Delegating By the Numbers

Hidden Time Drains on Your Day

The hypothesis behind the HBR article is simple. Many CFOs feel overwhelmed and overworked yet struggle to delegate tasks to others. Each task they face seems equally important and vital to their role in the organization.

Instead of focusing on the tasks themselves, the author of the article suggests keeping a simple time log for two weeks to see where you spend most of your time. Although this may seem tedious at first (after all, do you really have to count the five minutes you spent waiting for the copier to churn out documents for a meeting?), the exercise itself proves valuable, because it helps you examine exactly what you spend your time on each day.

You can use a spreadsheet, scratchpad, or time-tracking app. It’s helpful to break your time down into 15-minute blocks so you’re not micro-recording every second of the day.

As you record how you spend your time, you’ll see patterns emerge. These patterns are the signs pointing to areas of delegation as well as nonproductive uses of your time.

Find the Hidden Time Wasters

What drains your time may differ from someone else in the organization, but in general, certain patterns emerge. Here are common hidden time wasters in a CFO’s day:

1. Meetings: If we had a dollar for every minute wasted in a meeting that could have been an email, we’d all be wealthy. Meetings are by far the biggest timewaster on many CFO’s time log. Not all meetings are wasteful, but many are. These are the meetings you’re invited to attend as a courtesy, for example, or those that do not require a CFO. Instead, you may be able to delegate some of these meetings to other accounting and finance team members, thus saving you considerable time.
2. Finding information: Searching through your company’s digital filing system for reports, memos, or notes can be time-consuming. If the system isn’t organized properly, if files aren’t tagged with logical names, searching for information can eat up precious minutes in your day. A good solution is to work with your operations team to organize the digital files in your system. Once the files are organized, someone should take an hour each month to check the system to ensure that the agreed-upon naming conventions and filing system are followed. Not only will you have an easier time finding information, but if your company adopts an AI platform such as Microsoft Copilot, you’ll find it has an easier time finding information, too, once the files are logically tagged.
3. Routine tasks: As you examine your time log, look for routine tasks that might easily be completed by someone else. These may include tasks related to specific projects that others are working on with you. Decide if you can ask someone else to tackle them.

Also Note Which Tasks You Can’t Delegate

Another way to view your time log is to group tasks into two simple categories: things you absolutely must do (because only you can do them) and things you could or should delegate. As a CFO, higher-level financial tasks, decisions, and strategies naturally belong to your role. But you may be able to delegate other items on your list. Consider the complete list of tasks, and mark those that only you can do, and those you could potentially delegate. Then, weigh the pros and cons of delegation. Base your delegation strategy on tasks that can be easily delegated, focusing on those that save you the most time.

Delegation Isn’t Always Easy – But It’s Worth It

Let’s face it: delegation isn’t always easy. But, in the end, it’s worth it if you can save time in your day. You’ll feel less stress and pressure and have more time for the tasks that only you can do. And there’s no better feeling in the world than recouping an hour in your week through delegation!

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