How to delegate like a CEO (4 Powerful Methods)

“Business, like life, is all about how you make people feel. It’s that simple, and it’s that hard.” ― Danny Meyer

Why it works

Danny Meyer (pictured above) is an American restaurateur and the CEO of Union Square Hospitality Group. The company owns and operates multiple highly acclaimed restaurants in New York City – including Union Square Cafe, Gramercy Tavern, and The Modern. In addition to these fine dining ventures, Meyer is also the founder of Shake Shack, a wildly successful fast-casual burger chain with locations around the world.

Meyer’s influence extends beyond his restaurants. He’s a proponent of the “no tipping” model, where service charges are built into the price of the meal, allowing for higher wages for staff and better equality in earnings. And in his book Setting the Table, a New York Times bestseller on his philosophy of “enlightened hospitality”, he emphasizes the importance of treating employees, customers, suppliers, and communities with care and respect. 

Some leaders think doing everything themselves is the best way to keep quality high. Yet, trying to juggle every task yourself not only holds you back. It keeps your team from growing, too. Meyer has developed one of the best frameworks for leaders to decide which employees to delegate tasks to: the Skill / Will Matrix. Together with three other methods, it makes for a powerful quartet to help you determine what and when to delegate. Let’s dive right in.

How to do it

1) The Skill / Will Matrix
Assign tasks by matching them with skills and motivation. Meyer uses a simple 2x2 matrix to pull this off: high-will, low-skill employees get guidance; high-skill, high-will ones receive empowerment (and the complex, most challenging tasks); low-will, high-skill colleagues need to be motivated; and low-will, low-skill ones need direction – or to be moved to a different role. If you want to learn more about the Skill / Will Matrix, listen to this podcast (starting at 1:03:19).

2) The 80/20 Rule
Find the 20% of what you do that creates 80% of your results. Delegate the less-impactful 80%. Also known as the Pareto Principle, the 80/20 rule applies to many other business domains. It has become an adage in the corporate world that 80% of a firm’s revenues come from 20% of its customers, so focusing on a few key customers significantly boosts profitability. You can also use the 80/20 rule in other life domains. Here are ten ways to get you started.

3) The Eisenhower Matrix
Divide tasks into urgent and important. Delegate tasks others can do, so you can focus on the most important. Created by U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower and popularized in Stephen Covey’s book “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People”, the Eisenhower Matrix is arguably the best tool for determining what’s urgent, important, both or neither. If you want to dive deeper into the Eisenhower Matrix, read this.

4) The 70% Rule
If someone can do a task 70% as well as you, it’s worth delegating. Most people wait until someone else can do a task as well as themselves, which sets them up to own the task forever. Don’t be most people. The 70% Rule will enable you to solve one of the most challenging delegation problems: knowing when to delegate. Learn more about the 70% Rule in this article.

Delegating frees up time to focus on what matters most.

It balances your workload. And it allows your team to grow. 

So look at your to-do list and ask yourself: What can I delegate today?

And please share this post with one person who might benefit from doing the same.

Until next week,
Christian

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