The Oxford English Dictionary defines Delegation as "The action of delivering or assigning a thing to a person or to a purpose." Delegation is very important in the Air Force and military in general. When managers do not delegate, they can become overwhelmed. The concept of delegation can be difficult to master. I was a Contracting Officer for 6 years. During that time, I not only saw delegation within the military structure but also to the contractors we employed.
Delegation seems like an easy concept, but not everyone understands it and completes it with confidence. Some managers use delegation to ensure that they are not the only ones to blame in a failure. Some managers will delegate the difficult jobs or the ones they don't want to complete themselves. These are not the reasons delegation should be used in the business world. Delegation can be a great motivational tool, showing employees that they are trusted enough to complete a task. It shows that managers have confidence in the employee. Delegation can also help you as a manager and a sense of accomplishment once the task is completed. As a manager who delegates, you have more time to do other tasks. You could move up the career ladder more quickly because you have time to devote to other projects and your team gets more work done. Every business or office has an opportunity for some form of delegation.
Delegation is an everyday occurrence in the Air Force. The Air Force consists of a Chain of Command. At the top of this list is the President of the United States. At the bottom is your average airman. In the middle of this list are commanders, first sergeants, and superintendents. ...