Strategies to Ensure Clear Communication When Delegating

Most founders suck at delegating to remote teams. They either micromanage every detail or throw work at people and pray something good happens. Here's the framework that fixes both problems: The CLEAR Method: Context - Tell them WHY this matters. Not just what to do, but why it moves the needle. Limitations - Set the boundaries upfront. Budget, timeline, scope. No surprises. Expectations - Paint the picture of what success looks like. Be specific about deliverables. Accountability - When do we check in? How do we measure progress? Set the rhythm. Results - What outcome are we driving toward? Keep everyone focused on the end game. One of our Pearl clients used this framework and went from constant firefighting to having his remote team operate like a well-oiled machine. The breakthrough? He stopped assuming people could read his mind and started being obsessive about clarity. We drill this into every placement because remote work amplifies everything. Clear communication becomes crystal clear execution. Vague instructions become expensive mistakes. Most founders think remote delegation means losing control. Wrong. It means being so clear about what you want that people can execute without you breathing down their necks. Stop being the bottleneck. Start being the blueprint. #startups #entrepreneurship #leanstartups #leadership #hiring #recruiting

Anyone will become a leader. Working with AI agents we ask them to create an outcome rather than follow defined steps. But this key task takes skill and practice: delegating. I was fortunate to participate in several leadership trainings in my career: as an aspiring leader, a first-level leader, and a mid-level leader. While each offered relevant insights for the role at the time, one thing has stayed consistent: the art of delegating a task. Delegate in passing and you’re leaving too much ambiguity to fill. Delegate to someone who’s missing the context and it will show in the result. But delegating starts with you: the leader. This simple framework can help you articulate the goal to be achieved more clearly and thereby set up your team member for success. Coincidentally, you can apply the same steps when delegating to AI: 1) What is the GOAL you want to achieve? 2) What DATA or information is needed to complete the task? 3) What TOOLS are available for the task? 4) How will you EVALUATE the output? (What does 'good' look like?) 5) With whom should they COLLABORATE? And lastly, asking what they have understood. Next time you delegate a task to a person or to AI, try structuring your request using these five steps. What would you add? #ArtificialIntelligence #GenerativeAI #IntelligenceBriefing

Delegation is a superpower. But only if you use these 5 rules.... Most leaders think delegation means "figure it out yourself." Wrong. That's not delegation. That's abandonment. Here's what actually works: Rule 1: Communicate the gaps Don't wait until your idea is perfect. Tell them what you want AND what you don't know. Your team can't read your mind. Rule 2: Give them the script Want someone to have a tough conversation? Roleplay it first. Give them your exact words. Let them practice. Then they own it. Rule 3: Offer support, never take it back "I'll coach you through this" = Good "I'll just do it myself" = You failed as a leader Rule 4: Set the deadline AND the result Vague: "Get this done soon" Clear: "Have 5 qualified leads by Friday at 3pm" Rule 5: Use YOUR communication style Stop adapting to them. If you think in audio, send voice notes. If you think in drawings, sketch it out. They adapt to you, not the other way around. The truth about delegation? It's not about getting work off your plate. It's about transferring skill and confidence. It's about creating leaders, not followers. Most entrepreneurs are terrible delegators because they think it means less work for them. It actually means MORE work upfront. More coaching. More clarity. More patience. But the payoff? Your team becomes an extension of your brain instead of a bottleneck in your business.

𝗠𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗱𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗯𝗮𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗮𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀. “I thought they understood…” “I didn’t want to burden them…” “I assumed they knew how to do it…” As an executive coach working with senior leaders across industries, I see this pattern every single week. 👉 Delegation is not about dumping. 👉 It’s not about detailing every step. 👉 And it’s definitely not about doing it yourself because “no one else gets it.” 𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗱𝗲𝗲𝗽𝗲𝗿: Transferring clarity, confidence, and responsibility. Here’s how I explain it in my D.N.A. of Influence™ coaching framework: 🔍 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝘄𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴: They assume instructions are clear without confirmation. They delegate without verifying if the person has the skills. They hold back critical tasks because they don’t trust outcomes. They either micromanage every small detail or completely disappear. They skip check-ins, then panic when the final outcome is off track. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁? 🟥 Overload. 🟥 Disengaged team. 🟥 Loss of credibility. 🟥 Bottlenecks in execution. ✅ What high-trust leaders do instead: Confirm understanding every single time – even if it feels redundant. Match tasks to team members' strengths and verify their readiness. Provide autonomy, but don’t disappear—stay available. Share high-stakes projects, not just routine admin. Follow up consistently, not just when things break. 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗱𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸𝘀 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲: A conscious act of empowerment with accountability. In my coaching sessions, we go deeper into: ✅ Need Alignment – What drives the person you’re delegating to? ✅ Influence without Control – How to empower without micromanaging. ✅ Language of Trust – What to say (and what not to say) when handing over responsibility. ✅ Feedback Loops – How to course-correct without demoralizing. 🎯 If you’re a senior leader tired of doing everything yourself… …Or if you’ve delegated and still ended up doing the heavy lifting… 𝗦𝘂𝗯𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝘆 𝗻𝗲𝘄𝘀𝗹𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝗺𝘆 𝗗𝗡𝗔 𝗼𝗳 𝗜𝗻𝗳𝗹𝘂𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲™ 𝗳𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗳𝗿𝗲𝗲. You’ll learn the same tools I’ve used to help executives: ✔ Build trust with their teams ✔ Free up hours every week ✔ And finally lead at the level they’re paid for. Let’s make leadership lighter—and more effective. #Influence #peakimpactmentorship  #DNAofInfluence #leadership

Fred Kofman, author of Conscious Business, has a model for what he calls “clear commitments.” It is my favorite framework for delegating that I’ve ever been trained on. Delegating well requires stating a goal, clarifying expectations about what “good” looks like in areas you care about (e.g., cost, quality, timeline), getting a commitment from the employee, checking in, and holding the employee accountable. The key to exceptional management is to get great at defining the “what” not controlling the "how". As a leader, you need to know how to create alignment, how to clarify what you expect, and how to communicate all of it. The model of "clear commitments" makes that easier. New managers are often afraid that if they set a goal, someone will ignore something important in the process of accomplishing it (ignore quality, ignore cost, etc). That has to be part of defining the “what,” which Fred’s model does a great job of clarifying. You don’t have a commitment if both parties don’t agree to the definition of what good or “done” looks like. One thing I often do as a manager is define the “what” as best as I can upfront, but I also set a check-in point so I can make sure that we’re still aligned. Setting a timeline for a check-in might sound like, “I want us to ship this feature in 2 months. Here are the things I care about. Can you scope what you think needs to be done and come back to me in 2 weeks so we can talk through your approach?” This clarifies that the employee owns the project and you can course-correct if needed. That check in is very different from checking their code every day, asking to see call transcripts, or demanding a detailed weekly list of everything they accomplished. AND it FEELS very different to the person who owns the project. They feel supported and aligned, not mistrusted. You can also state what’s important to you in broad strokes so your employees can watch out for it. I’ll often say, “Let’s deliver this project by this date, and here are two things I want you to keep an eye on. First, I want to manage the cost of XYZ. Second, I’m worried that we’re going to hurt this other product line or initiative, so let’s think about how to prevent that.” The more senior your employees are, the more fuzzy your “what’s” can and should be. Part of being senior is the ability to bring granularity to broad goals, to have judgment about what “good” looks like, and to know when to ask for more clarity. For you as a leader, it’s about ensuring that you have alignment with them instead of demanding that they do it your way.