You’re working late into the night, buried under tasks that you know could be done my someone else, but you decide to do them anyway. You want to be in control, but you also know that if you continue to do everything, it’s going to ultimately spread you too thin and lead to your downfall. 

Many of us grapple with the fear of delegation – “what if they don’t do it right?”, “it’ll take too long to explain”, or the classic, “I can do it cheaper myself”.

But here’s the thing – doing everything yourself is costing you more than you think. Time is money. By doing tasks that could be achieved by others frees you up to focus on the important things for business growth, hiring, strategy and other aspects that will move the business forward. 

You want to delegate your tasks, but it’s too expensive to hire locally as full-time hires. You’re thinking about finding overseas talent to help but don’t know where to start.

You’re not alone. 

At the end of the day, you want to be working on the business, not inside inside of it. 

The following article is a tactical piece that provides a guide on figuring out when it’s the right time to start delegating, and also how to do it properly and seamlessly, through the lens of remote hiring and teams – a question we get a lot from our partners and the wider public. 

Let’s dive in. 

The Benefits of Delegation

For a moment, just think about a world where delegation isn’t just a necessity but a strategic advantage. 

You can delegate tasks at will to a team of skilled individuals located anywhere in the world. They’re not just filling a role; they’re enhancing your business with their expertise, often at a fraction of the local cost. 

The benefits?

Scalability – you can now scale your operations up or down without the constraints of local hiring. Being able to hire top talent and piggyback that onto fixed term contracts provides flexibility that wouldn’t otherwise be able to be achieved for permanent staff. 

Diversity of Thought – having a global team brings in perspectives that could bring in diverse views and approaches to business problems. 

Cost Efficiency – with remote delegation, especially overseas, you’re looking at significant savings on labor costs, which can be redirected into growth initiatives. 

Time efficiency – ultimately, delegating brings about the freedom for the core team to focus on tasks that move the needle for the business. This is imperative for businesses who are stretched too thin and who are trying to maintain (or even increase) profit margins to grow the business. 

Signs It’s Time To Delegate

Start small – delegate small measurable tasks first to build trust and understand the capabilities of your team. This way, you’ll be able to figure out if they’re heading in the right direction and you can course correct incrementally.

Clear instructions and expectations – include this in the onboarding process with the candidate. We highly recommend you get onto an onboarding video call and walk them through the tasks to be done. 

You should prepare a shared document outlining the standard operating procedures that are required. This ensures both sides are aligned. You can also supplement this with a pre-recorded video of the task to make it easier for the candidate to follow – visuals help. 

Embrace technology – leverage tools like Slack, Zoom, and project management platforms to not only bridge the distance but also provide a layer of transparency and accountability.

You know you’ve done it right when you can’t tell the difference between communication with your team who are local and those who are abroad – it should feel seamless.  

Cultural alignment – when working with overseas team, be aware of cultural differences in work ethics and communication styles. 

When selecting remote teams, we recommend you select candidates who are not only skilled in the work you want them to do, but who also English proficient (both spoken and written) and those who understand and empathize with the cultural differences on both sides. 

Feedback loops – establish regular check-ins. This isn’t micro-management; it’s about ensuring alignment and providing support. This goes back to transparency and it’s important you know what’s going on in their world. The earlier you can set these expectations, the easier it is to work with remote teams. 

Key Takeways

Delegation isn’t about losing control; it’s about gaining freedom and focusing on what you do best. 

Remember:

• Delegation is key to scaling your business effectively
• The right time to delegate is often sooner than you think – lookout for those key signs
• Remote teams can be just as, if not more, effective with the right systems in place. 

Take Action With Guild

If you’re in this predicament, we’d love to have a brainstorming session with you. 

At Guild, we specialize in connecting you with pre-vetted, remote overseas talent and extending your capacity so you can focus on growth and not just the grind. We do all the heavy-lifting when it comes to sourcing, vetting, onboarding, complying and paying candidates because we know how challenging it can be to find the right candidates