Delegation – A Year in Review
This past season was somewhat of a new experience for me. Coming out of the 22/23 season, I knew I needed to get some things off my “plate” to free up time for myself and provide opportunities for staff members to take on leadership roles within our organization. I was in burnout mode and feeling overwhelmed with all the different responsibilities I had. My partners and I discussed the viability of delegating some director positions—what that would look like, how much it would cost, and whether it would work.
We took a leap of faith and created several new roles: Part-Time Competition Team Director, Camp Director, Camp Coordinator, Summer Class Director, and Social Media Director. This season was the first full year of having directors in place. The camp, competition, and summer class directors were all compensated based on a flat rate. Our social media director is paid for 5 hours of work per week, with the understanding that some weeks may require more than 5 hours and some may require much less, balancing out in the end.
The introduction of these roles has been transformative. Delegating these responsibilities has not only alleviated my workload but also empowered my staff, giving them a chance to shine and grow within their positions. This restructuring has allowed me to focus on the bigger picture and strategic planning for the future of our studio.
Once I sat down and recorded every detail I could think of for each position, I assigned time estimates for each responsibility based on my experience. I totaled the number of hours and set a dollar amount per hour. Throughout the season, I scheduled meetings with each director to answer questions, hear their ideas, and ensure we were on track with hours. We also discussed changes or updates for the next season. During each meeting, I reminded them to keep tracking their hours. As this is a new approach for us, we wanted to ensure our directors were not underpaid.
Thus far, I have had year-end follow-up meetings with two of our directors to evaluate the hours and pay we forecasted and to discuss how they felt the year went. I think we all deserve an A+! Their hours aligned with what we set, they reached out to me only when they needed advice or approval, and I made sure to keep our project management platform up to date so they knew what was expected of them.
Below is a sample of our Part Time Competition Team Director
As you can see, $300 is totally doable! Not to mention the hours it took off my plate. In writing this, I hope to help some of you realize that delegating a job is not as out of reach as you might think. If $300 seems like a lot, consider that we paid it out in one lump sum, but it could easily be spread out over a few payments. Would $50 a month for six months work for you?
Sometimes we think a job will take so much time that we couldn’t possibly afford to pay someone else to do it. However, once you take the time to write it all out, it often seems more manageable. How many new students would it take to cover this amount? Three students? Five students? That seems possible, doesn’t it?
There are many tasks we handle as studio owners that could be delegated to a director position. I have to say, having multiple directors for various areas provides another level of credibility to our organization. It also gives those staff members a sense of pride and a deeper commitment to the studio. Delegating responsibilities not only lightens your load but also strengthens your team and enhances the professional image of your studio.
One of the things I learned from this journey is that you have to be willing to let go a little. I am still the overall “coordinator” for all these positions, but from afar. I had to be willing to let my team make decisions on their own and understand that they might do things a little differently. I discovered that, in some areas, they did a better job than I did because they weren't juggling a hundred other responsibilities within the studio.
This delegation also allowed me to see areas for improvement within our programs because I was observing from the outside. It's definitely steering our ship in the right direction for growth—not only in the areas where directors now reside but also in new areas where I can now focus my attention.
Delegating jobs may not be something you are considering right now, but what about 5 years or 10 years from now? Keep a notepad beside you while you work and track what you do each day and how long it took. Seems daunting but trust me when I say do for a few days and it becomes a habit. Do it for 30 days to start. You will be surprised by how many different things you do in a day. This will also give you the opportunity to group those things into potential director positions for the future.
