Delegation vs. Abdication: A New Year Leadership Reflection
Hello Managers,
Welcome to the new year.
As we step into a fresh start, I wanted to share something I learned recently; something that genuinely shifted the way I think about leadership.
For the longest time, I hated the word *delegation*.
Not because delegation is bad, but because what I often saw labeled as delegation was something entirely different in practice.
What Delegation *Is Supposed* to Be
Delegation, at its core, is about empowering your team to take on tasks, projects, or opportunities that you, as a leader, no longer have the bandwidth to carry.
True delegation means:
• Providing clear context around the task or project
• Explaining the ‘why’ behind it
• Sharing expectations, risks, and constraints
• Setting clear decision-making boundaries
• Empowering your team member to make decisions
And then—you step aside.
But here’s the critical distinction:
**You step aside, but you do not step away.**
The Leader’s Role After Delegating
When you delegate properly, your role shifts from owner to mentor.
You remain present through coaching, guidance, and strategic support; especially through your one-to-one meetings.
Your one-to-ones become the space where:
• Challenges are surfaced
• Problems are worked through
• Decisions are discussed
• Learning happens in real time
You’re still there. You haven’t disappeared.
What Delegation Is *Not*
Unfortunately, what many leaders call delegation is actually something else entirely.
It often looks like this:
“Hey, are you interested in taking on some work I don’t have time for?”
A quick ‘yes’ follows.
The manager forwards an email thread (no context, no explanation), usually stemming from a meeting that happened months ago.
The message reads: *FYI, see below.*
Now the team member is confused, missing critical background, and unsure whether it’s appropriate to ask for help because they were just asked to ‘take it on.’
This doesn’t empower people.
It sets them up to fail.
There’s a Name for This: Abdication
I recently learned there’s a word that perfectly describes this behavior:
**Abdication.**
Abdication is when leaders dump work without context, guidance, or support.
Delegation is development.
Abdication is avoidance.
A New Year Leadership Check
As we move through the early days of the year, many of you will be thinking about how to offload work (not just to free up your time), to develop your people.
Before you hand something off, pause and ask yourself:
• Do I have the time to provide context?
• Can I support this person through coaching?
• Am I willing to stay engaged as a mentor?
Because depending on how you show up, the same action can either be:
**Delegation—or abdication.**
If you’re trying to be a thoughtful, effective manager, and want space to think, ask real questions, and get grounded guidance, mentoring gives you that.
