Delegation Poker

Copione di facilitazione

1. 1

   Hand each player a set of seven cards and walk the levels from the delegator's perspective: 1 Tell (I decide and inform you), 2 Sell (I decide and convince you), 3 Consult (I ask your input, then decide), 4 Agree (we decide together), 5 Advise (I advise, you decide), 6 Inquire (you decide, I ask afterwards), 7 Delegate (you decide, I don't need the details). Stress that no level is bad — mismatched expectations are the enemy, not low numbers.

   6 min
2. 2

   Build the decision list with the group: ask for real decisions that cause friction — hiring a new team member, choosing the technology stack, setting sprint goals — and write each on its own card. Aim for six to ten concrete items.

   6 min
3. 3

   Run the first case slowly: read the decision aloud, have everyone pick a card privately, then reveal simultaneously on a count of three. Ban table talk before the reveal — the divergence is the data.

   4 min
4. 4

   Debrief the spread: invite the highest and lowest cards to explain first, and clarify whether people voted on current reality or desired state — mixing the two produces phantom disagreements.

   6 min
5. 5

   Work through the remaining decisions at a faster clip, re-voting after discussion whenever the spread was wide, and settle on one agreed level per decision before moving on.

   18 min
6. 6

   Record every agreed level on a delegation board — decisions in rows, the seven levels in columns — photograph it, and post it where the team actually works.

   5 min
7. 7

   Close by agreeing when to revisit: delegation levels are snapshots, not statutes. Book a review in about three months or after the next significant team change.

   3 min

Suggerimenti

• The game's value is in the conversations triggered by divergence, not in the final numbers.

• Most teams discover they have fundamentally different assumptions about who is empowered to decide what.

• Document the results in a Delegation Board.',

Errori comuni

• Averaging the cards into a number and moving on — the mathematical middle satisfies nobody; the value sits in the argument between the 2 and the 6, so give that conversation the time

• Letting the most senior person editorialise before the reveal — one raised eyebrow re-anchors the whole table; keep picks private until every card is up

• Leaving ambiguous whether a round is about how decisions work today or how they should work — half the table answers each question and the spread looks like conflict when it is just crossed wires

• Ending without writing anything down — verbal 'level five-ish' agreements evaporate within a sprint; the delegation board is the deliverable, not the game

Variazioni

Run as a team-only exercise, or include managers and direct reports together for cross-level alignment. Combine with a Delegation Board to create a visual map of decision authority.

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