Ruth was on the leadership fast track in her organization from the moment she got there. A smart, ambitious, hardworking and results-oriented engineer, her ability to get things done and her attention to detail paved her way to a general management position in a government contracting company.
In her new role as a general manager overseeing an entire division of people, Ruth found herself overwhelmed. Directing and controlling the activities of all the subdivisions seemed impossible to her. She had managed large projects before, so she assumed that a disciplined project management approach would continue to work for running a large organization.
Ruth implemented rigid and meticulous reporting mechanisms and reviews to ensure she had her finger on the pulse of everything. She insisted that all important decisions go through her for approval.
As a result, the organization spent more time creating reports and trying to figure out the answers she wanted than it did creating innovative solutions. Decisions bottlenecked and actions stalled, awaiting Ruth’s approval. When she did review a proposal, she routinely changed the work and suggested a different way of handling the situation or approach.
Pretty quickly, her team became frustrated, disempowered, disengaged and disenchanted. “Just ask her how she wants it done,” became the organization’s mantra.
Do you know a “Ruth”? Are you Ruth?
Check out the rest of this new article on delegation just published at Forbes.com at the link below…
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