Start with the decision you're holding on to.
If every discount, customer query or minor problem has to pass through you, the business has a queue with your name on it. Hiring another person may help with the work, but it won't necessarily change where the decisions sit.
Choose one repeated decision that someone else could reasonably make. Keep the first example manageable. You are building a way of working, so don't start with the highest-risk decision in the business.
Define the outcome.
Explain what a good result looks like. "Handle customer enquiries" is broad. "Every new enquiry has an owner, a useful first response and a recorded next step" gives someone a standard they can work towards.
Check that the person has the information, time and authority needed. Responsibility without access or decision-making power tends to send the work straight back to you.
Agree the boundaries.
Write down what the person can decide independently, when they should tell you afterwards and when they need approval first. Use boundaries that fit the actual risk and your existing obligations.
- Decide: What can they handle using the agreed process?
- Inform: What should they resolve and then report?
- Escalate: Which exceptions require you before action is taken?
A customer complaint, for example, might have different limits from a routine scheduling change. The point is to remove uncertainty before it becomes a problem.
Be clear about the result and the boundaries. Give people room to do the work.
Review examples, not every movement.
Agree a review point. Look at a few actual cases together. Ask what worked, what was unclear and what needs changing. If every action still needs checking before it happens, you may have delegated the task while keeping the decision.
Expect some learning. When something goes wrong, find out whether the issue was the standard, the information, the process or the decision. Those are different problems and need different responses.
Try this next week.
- Pick one repeated decision you currently make.
- Write a clear outcome and the decision boundaries.
- Agree ownership with one suitable team member.
- Review real examples together after a week.
The aim is a business with clearer responsibility. That takes practice, feedback and a willingness to let an agreed process do its job.