How to Delegate Client Work When You're the Bottleneck
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- SpidNums
Delegation sticks when the owner classifies work by judgment required rather than by difficulty: rules-based work moves first, checklist in hand; judgment work moves later behind a review gate. Every handoff needs a named owner, a due date and a defined 'done' — otherwise the file quietly returns to the owner's desk.
The bottleneck diagnosis
If work waits on one person, that person is the constraint regardless of how capable they are. The test is simple: look at what is sitting in review and ask how long it has been there.
Classify by judgment, not difficulty
Difficult rules-based work delegates well; easy judgment work does not. Reconciling a complex bank account is delegable with a checklist. Deciding whether an expense is deductible is not, until the person has the background to decide it.
Checklist first, then delegate
Writing the checklist is the delegation. Handing over work without one produces a version of the work shaped by whoever received it, and then a rewrite — which teaches the owner that delegation does not work.
Review gates that do not become re-doing
Review means checking against defined criteria, not redoing the file to see whether you would have done the same. If review takes as long as preparation, the criteria are missing, not the skill.
Named owner, due date, definition of done
All three, every time. 'Have a look at the Henderson file' is not a handoff. 'Complete the bank reconciliation stage by Thursday, ready for review' is.
Tracking handoffs so nothing boomerangs
Work that returns to the owner without anyone deciding it should is the most common delegation failure. Stage-level ownership makes the return visible: the file is either in prep, in review, or done, and each state has a name attached.
What the owner should still keep
Client relationships that generate work, final professional judgment, and pricing. Almost everything else is a candidate.
Frequently asked questions
What should a firm owner delegate first?
Rules-based work, however difficult it looks: reconciliations, data preparation, document collection, first-pass return preparation. Judgment work moves later, behind a review gate, once the person has the background to make the call rather than follow the steps.
Why does delegated work keep coming back?
Usually because 'done' was never defined. A handoff needs a named owner, a due date and a specific completion criterion. Without the third, the work returns for interpretation and the owner concludes that delegation does not work.
How long should reviewing a delegated file take?
Substantially less than preparing it. If review takes as long as preparation, the review criteria are missing rather than the preparer's skill, and the fix is a written checklist rather than a different person.
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