Delegate Outcomes
What is left for someone to own if you have specified every step?
The idea
Delegate the result, boundaries, and check-ins—not every motion.
In the real world
Own onboarding time under these constraints.
Going deeper
Specifying every motion delegates execution and keeps responsibility, because anything the script does not cover has to come back. Since exceptions are exactly what consumes a manager's time, this transfers the cheap part of the work and retains the expensive part.
Delegating the outcome means handing over the result to achieve, the boundaries that must not be crossed, and the points at which you will check in. That combination gives the other person authority over the unanticipated cases, which is the thing that actually creates capacity — and it is also the only way they develop the judgement to handle them.
Where it stops applying
Outcome delegation assumes enough context and skill to make reasonable calls. For someone new, or where a mistake is very costly, specifying the process is the correct intermediate step.
Why it matters
It decides whether delegation buys you capacity or just moves the work around.
Try this today
Define success and authority for one delegated task.
Test yourself
A manager hands over onboarding with a fifteen-step script. Anything the script does not cover comes back to them. What was actually delegated?
Show the answer
The execution, not the responsibility. Specifying motions leaves every exception with the manager. Handing over the result, the boundaries and the check-in points is what transfers ownership of the cases nobody anticipated.
Learn this in the feed Answering from memory, then again days later, is what makes it stick.