Delegating

A four-step process to relinquishing control - and reclaiming your sanity.

The burdens of subordinates always seem to end up on the manager’s back. Here’s how to get rid of them.

Workaholism is when work dominates your thoughts and activities, harming other aspects of your life, including relationships and health. In "A Workaholic's...

Manage the onslaught.

Five Questions with Jeffrey Pfeffer

How to free up as much as 20% of your workday to focus on the responsibilities that really matter.

A conversation with Warren Bennis Professor, author, leader

Delegating responsibility is hard. Not delegating it can be disastrous.

Trying to do everything yourself is bad for both you and your team.

High-profile, emotionally charged projects have made Libeskind’s reputation.

In recent years, sales leaders have had to devote considerable time and energy to establishing and maintaining disciplined processes. The thing is, many...

It's OK not to be available all the time.

It's time to drop the excuses.

I’ve always been the kind of person who says yes to new work-related challenges, frequently out of pure enthusiasm for the opportunities. Sometimes it makes sense to say no, of course, but in a tough economic climate yes is often the necessary response to organizational shifts that happen in the wake of layoffs and restructuring. […]

You can’t do everything on your own — nor should you.

CEOs need more support than an executive assistant can provide.

Good managers know when to step in - and when not to.

Make Your Case relies on your insights to help readers solve pressing business problems. You can help by leaving a comment below or by rating the comments of others — after a week, a guest expert will respond to your feedback and give advice of his or her own. For this week’s case, we tapped […]

In chaotic times, an executive’s instinct may be to strive for greater efficiency by tightening control. But the truth is that relinquishing authority and giving employees considerable autonomy can boost innovation and success at knowledge firms, even during crises. Our research provides hard evidence that leaders who give in to the urge to clamp down […]

The problem with temporary handoffs.

Supplements the (A) case.

In November 2006, Symon Bridle, the newly appointed chief operating officer of Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts, was thinking about a number of organizational...

As a student at the Harvard Business School, Sadiq Gillani decided to focus his career on the airline industry. This case study explores Gillani's strategic...

In 2001, the Unilever Superannuation Fund sued Merrill Lynch for damages of 130 million British pounds. Over the period 1977 to 1998, the Unilever Fund...

Supplements Momenta Corp. (B).

Describes a young man's first job with a large corporation, where he is given a great deal of responsibility but little authority or supervision. The...

At a time of great changes in the corporate environment, Larry Yoshino, a design lab manager at Parsons Controls Corp., faces a delay in a costly defense...

Are you a good boss--or a great one? Good bosses can handle the day-to-day work of running a team. Great bosses go beyond that, finding ways to help employees...

Describes the situation facing the head of a rapidly growing industry-focused group within a consulting company. Highlights the dilemmas of being a "producing...

The founders of Bright Horizons have developed a distinctive strategy and raised venture capital money. Now they are ready to make their dream come true....

Are you a good boss--or a great one? Good bosses can handle the day-to-day work of running a team. Great bosses go beyond that, finding ways to help employees...

The "HBR Women at Work" series, based on the popular HBR podcast of the same name, spotlights the real challenges and opportunities women experience throughout...

AES develops and operates electric power plants all over the world, and by late 1996, has approximately 20,000 employees. But, the corporation has no...

Master the art of workplace productivity. Overwhelmed by the sheer volume of work you need to accomplish? Being pulled in different directions by competing...

Describes some critical challenges involved in creating employee empowerment. In the context of General Electric's efforts to debureaucratise the company,...

Are you the boss you need to be? You never dreamed being the boss would be so hard. You're caught in a web of conflicting expectations from your subordinates,...

Applied Research Technologies, Inc. (ART) is a diversified technology company which has used its entrepreneurial culture and encouragement of innovation...

Overworked? Overwhelmed? Protect yourself from burnout. The amount of work placed on women is often insurmountable. Along with doing what's required for...

This 16-volume, specially priced boxed set makes a perfect gift for aspiring leaders who are short on time but need advice fast, on topics from creating...

Describes the issues that entrepreneurs and their firms must deal with in attempting to make the transition from entrepreneurial to professional management....

A four-step process to relinquishing control - and reclaiming your sanity.

The burdens of subordinates always seem to end up on the manager’s back. Here’s how to get rid of them.

Workaholism is when work dominates your thoughts and activities, harming other aspects of your life, including relationships and health. In "A Workaholic's...

Manage the onslaught.

Five Questions with Jeffrey Pfeffer

How to free up as much as 20% of your workday to focus on the responsibilities that really matter.

A conversation with Warren Bennis Professor, author, leader

Delegating responsibility is hard. Not delegating it can be disastrous.

Trying to do everything yourself is bad for both you and your team.

High-profile, emotionally charged projects have made Libeskind’s reputation.