Delegation as a Culture Bolster

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Learning the art of delegation is much more than handing off a job assignment, never to return to it. It is actually a skill that has to be learned. It does not come intuitively like other skills. I speak from personal experience as I was the boss that thought I could do everything. That if I did it all, I would do it perfectly and my life would be easier than having to constantly train and retrain. What made matters worse is that I then employed hospital managers with the same mentality, over and over. So it ended up with the two of us trying to manage a staff just shy of 50 all by ourselves. A labor in futility and once again, just exhausting ourselves and everyone around us. 

Eli Broad, an entrepreneur, said “The inability to delegate is one of the biggest problems I see with managers at all levels.” 

And I totally agree. How do we know when to let go, who to trust and how to delegate? Often we get stuck here and refuse to move forward taking on all the tasks ourselves and thus solidifying our fantastical and rapid self-inflicted implosion, aka burnout. As a wife and mom, I certainly did this in my home life. I would try to do all the tasks because no one could do them exactly like me. The dishes had to be placed perfectly in the dishwasher, the clothes folded just so. To see these tasks performed by someone else in my house incorrectly made me cringe and frustrated. 

One day I was watching my husband load the dishwasher and it was after an incredibly long day at work. I watched and instead of feeling frustrated because he was doing it all wrong, I felt incredibly grateful. I was able to let go of these ridiculous expectations and bask in the glow of help. And simultaneously I thought to myself, what happened along the way to make me think that only my way was the way? How arrogant of me and was I going to spend the rest of my life doing every single thing because I needed it done just so? 

In business, we have certain rules in management of people and delegation. 

Rule #1: Managers should have to manage no more than 5-6 people in a veterinary hospital. 

Rule #2: Hire the right person for the right job.

Rule #3: Direction and training are essential.  

Rule #4: Do not over or under delegate. 

And Rule #5: Follow up after you delegate to supervise and evaluate. Resist the urge to micromanage and let your team fly. 

So if we put into place these rules what does it look like? You need team leaders throughout the hospital. These team leaders should each be responsible for about 5-6 people and if there are more techs or assistants than that, increase the number of team leaders you have. It should go without saying that at least one team leader must be scheduled in the back for every shift. There should be a team leader in the front office, a team leader or leaders in the back and these are the team members that the office manager manages. The owner simply manages the hospital manager. If you are a larger practice, assign a medical director that manages the doctors. This medical director reports to the hospital manager. 

In finding these potential leaders, you must refer back to the soft skill testing that you have in place. If not, start now. Test these individuals to see if they possess the soft skills that you find essential in management. The following are some critical examples: ability to communicate, empathy, ability to delegate, leadership skills, ability to work as a team, flexibility, emotional intelligence (EQ). These are a few that you may wish to look for. Once you have identified the person you want to place in the new position, make sure you interview them to confirm that your visions for the hospital align and that your employee wants the position to move forward on their personal path. 

Every staff member has their place in the organization of the hospital and knows who they directly report to. Next up, you are to supply these leaders with direction and training. What is the purpose of their leadership? This belongs at the top of the training packet for them. What follows is the how to, the path to get there. For instance we give the team leader the purpose of “leads with a positive attitude ready to be of help to each team member that needs help, keeps up on current hospital policy, engages in compassion fatigue resiliency programs and implements them with teammates, etc.”

This is dictated by the vision of the owner. If you are the owner, what are the most important ways in which you want your leaders to lead? Again, culture comes from the top down. If you, the owner, have no idea of your vision, then it’s time to be still and figure it out. Write it down because your staff cannot look into your head to find your vision. 

The perfect amount to delegate is variable. It’s a fine line between over and under delegating. Start off easily by delegating a task that can be completed and only delegate the long game tasks once you see the short game is perfected. For example, give a task with a deadline like putting inventory in a new order or some other tangible task. Explain exactly how you wish for it to be done and the time frame in which it is to be completed. Then that task goes on your work calendar so that once the deadline arrives, you can check in with the employee. This is the time to praise the leader so they know that what you delegate is significant and that you’re paying attention. Continue to slowly increase the load you delegate while not delegating all of your tasks. A leader must alway remain busy if they want their staff to stay productive. 

This is an example of a productive and successful delegation. The manager gave a task, a deadline, let go of the task so there was no micromanaging involved, placed the deadline on the calendar to check back with the employee and finally evaluated, with praise and/or loving correction, the outcome of the task. This is delegation at its finest. 

Not being able to effectively delegate is being trapped in the ego chakra. Because the reality of the situation is that we simply cannot do it all if we want it all to be done well. Surrounding yourself with outstanding team members and backing up out of the spotlight to let them shine is a heart-centered practice. 

This concludes the five bolsters of The Veterinary Compassion Fatigue Project and my vision for what can help the culture issue we face in our community. It is a profound problem affecting more clinics than not. In order to create a heart-centered practice with exceptional culture – love, compassion, training, direction and delegation must play a central role in the design of the vision that you have for your hospital. 

And what a glorious way to live our own lives. We find love and compassion for ourselves and others. We give ourselves opportunities to learn new things to create new passions and new paths. We check in with our direction, or how we want our lives to look and we trust that those around us can help us get there. We need help and we have to be willing to ask for it, this is delegation in our personal lives. 

Finding the strength to ask for help is moving out of our ego and into our heart. This is loving and valuing ourselves. No one reaches these goals alone. No one can be everything. No one can do everything. So let go of this impossible endeavor and find joy in the freedom of delegation.  

Find me on The Veterinary Compassion Fatigue Project Spotify Podcast, my website, Facebook and YouTube @TVCFP. Let’s keep talking about what we face in the veterinary and animal care world and ways that we can help each other. Reach out if you have a particular topic you would love to hear about. Subscribe to hear updates on our annual restoration retreat to be launched in Spring of 2025. As always, I hope you find what you are looking for and share it with anyone who needs it.

With love and hope,

Dr. Erin Holder