Mastering delegation

This Business ESL lesson helps students develop the language needed to discuss delegation in the workplace, covering key vocabulary, practical strategies, and common challenges associated with assigning tasks effectively. Students will explore reasons why some people struggle to delegate, learn useful expressions for assigning and following up on tasks, and practice delegation through structured dialogues and role-playing activities. You might also like the lesson plans “Teamwork“, “Giving and receiving feedback“, “Micromanagement“, “Perfectionism vs progress“, and “Phrasal verbs: leadership and management”

Lesson Activities

*We’ve made some changes to Activity 3 and updated the worksheet on 17th March.

Speaking: The lesson starts with a lead-in discussion on delegating. Then students discuss why some people find it difficult to delegate and match five common reasons to different workplace scenarios.

Vocabulary:  Students create useful delegation collocations (communicate expectations, establish check-ins, define outcomes, handle responsibilities, provide support, and take the lead) by combining a verb with a noun and matching each phrase to its correct definition. Then, they complete sentences using the correct delegation-related vocabulary, reinforcing their understanding of expressions such as run into issues, strike the right balance, underutilize talent, and hold accountable.

Speaking: Delegation in the Workplace. Students discuss key questions such as:

• Should leaders delegate even when they can do the task themselves?
• Is it better to assign tasks based on strengths or to challenge employees with new responsibilities?
• What challenges might arise when delegating tasks to a team?

Listening: Students categorise best practices vs. common mistakes in a table (e.g., Be clear about expectations = Do; Micromanage every detail = Don’t). Then they watch a video called “The best way to delegate effectively” to check their answers. Students listen again and fill in missing words from sentences summarizing essential delegation strategies.

Functional Language – Assigning Tasks & Following Up: Students learn and practice useful expressions for:

• Delegating tasks (Can you take the lead on…? Would you mind handling…?)
• Checking progress (How’s it going with…? Is everything on track?)
• Offering help (Let me know if you need any support along the way.)

Speaking – Role-Playing Delegation Scenarios:
Students work in pairs toread and practice structured dialogues where a manager assigns a task, and an employee responds with questions or updates. They then replace underlined expressions with alternative phrases from the lesson.

Speaking – Delegation Decision-Making:
Students analyze a list of workplace tasks (e.g., conducting performance reviews, managing social media, organizing meetings) and decide which ones they would delegate and which ones they would handle themselves, explaining their reasoning. Then they create dialogues delegating the tasks that are suitable to be delegated.

For more speaking practice, you can use the conversation cards.

Who Is This Lesson Suitable For?

• Intermediate Business English learners looking to improve communication in leadership and teamwork.
• Professionals, managers, and team leaders who need to delegate tasks effectively in the workplace.
• Students preparing for management roles or studying business, leadership, and workplace communication.