Streamline Training & Documentation: Readiness for a New Assignment

Sunday, November 05, 2006

Readiness for a New Assignment

An individual's readiness to take on a particular assignment depends on its degree of difficulty. The degree of difficulty can be thought of as the "stretch level."

A straightforward readiness assessment involves rating an employee you're considering for the assignment on seven items. Using a scale of 1 (not at all) to 4 (very), ask yourself how confident you are that the person has:

the required technical skills

the required interpersonal skills

related experience

sufficient knowledge of the organization

the required degree of self-confidence and motivation

enough time available

access to the right resources and information

The modal rating — the rating you've given most frequently — is the stretch level for the particular individual for the particular task. For instance, if you gave one 1, one 2, three 3s, and two 4s, the stretch level is 3.

If there is a tie, choose the higher number. For example, if your ratings were three 1s, three 2s, and one 3, the stretch level is 2.

Once you have assessed how much of a stretch an assignment will be for the person to whom you are thinking of delegating it, ask yourself whether, all things considered, the person is suitable for the task. If your answer is yes, then plan your coaching to match the degree of difficulty the task presents to the person. You can use the four approaches defined for situational leadership as a guide.

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Labels: Employee development, Management practices

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