By Syed Balkhi
As a startup founder, your role is diverse and challenging.
From investor relations to customer service, your tasks can often seem endless.
And that’s not all, You also need to engage in strategic thinking for the future of your business.
You probably have an inclination towards micromanagement, which is understandable but can lead to fatigue and hinder growth.
As your venture expands, you need to learn how to delegate if you want to create sustainable success.
This post will show you how to entrust your team with significant responsibilities while paving the way for scalability and long-term prosperity.
Why You Should Empower Your Team
No one knows your business and vision as well as you do, but this doesn’t mean you can’t trust employees to handle it in your absence.
Here’s how empowering your team to take on more responsibility can provide tremendous benefits:
- Gives you time and space to lead strategically. Trying to micromanage everything leaves you constantly fighting fires instead of thinking long-term. By empowering your team, you free up more of your own time for high-level strategic planning.
- Results in a happier, more motivated team. When team members are given autonomy and trust, they feel more engaged in their work. This leads to greater job satisfaction, higher productivity, and lower turnover.
- Your team is capable and wants more responsibility. They are filled with talented individuals who likely joined your startup because they want to make an impact. Give them room to utilize their skills and take ownership of their work.
Rather than trying to control everything yourself, empower your employees by giving them the necessary tools. The next section will explain five ways to free yourself while giving your team more responsibilities and empowerment at work. You’ll likely be amazed by what they can accomplish.
1. Define Clear Roles and Responsibilities
Defining clear roles and responsibilities for each team member is one of the most powerful ways to empower your team. When each person understands exactly what is expected of them and what they are accountable for, it allows them to take full ownership of their work.
Here are some tips for defining clear roles and responsibilities on your team:
- Have an open discussion with each team member about their responsibilities, expectations, and goals. Make sure their role aligns with their skills and interests.
- Split up ownership for broader company goals and strategies so every team member has a piece they are driving forward.
- Document roles, responsibilities, and priorities for each person. Revisit these periodically as the company evolves.
- Make accountability clear for individual tasks and overall business metrics connected to their work.
- Avoid too much overlap of roles. Clear ownership avoids diffusion of responsibility.
- Communicate responsibilities across the team so everyone understands who owns what.
Taking the time to thoughtfully define roles and responsibilities gives your team clarity, empowers them to take initiative, and enables you to lead from a high level. You’ll focus on the big picture while your team executes efficiently.
2. Provide Ongoing Mentorship
Your job isn’t done once you’ve delegated tasks.
You must provide ongoing mentorship to help your team develop new skills and thrive in their roles. Schedule regular one-on-one meetings to see how they’re doing, offer guidance, and give constructive feedback.
Aim to have weekly or biweekly one-on-one meetings with each direct report. Make it an open discussion where they can share any roadblocks they’ve hit and ask for your input. Be generous with your time, wisdom and empathy. Think back to managers you’ve had in the past–what did the best mentors do that helped you succeed? Model those behaviors for your team.
Give frequent feedback, both appreciative and constructive. When you notice them doing something well, point it out immediately so they know to keep doing it. If there are areas for improvement, frame it as helping them grow rather than punishing mistakes. Ensure they understand why you’re suggesting changes so it’s a learning experience.
By being invested in their development, you empower your team to do their best work. They will feel supported to take risks, ask questions and handle more responsibility. This lightens your load as you can trust them to make good decisions without your constant oversight.
Holger Sindbaek, the founder of Online Solitaire, says, “In our initial days I embraced a pivotal shift: from directing to empowering. Mentorship became our compass, blending seasoned insights with fresh perspectives. This wasn’t just about skill transfer; it was about cultivating a team empowered to innovate and operate independently. This evolution of mentorship subtly redefined my role, allowing me to focus on broader horizons while the team became a self-reliant engine driving us forward. It highlighted mentorship’s transformative impact, fostering a team equipped for resilience and innovation.”
3. Focus on Results, Not Process
One mistake leaders make is micromanaging their team’s process. This will only stifle creativity, innovation, and productivity. The key is to focus on results rather than process.
Agree with your team on clear goals and standards for success. Make sure they understand your overall vision, strategy, and objectives. However, don’t dictate exactly how they need to accomplish their tasks. Give them the freedom to determine the best way to get the work done.
Empower your team to have control over their own workflow. Allow them to experiment with different techniques and approaches. Give them the flexibility to work in a way that fits their individual working styles. Trust their expertise in how to do their jobs effectively.
Instead of monitoring how they spend each hour, judge your team by the outcomes they achieve. Provide feedback based on their results rather than their process. Did they meet the deadlines and goals you agreed upon? Are they delivering work that meets your standards? As long as they are achieving the desired outcomes, don’t worry about their methods.
Letting go of process control demonstrates your trust in your team. It allows them to take ownership of their work. When people feel trusted and empowered, they become more engaged, innovative, and productive. Focusing on results over process is a key step in empowering your startup team.
4. Encourage Open Communication
Empowering your team also means creating an environment where people feel comfortable speaking up. An open communication policy has many benefits:
- Keep an open door policy: Make yourself available and approachable. Let team members know your door is always open if they need to talk or have questions. Don’t barricade yourself in your office.
- Welcome ideas, questions, and concerns: Listen without judgment when people bring up thoughts, issues, or criticisms. You hired smart people – take advantage of their input.
- Avoid a top-down directive approach: Don’t just issue orders without explanation. Explain the reasons behind decisions and strategy. Have discussions, don’t lecture.
When team members feel psychologically safe to voice opinions, it creates a diversity of perspectives. This leads to better ideas and solutions. Transparency from leadership fosters trust. Employees who trust executives are more productive and loyal.
So keep your door open! Welcome communication, input, discussion, and even dissent. Creating an open environment will empower your team to do their best work.
5. Lead by Example
As a startup founder, you set the tone and culture for the entire company. Your team looks to you to model the mindset, values, and behaviors that you want to see.
Leading by example starts with demonstrating trust in your team. Be open about your challenges, admit your mistakes, and ask for help when needed. Your vulnerability will inspire others to take risks and grow.
Share decision-making and information freely. Don’t hoard knowledge – you want to empower your team, not control them. Actively seek out their ideas and input. Putting in such effort makes your employees feel more engaged, creative, and invested when the work environment isn’t authoritarian. This is especially important if you want to run and grow a remote or freelance business where autonomy and trust are critical.
Leading by empowering example ultimately allows you as a founder to focus on higher-level strategic thinking while trusting your team to execute operationally. This freedom enables the entire company to thrive. Everything starts with your mindset and behaviors as a leader.
How to Enjoy the Benefits of More Free Time
We’ve covered how you can empower your team so you also empower yourself as a leader and use your time and energy for more critical activities. But what do you do now? Here are some benefits you get as a leader who is freed from unproductive actions.
More Free Time to Focus on Strategy
When you distribute responsibilities and decision-making authority, you free up significant time previously spent directing day-to-day operations.
Now, you can dedicate your time to high-level strategic planning, thinking about the future, and working on other priorities vital for the company’s growth and success.
Your time is precious as a founder, so empowering your team is crucial to creating space for this high-value work.
Less Stress and Burnout
Trying to micromanage your team while spearheading company strategy is a recipe for burnout. You’ll reduce overwhelm and daily stress by letting go of control and trusting your team. Removing the burden of constant oversight enables you to be mentally present and energized as a leader. With less exhaustion pulling you down, you can show up as your best self.
Be Available for Crises
A leader’s biggest role is apparent when a company crisis occurs. This could be getting bad PR (public relations) in the form of a slew of negative reviews or comments. Or it could be losing a major client or handling a disgruntled employee with access to sensitive information and software.
When such events take place, it’s on you as the leader to move quickly, make decisions, and plug leaking holes. When you’re not occupied with day-to-day time-wasting tasks, you can handle major problems. And this is one of the biggest reasons you need to trust your employees with smaller and routine operations while you look out for the bigger issues.
Build a Business With an Empowered Team and a Strategic Leader
When you demonstrate trust in your team and give them independence, you motivate them to step up. Team members who feel empowered gain confidence, initiative, and a sense of ownership over their work. The end result is a powerful team prepared to handle rapid expansion.
Another result is that you, as the head of your business, are available to guide your business to the next level, bringing greater benefits to your people.
So, use the tips shared here and build a culture of trust, independence, and problem-solving to rise to the top!
About the Author
Syed Balkhi is the founder of WPBeginner, the largest free WordPress resource site. With over 10 years of experience, he’s the leading WordPress expert in the industry. You can learn more about Syed and his portfolio of companies by following him on his social media networks.