Delegate
A trusting environment doesn’t evolve from just interacting with employees and helping solve problems by communicating with managers. It also is a result of delegating.
When Oates arrived at Universal, he hired some new employees to complement some of the existing employees, and he didn’t want the two factions to become divided.
He avoided that problem by delegating and involving everyone in the process of running a business.
“In my mind, I look at it as, everything I do can be delegated except responsibility,” he says.
Oates can remember being pulled off his regular assignment as a 25-year-old up-and-comer and being given a special project with a six-person team.
After giving a report on the project, his boss walked in his office around 8 p.m. where Oates’ desk looked like a tornado hit it. After telling Oates he did a great job on the report, his boss told him he received an F from a leadership standpoint.
“He said, ‘I love the work you are doing, and there is no doubt in my mind you are going to deliver on this project that we gave you,’” Oates says. “‘But if someday you want to progress in your career, you better learn how to delegate better.’ He said, ‘By tomorrow, I would strongly urge you to take all this crap you’ve got on your desk and, when I come through here, I would hope that you would be smart enough to have all of this crap on somebody else’s desk.’”
While Oates wasn’t doing everything himself, he could have been more effective letting go of some tasks.
“When I’m doing something, I say, ‘Why am I doing this?’ I ask myself that all the time,” he says.
“Sometimes people are bright and have great work ethic, but it’s got to be their way. The only way they can ensure that is they do everything themselves. They never make the transition from good lower-level manager to a senior position in the company.”
The more you can delegate, the more time you have to be accessible to your employees.
“I look at delegation from a selfish, personal standpoint — that’s the way you leverage your time,” he says. “You can very easily get pulled into detail and never get your head above water. So, it’s critically important from a selfish, personal standpoint.
“From a productivity standpoint and from an organizational standpoint and an employee standpoint, it’s equally important because that’s how you get people involved in the process. So, the more I can delegate, the happier I am.”
How to reach: Universal Stainless & Alloy Products Inc. (412) 257-7600 or www.univstainless.com
