2 reasons you should delegate pool responsibilities
As a member of pool management, you have many responsibilities. You have to draw up staff schedules, inspect equipment, review training protocols when necessary and much more. This is also true of managers in the maintenance department, who have to check water chemical levels, figure out how to balance them out and handle the hazardous materials on a regular basis.
Additionally, you have to consider the implications of each task that’s required in order to maintain a pool. If a person created the schedule but forgot to look at the time-off requests, it could lead to problems further down the line, when it becomes more difficult to find coverage for the person who asked for a day off. Or, if a new maintenance person measured the chemical levels improperly, the treatment may be off, which can wreak havoc on the water and potentially, on pool patrons.
Know the dangers of handling everything alone
Given the complexities of pool operations, managers may feel that the best way to ensure that the facility runs at optimal levels is to take on all the tasks themselves. This way, they can rest assured knowing that everything is done properly. However, there are underlying problems with this mentality. Here are two reasons to delegate these responsibilities.
1. Don’t stretch yourself thin: There’s enough for managers to do on a daily basis without having to worry about the little problems that are bound to spring up. Sharing your responsibilities with others will allow you to tend to these unexpected turns of events. When you have more time to tend to fewer tasks, you’ll be able to do them better and with more care.
2. Allow others to learn: If you have trouble sharing your responsibilities, view them from a different perspective. Think of them as training opportunities for other staff members. They’ll never master the art of scheduling if they aren’t given the chance to try it out. They may make mistakes at the beginning, but if you work with them, they’ll quickly learn and you’ll have one less responsibility to worry about.
Delegation is an important skill for management members to learn. Start slow and delegate a few tasks at a time. This has the additional benefit of allowing you to figure out which individuals are best suited for different responsibilities.
