{"id":"9b5772c0-e282-4047-9bea-88c197c3082a","shortId":"Fysz3f","kind":"skill","title":"delegating-work","tagline":"Create a Delegation Pack (brief, decision rights, context handoff, check-in cadence, debrief).","description":"# Delegating Work\n\n## Scope\n\n**Covers**\n- Delegating a specific project/problem/decision to a direct report (or cross-functional owner)\n- Transferring **context without control** (clear outcomes + guardrails, not step-by-step instructions)\n- Setting **decision rights**, check-in cadence, and \"in-the-details\" quality reviews without micromanaging\n\n**When to use**\n- \"Help me delegate this project/task to someone on my team.\"\n- \"I'm holding onto too much / I need to give away my Lego.\"\n- \"I'm worried I'm micromanaging—how do I stay in the details but empower ownership?\"\n- \"Draft a delegation brief + decision rights + check-in plan.\"\n\n**When NOT to use**\n- The work is primarily a **performance problem** (use coaching/feedback workflows instead)\n- You need to decide *what* work to do (prioritization/scope first)\n- You lack a clear outcome, constraints, or success criteria (do a quick problem-definition first)\n- You need to **coach a PM's professional development** over weeks (use `coaching-pms`)\n- You need to **manage up** or influence your own manager's decisions (use `managing-up`)\n- You need to **design a 1:1 meeting** cadence or agenda (use `running-effective-1-1s`)\n- You need to **coordinate across teams** without a clear delegation hierarchy (use `cross-functional-collaboration`)\n\n## Inputs\n\n**Minimum required**\n- The work item to delegate (project/problem/decision) + why now\n- Desired outcome (definition of done) + success metrics or acceptance criteria\n- Constraints/non-negotiables (timeline, budget, quality bar, policies, stakeholders)\n- Delegatee context (role, current load, experience level, growth goals if relevant)\n\n**Missing-info strategy**\n- Ask up to 5 questions from [references/INTAKE.md](references/INTAKE.md).\n- If details are unavailable, proceed with explicit assumptions and label unknowns.\n\n## Outputs (deliverables)\n\nProduce a **Delegation Pack** (Markdown in-chat, or files if requested) in this order:\n1) **Delegation brief** (outcome, context, constraints, stakeholders, timeline)\n2) **Decision rights + guardrails** (what they can decide, escalation triggers, review points)\n3) **Context handoff pack** (links, background, \"known gotchas\", example outputs)\n4) **Execution cadence** (check-ins, update format, what \"good\" looks like)\n5) **Review plan** (how to be in the details without telling them how to do it)\n6) **Debrief plan** (learning capture + ownership updates)\n7) **Risks / Open questions / Next steps** (always included)\n\nTemplates: [references/TEMPLATES.md](references/TEMPLATES.md)\n\n## Workflow (8 steps)\n\n### 1) Frame the delegation decision\n- **Inputs:** Work item + why now; constraints.\n- **Actions:** Define the outcome, the \"why\" (business context), and what must not change (non-negotiables). Decide what \"good\" looks like.\n- **Outputs:** Draft Delegation Brief (top section).\n- **Checks:** The outcome is measurable/testable (someone can say \"done\" unambiguously).\n\n### 2) Pick the owner + choose the autonomy level\n- **Inputs:** Candidate owner(s); their experience and growth goals.\n- **Actions:** Select the delegatee. Set an explicit autonomy level (e.g., \"propose + I approve\" vs \"you decide, inform me\"). Call out which parts are \"on assignment\" vs \"high flexibility.\"\n- **Outputs:** Owner + autonomy statement + boundaries.\n- **Checks:** Both of you can repeat: \"What decisions are yours vs mine?\"\n\n### 3) Transfer context (not instructions)\n- **Inputs:** Background docs; prior decisions; stakeholders; constraints.\n- **Actions:** Provide full context so the owner can connect the dots. Share the \"why\", the tradeoffs, and known pitfalls. Avoid prescribing the exact path.\n- **Outputs:** Context Handoff Pack.\n- **Checks:** Owner can explain the problem, constraints, and success criteria in their own words.\n\n### 4) Define decision rights + guardrails\n- **Inputs:** Non-negotiables; risks; stakeholders.\n- **Actions:** Write decision rights, escalation triggers, and review points. Set \"red lines\" (quality, policy, safety, customer impact).\n- **Outputs:** Decision Rights + Guardrails.\n- **Checks:** Escalation triggers are specific (not \"if it feels risky\").\n\n### 5) Align on plan + milestones (owner-led)\n- **Inputs:** Draft Delegation Brief + guardrails.\n- **Actions:** Ask the owner to propose a plan, milestones, and tradeoffs. Act as a thought partner: ask questions instead of giving the answer.\n- **Outputs:** Milestone plan + first-week plan.\n- **Checks:** Plan has milestones tied to outcomes, not just activities.\n\n### 6) Set the execution cadence\n- **Inputs:** Timeline; team routines; stakeholder needs.\n- **Actions:** Set check-in frequency, update format, and what you want to see (risks, decisions, asks). Establish how you'll \"refuse to rule\" unless a trigger is hit.\n- **Outputs:** Cadence + Update Template.\n- **Checks:** Check-ins focus on outcomes/risks/decisions, not task-by-task status.\n\n### 7) Review in the details without micromanaging\n- **Inputs:** Work artifacts; review points.\n- **Actions:** Review output quality via artifacts (docs, specs, results) and criteria. When the team is struggling with the *right* problems, step back. When it's the wrong problem, intervene with clarity on outcome/guardrails.\n- **Outputs:** Review notes + decisions (approve/adjust/escalate).\n- **Checks:** Feedback is framed as \"quality bar + constraints\" (not \"do it my way\").\n\n### 8) Close the loop (debrief + \"give away the Lego\")\n- **Inputs:** Final deliverable; what happened; learnings.\n- **Actions:** Debrief what worked/what didn't, update ownership maps, and explicitly acknowledge the new owner. Capture improvements to templates/guardrails.\n- **Outputs:** Debrief notes + next delegation candidates.\n- **Checks:** Ownership is durable (not \"it snaps back to you\" after delivery).\n\n## Quality gate (required)\n- Run [references/CHECKLISTS.md](references/CHECKLISTS.md) and score with [references/RUBRIC.md](references/RUBRIC.md).\n- Always include: **Risks**, **Open questions**, **Next steps**.\n\n## Examples\n\n**Example 1:** \"Delegate discovery + recommendation for improving onboarding activation to my PM.\"  \nExpected: delegation brief, decision rights (what PM decides vs escalates), context pack (data + constraints), weekly cadence, review plan for the final recommendation doc.\n\n**Example 2:** \"Delegate building a lightweight internal tool to an engineer, but I'm worried about security/compliance.\"  \nExpected: guardrails + escalation triggers, clear non-negotiables, review points for design + launch readiness, and a debrief plan.\n\n**Boundary example:** \"Delegate 'make the company strategy better.'\"\nResponse: require a narrower outcome (decision to support, artifacts, time box) before producing the Delegation Pack.\n\n**Boundary example (neighbor redirect):** \"My PM needs coaching on strategic thinking over the next quarter.\"\nResponse: this is a development/coaching engagement, not a one-time delegation. Use `coaching-pms` for a multi-week growth plan with practice reps and assessment.\n\n## Anti-patterns\n\n1. **Delegation-as-abdication** — Handing off work with no context, guardrails, or check-ins, then blaming the delegatee when it fails. Every delegation must include decision rights and a review cadence.\n2. **Rubber-stamp autonomy** — Saying \"you own it\" but then overriding every decision. If you set autonomy levels, honor them; intervene only when escalation triggers are hit.\n3. **Context hoarding** — Sharing the task but withholding the \"why\", prior decisions, or stakeholder constraints. The delegatee cannot reason independently without full context transfer.\n4. **Milestone-free drift** — Delegating with no check-in cadence or milestones, leading to a big-bang surprise at the deadline. Always define execution cadence upfront.\n5. **Snap-back ownership** — After the project ends, the manager silently takes back ownership instead of making it durable. The debrief must explicitly confirm ongoing ownership.","tags":["delegating","work","lenny","skills","plus","liqiongyu","agent-skills","ai-agents","automation","claude","codex","prompt-engineering"],"capabilities":["skill","source-liqiongyu","skill-delegating-work","topic-agent-skills","topic-ai-agents","topic-automation","topic-claude","topic-codex","topic-prompt-engineering","topic-refoundai","topic-skillpack"],"categories":["lenny_skills_plus"],"synonyms":[],"warnings":[],"endpointUrl":"https://skills.sh/liqiongyu/lenny_skills_plus/delegating-work","protocol":"skill","transport":"skills-sh","auth":{"type":"none","details":{"cli":"npx skills add liqiongyu/lenny_skills_plus","source_repo":"https://github.com/liqiongyu/lenny_skills_plus","install_from":"skills.sh"}},"qualityScore":"0.474","qualityRationale":"deterministic score 0.47 from registry signals: · indexed on github topic:agent-skills · 49 github stars · SKILL.md body (7,943 chars)","verified":false,"liveness":"unknown","lastLivenessCheck":null,"agentReviews":{"count":0,"score_avg":null,"cost_usd_avg":null,"success_rate":null,"latency_p50_ms":null,"narrative_summary":null,"summary_updated_at":null},"enrichmentModel":"deterministic:skill-github:v1","enrichmentVersion":1,"enrichedAt":"2026-04-22T00:56:21.538Z","embedding":null,"createdAt":"2026-04-18T22:16:25.988Z","updatedAt":"2026-04-22T00:56:21.538Z","lastSeenAt":"2026-04-22T00:56:21.538Z","tsv":"'-1':204 '1':193,194,203,301,380,831,970 '2':309,428,866,1003 '3':321,490,1031 '4':331,544,1055 '5':268,343,586,1084 '6':359,639 '7':366,696 '8':378,759 'abdic':974 'accept':241 'acknowledg':785 'across':210 'act':610 'action':391,445,502,555,599,650,708,774 'activ':638,838 'agenda':198 'align':587 'alway':372,822,1079 'answer':621 'anti':968 'anti-pattern':967 'approv':457 'approve/adjust/escalate':745 'artifact':705,713,916 'ask':265,600,615,666 'assess':966 'assign':469 'assumpt':280 'autonomi':434,452,475,1007,1020 'avoid':521 'away':87,765 'back':729,806,1087,1097 'background':326,496 'bang':1074 'bar':247,752 'better':907 'big':1073 'big-bang':1072 'blame':987 'boundari':477,900,924 'box':918 'brief':8,109,303,415,597,844 'budget':245 'build':868 'busi':397 'cadenc':16,54,196,333,643,680,857,1002,1066,1082 'call':463 'candid':437,798 'cannot':1048 'captur':363,789 'chang':403 'chat':293 'check':14,52,113,335,418,478,530,576,629,653,683,685,746,799,984,1064 'check-in':13,51,112,334,652,684,983,1063 'choos':432 'clariti':738 'clear':39,144,214,886 'close':760 'coach':160,170,931,953 'coaching-pm':169,952 'coaching/feedback':128 'collabor':221 'compani':905 'confirm':1108 'connect':510 'constraint':146,306,390,501,536,753,855,1045 'constraints/non-negotiables':243 'context':11,36,251,305,322,398,492,505,527,852,980,1032,1053 'control':38 'coordin':209 'cover':21 'creat':4 'criteria':149,242,539,718 'cross':32,219 'cross-funct':31 'cross-functional-collabor':218 'current':253 'custom':570 'data':854 'deadlin':1078 'debrief':17,360,763,775,794,898,1105 'decid':134,316,407,460,849 'decis':9,49,110,183,310,384,485,499,546,557,573,665,744,845,913,997,1016,1042 'defin':392,545,1080 'definit':155,235 'deleg':2,6,18,22,69,108,215,229,288,302,383,414,596,797,832,843,867,902,922,950,972,994,1060 'delegate':250,448,989,1047 'delegating-work':1 'delegation-as-abd':971 'deliver':285,770 'deliveri':810 'design':191,893 'desir':233 'detail':59,102,274,351,700 'develop':165 'development/coaching':943 'didn':778 'direct':28 'discoveri':833 'doc':497,714,864 'done':237,426 'dot':512 'draft':106,413,595 'drift':1059 'durabl':802,1103 'e.g':454 'effect':202 'empow':104 'end':1092 'engag':944 'engin':875 'escal':317,559,577,851,884,1027 'establish':667 'everi':993,1015 'exact':524 'exampl':329,829,830,865,901,925 'execut':332,642,1081 'expect':842,882 'experi':255,441 'explain':533 'explicit':279,451,784,1107 'fail':992 'feedback':747 'feel':584 'file':295 'final':769,862 'first':140,156,626 'first-week':625 'flexibl':472 'focus':687 'format':338,657 'frame':381,749 'free':1058 'frequenc':655 'full':504,1052 'function':33,220 'gate':812 'give':86,619,764 'goal':258,444 'good':340,409 'gotcha':328 'growth':257,443,960 'guardrail':41,312,548,575,598,883,981 'hand':975 'handoff':12,323,528 'happen':772 'help':67 'hierarchi':216 'high':471 'hit':678,1030 'hoard':1033 'hold':79 'honor':1022 'impact':571 'improv':790,836 'in':336,686,985 'in-chat':291 'in-the-detail':56 'includ':373,823,996 'independ':1050 'influenc':178 'info':263 'inform':461 'input':222,385,436,495,549,594,644,703,768 'instead':130,617,1099 'instruct':47,494 'intern':871 'interven':736,1024 'item':227,387 'known':327,519 'label':282 'lack':142 'launch':894 'lead':1069 'learn':362,773 'led':593 'lego':89,767 'level':256,435,453,1021 'lightweight':870 'like':342,411 'line':566 'link':325 'll':670 'load':254 'look':341,410 'loop':762 'm':78,91,94,878 'make':903,1101 'manag':175,181,186,1094 'managing-up':185 'map':782 'markdown':290 'measurable/testable':422 'meet':195 'metric':239 'micromanag':63,95,702 'mileston':590,607,623,632,1057,1068 'milestone-fre':1056 'mine':489 'minimum':223 'miss':262 'missing-info':261 'much':82 'multi':958 'multi-week':957 'must':401,995,1106 'narrow':911 'need':84,132,158,173,189,207,649,930 'negoti':406,552,889 'neighbor':926 'new':787 'next':370,796,827,937 'non':405,551,888 'non-negoti':404,550,887 'note':743,795 'onboard':837 'one':948 'one-tim':947 'ongo':1109 'onto':80 'open':368,825 'order':300 'outcom':40,145,234,304,394,420,635,912 'outcome/guardrails':740 'outcomes/risks/decisions':689 'output':284,330,412,473,526,572,622,679,710,741,793 'overrid':1014 'owner':34,431,438,474,508,531,592,602,788 'owner-l':591 'ownership':105,364,781,800,1088,1098,1110 'pack':7,289,324,529,853,923 'part':466 'partner':614 'path':525 'pattern':969 'perform':125 'pick':429 'pitfal':520 'plan':115,345,361,589,606,624,628,630,859,899,961 'pm':162,841,848,929 'pms':171,954 'point':320,563,707,891 'polici':248,568 'practic':963 'prescrib':522 'primarili':123 'prior':498,1041 'prioritization/scope':139 'problem':126,154,535,727,735 'problem-definit':153 'proceed':277 'produc':286,920 'profession':164 'project':1091 'project/problem/decision':25,230 'project/task':71 'propos':455,604 'provid':503 'qualiti':60,246,567,711,751,811 'quarter':938 'question':269,369,616,826 'quick':152 'readi':895 'reason':1049 'recommend':834,863 'red':565 'redirect':927 'references/checklists.md':815,816 'references/intake.md':271,272 'references/rubric.md':820,821 'references/templates.md':375,376 'refus':671 'relev':260 'rep':964 'repeat':483 'report':29 'request':297 'requir':224,813,909 'respons':908,939 'result':716 'review':61,319,344,562,697,706,709,742,858,890,1001 'right':10,50,111,311,547,558,574,726,846,998 'risk':367,553,664,824 'riski':585 'role':252 'routin':647 'rubber':1005 'rubber-stamp':1004 'rule':673 'run':201,814 'running-effect':200 'safeti':569 'say':425,1008 'scope':20 'score':818 'section':417 'security/compliance':881 'see':663 'select':446 'set':48,449,564,640,651,1019 'share':513,1034 'silent':1095 'skill' 'skill-delegating-work' 'snap':805,1086 'snap-back':1085 'someon':73,423 'source-liqiongyu' 'spec':715 'specif':24,580 'stakehold':249,307,500,554,648,1044 'stamp':1006 'statement':476 'status':695 'stay':99 'step':44,46,371,379,728,828 'step-by-step':43 'strateg':933 'strategi':264,906 'struggl':723 'success':148,238,538 'support':915 'surpris':1075 'take':1096 'task':692,694,1036 'task-by-task':691 'team':76,211,646,721 'tell':353 'templat':374,682 'templates/guardrails':792 'think':934 'thought':613 'tie':633 'time':917,949 'timelin':244,308,645 'tool':872 'top':416 'topic-agent-skills' 'topic-ai-agents' 'topic-automation' 'topic-claude' 'topic-codex' 'topic-prompt-engineering' 'topic-refoundai' 'topic-skillpack' 'tradeoff':517,609 'transfer':35,491,1054 'trigger':318,560,578,676,885,1028 'unambigu':427 'unavail':276 'unknown':283 'unless':674 'updat':337,365,656,681,780 'upfront':1083 'use':66,119,127,168,184,199,217,951 'via':712 'vs':458,470,488,850 'want':661 'way':758 'week':167,627,856,959 'withhold':1038 'without':37,62,212,352,701,1051 'word':543 'work':3,19,121,136,226,386,704,977 'worked/what':777 'workflow':129,377 'worri':92,879 'write':556 'wrong':734","prices":[{"id":"46218b33-2632-42ce-ad4a-ff33432fe907","listingId":"9b5772c0-e282-4047-9bea-88c197c3082a","amountUsd":"0","unit":"free","nativeCurrency":null,"nativeAmount":null,"chain":null,"payTo":null,"paymentMethod":"skill-free","isPrimary":true,"details":{"org":"liqiongyu","category":"lenny_skills_plus","install_from":"skills.sh"},"createdAt":"2026-04-18T22:16:25.988Z"}],"sources":[{"listingId":"9b5772c0-e282-4047-9bea-88c197c3082a","source":"github","sourceId":"liqiongyu/lenny_skills_plus/delegating-work","sourceUrl":"https://github.com/liqiongyu/lenny_skills_plus/tree/main/skills/delegating-work","isPrimary":false,"firstSeenAt":"2026-04-18T22:16:25.988Z","lastSeenAt":"2026-04-22T00:56:21.538Z"}],"details":{"listingId":"9b5772c0-e282-4047-9bea-88c197c3082a","quickStartSnippet":null,"exampleRequest":null,"exampleResponse":null,"schema":null,"openapiUrl":null,"agentsTxtUrl":null,"citations":[],"useCases":[],"bestFor":[],"notFor":[],"kindDetails":{"org":"liqiongyu","slug":"delegating-work","github":{"repo":"liqiongyu/lenny_skills_plus","stars":49,"topics":["agent-skills","ai-agents","automation","claude","codex","prompt-engineering","refoundai","skillpack"],"license":"apache-2.0","html_url":"https://github.com/liqiongyu/lenny_skills_plus","pushed_at":"2026-04-04T06:30:11Z","description":"86 agent-executable skill packs converted from RefoundAI’s Lenny skills (unofficial). Works with Codex + Claude Code.","skill_md_sha":"df4a412727836096ac2bc2b4c79168fea37a1d19","skill_md_path":"skills/delegating-work/SKILL.md","default_branch":"main","skill_tree_url":"https://github.com/liqiongyu/lenny_skills_plus/tree/main/skills/delegating-work"},"layout":"multi","source":"github","category":"lenny_skills_plus","frontmatter":{"name":"delegating-work","description":"Create a Delegation Pack (brief, decision rights, context handoff, check-in cadence, debrief)."},"skills_sh_url":"https://skills.sh/liqiongyu/lenny_skills_plus/delegating-work"},"updatedAt":"2026-04-22T00:56:21.538Z"}}