Delegation is the assignment of authority to another person (normally from a manager to a subordinate) to carry out specific activities. It is the process of distributing and entrusting work to another person, and therefore one of the core concepts of management leadership. The process involves managers deciding which work they should do themselves and which work should be delegated to others for completion. From a managerial standpoint, delegation involves shifting project responsibility to team members, giving them the opportunity to finalize the work product effectively, with minimal intervention. The opposite of effective delegation is micromanagement, where a manager provides too much input, direction, and review of delegated work. Delegation empowers a subordinate to make decisions. It is a shifting of decision-making authority as well as responsibility for the results from one organisational level to another lower one. However, a certain level of accountability for the outcome of the work does remain with the person who delegated the work to begin with.

There are a number of reasons someone may decide to delegate. These include:

• To free themselves up to do other tasks in the pace of their own
• To have the most qualified person making the decisions
• To seek another qualified person's perspective on an issue
• To develop someone else's ability to handle the additional assignments judiciously and successfully.

Delegation is widely accepted as an essential element of effective management. It is one of the most useful management tools available. The ability to delegate is a critical, yet difficult to develop, skill in managing effectively. There are a number of factors which facilitate effective delegation by managers. These include: "Recognising and respecting others’ capabilities; evaluating tasks and communicating how they fit in the big picture; matching people and assignments; providing support and encouragement; tolerating ambiguity and uncertainty; interpreting failure as a key to learning". With organisations being such complex and dynamic entities, the success of objectives rely heavily on how effectively tasks and responsibilities can be delegated. There are a number of characteristics which apply to delegation. Firstly, as previously discussed it is the process of assigning authority of a task to a supporting employee. This also shifts the decision-making authority relating to this task. The delegation of tasks across organisational levels creates connections and develops a chain of authority.