How do you manage allocating new work to your team members?

Our reader poll today asks: How do you manage allocating new work to your team members?

• I allocate work fairly and evenly 38.16%
• I allocate more work to higher performers 29.61%
• I let team members volunteer for work 11.19%
• I give new work to whomever is available at that moment 14.47%
• I rely way too heavily on high performers 6.57%

Don’t Burn Out High Performers. Almost 50% of you report putting a lot of emphasis on giving work to your high performers. 36% report relying on those team members a lot and another 11% give the work to those who volunteer (who, most of the time, are likely your high performers). This overreliance on high performers can prove harmful. They could get burned out, overcommit and not perform well, or end up denying opportunities for other team members to develop because all the good projects are given to high performers. If you struggle with allocating work fairly, keep a tracking list. Make note of who received the last project and track who’s the next person in line to receive such work. Being rigorous about spreading work out can prevent burnout and will create more opportunities for other team members.

– Mike Figliuolo at thoughtLEADERS, LLC

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These results were originally a SmartPulse poll in SmartBrief on Leadership which tracks feedback from more than 240,000 business leaders. Get smarter on leadership and sign up for the SmartBrief on Leadership e-newsletter.