise and managing contracts.
Written by Elizabeth Harrin from RebelsGuideToPM.com.
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I’ve chosen a bad headline for this article: I have an issue with assigning tasks – it doesn’t feel like the collaborative, co-created environment I would like to work in. Ideally, we’d meet as a team to do some planning, have a workshop or two and then tasks would be selected by the right people. If we had Kanban boards, team members would be able to select what they want to work on – because as long as they are working on something, the board would manage the priorities and it would be all good.
However, sometimes on projects you do need to reach out to people and assign them work, even if you ask nicely. Sometimes it happens because it’s obvious who is going to do the work because there is only one person in the organisation who can do it anyway.
Let’s take ‘assigning’ in the broadest possible sense, so it doesn’t mean ‘expecting people to do stuff on a project without engaging them’. Because regardless of whether the work is obviously destined for them, it’s always polite to ask.
Here are 5 considerations to take into account when distributing tasks to team members.
1. Capability
They have to have the right skills. If you are looking for colleagues to contribute to your project, consider the tasks they are going to be doing. The person who ends up with the task has to have the skills to carry it out.
Of course, there are exceptions to that, and we often use people working through an apprenticeship or less experienced staff to complete tasks as part of their on-the-job learning. They will be supported by an experienced colleague, but if you don’t learn, you’ll never get the confidence or skills to do it yourself in the future. Factor in additional time, support or training budget if necessary so you can make sure the people taking on tasks are equipped to do them.
2. Cost
People need to be budgeted for at different rates. Consider the cost impact to your budget if you assign tasks to people who are expensive!
3. Availability
People’s availability is a constraint on your project timeline. If the person allocated to the task is on holiday, they won’t do it, and the task will be late. That might be fine – perhaps you have the flexibility to schedule around the best person for the role and the work can wait until they get back.
Perhaps you have a fixed date to hit and need to find someone else.
4. Location
Does it matter these days? I think it depends on the role. If I want in-person, classroom based train-the-trainer training so I have a team equipped to go out and deliver on site training, then I do need them to be within travelling distance.
If it’s a graphic design job, they could be anywhere.
Think about where the team members are based and whether that matters to the task in hand.
5. Cultural add
I was talking to someone the other day about one of their colleagues who was considered a ‘toxic cultural fit’.
The challenge with cultural fit is that it can be interpreted as simply hiring people who look like you and think the same as you, so they slot neatly into the environment without disruption. That’s not what this is about. Consider ‘cultural add’ instead. We want diversity of opinions. We want new ideas and different interpretations. We want disruption and challenge.
The people on your team should lift you up and make the team, and the solution, better.
What do you consider when working with your team to divide up the responsibility for tasks? Is there anything else you take into account? Let us know in the comments!
Posted on: June 14, 2023 08:00 AM |
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Comments (18)
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Well-articulated writeup Ms Harrin !
Great post as usual. Thanks for shring and keeping us up to date on project management.
Cheers !!
Elizabeth, you may be getting some visits to this post based on a mention in my PM courses this week. And speaking of visits, I'd love to have you "drop in" in my Fall classes - I am jumping back to the basic graduate PM intro class again, and it's been too long since you appeared.
@Rich, I'd be happy to! Message me and let's catch up.
Thanks for shring and keeping us up to date on project management. Thank you very much!
Luis Branco
CEO| Business Insight, Consultores de Gestão, Ldª
Carcavelos, Lisboa, Portugal
Dear Elizabeth
Very interesting the theme that brought to our reflection and for debate
Thank you for sharing and for your opinions.
When delegating tasks, it is important to consider these key factors:
Desired outcomes: Clearly define and communicate the intended results that need to be achieved, focusing on the end goals rather than prescribing specific methods.
Guidance: Set clear boundaries and provide necessary instructions and context for the delegated task, while allowing the individual some autonomy to make decisions within those parameters.
Resources: Identify and allocate the required resources, such as personnel, finances, equipment, or information, to support the successful completion of the delegated task.
Monitoring: Establish checkpoints and criteria to monitor the progress of the task. Regularly assess the performance, provide feedback, and offer support as needed.
Consequences: Clearly define the consequences associated with the outcomes of the delegated task, whether they are positive rewards or negative repercussions. This helps foster accountability and motivation.
By considering these factors, you can enhance the effectiveness of the delegation process, ensure clarity, and facilitate successful task completion.
Talat Khan
Project Engineer| Saudi Electric Company
Riyadh, 01, Saudi Arabia
In my opinion all your points are valid but there are two types of availabilities. First is quantity and the second is quality depending upon the nature of project. Some places team headcounts are priority whereas other places productivity is the main concern.
I agree that there should be people in the team who have different perspectives or cultural backgrounds from themselves. In short, the team atmosphere should be diverse, which is conducive to discovering different ideas during project discussions.
Thanks for all the comments and for sharing your perspectives!
Jeni Baldwin
Founder| Polidish LLC
Dallas, Tx, United States
I loved this. I might add a 6th which is potential-I think that all 5 of the considerations have inherent assumptions and in a world with limited resources and increased time outputs of team workers, greater opportunities for growth and advancement are in the works for leaders in the making.
You mentioned some esential points here - thank you for that!
Thank you Luis for valuable comment that brings the next level to the topic.
Renuka Ayri
Project Manager, PMP| Freelance
Kraainem, Belgium
Good summary, @Elizabeth Harrin.
I would add one more important factor to be considered while assigning tasks - "the motivation". The person may have the capability and (availability) but if he/she is not fully motivated, it will impact the input and the outcome.
The fact is that most of the times, the team members are allocated to the projects by the management depending more on their skill sets than anything else. In big companies, the SME's are usually limited and overloaded but still assigned more projects, to which they (politically) cannot say no. These people may lack the motivation and give lower priority to your project. The project manager has no choice in the selection of the team and has to deal with the situation.
What I usually do is to talk informally (1-2-1) to each member of my team at the beginning of the project to gauge their mood and motivation as well as openly discuss their availability and priority for my project. This helps me to adjust my project timeline, in agreement with my team, keeping a reasonable buffer that is more feasible to achieve by all.
Of course, as @Luis Branco mentioned in his comment, it is important to clearly define "desired outcomes" and what is expected from each team member.
It is also important that each team member knows and understands the roles and responsibilities of other team members in the project (RACI). This helps smooth collaboration among team members.
Bryson Lee
Program Manager| Western Shelter Services
Eugene, Or, United States
These are really good informational bits to keep top of mind pre-delegation. Thank you!
Thank you, very much!! The topic that you brought to our reflection and debate was very interesting.
Lidong Wang
New York University
New York, Ny, United States
What a practical article!
From my perspective and experience, 'assigning' tasks is an art, which need strategic and tactic thinking and method, no matter we want to engage some team members to get the work done, or we just make some connection with key stakeholders to make things happened.
Thank you for sharing!
Mishirika Scott
PMO Portfolio Manager, IT Strategic Initiatives| University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)
Greater Los Angeles Area, Ca, United States
Another worthy consideration is aptitude, beyond skill there are some team members tho have a 'natural ability' to get one job done over another with effortless or natural ease, which lends nicely to the dual benefit of getting the job done while also gaining some level of personal satisfaction. Thanks Elizabeth!
Excellent Publication, the information is very clear and calls for reflection before assigning tasks
Absolutely agree! Assigning tasks collaboratively fosters a better work environment. Considering capability, cost, availability, location, and cultural add are essential for task distribution. Emphasizing "cultural add" brings diversity and fresh ideas to the team. Great points !!
Good information and the topics was great.
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