There’s a dark side to delegation and that’s micromanagement.

We define Micromanagement as managing with excessive control or attention to detail. But is it ever okay to micromanage? Sometimes, yes. Most managers will likely recognize these times, so this will be a review.

If deadlines are missed, the manager obviously needs to step in and get people back on track, find out the cause of the missed deadline and, if necessary, help the individual make a plan to ensure they’ll be able to get their work done.

You may also need to step in if a project is not going as planned, or employees are hitting milestones but still falling short of expected results.

If a team member is not able to perform because they don’t have the skills, the time, or the interest, then the manager must to step in to make sure the task is completed. This is important not only for health of the team, but for the individual as well. Even if the delegated role is beyond their skills, you might cause more damage by letting them fail than by simply stepping in. Take the opportunity to turn the experience into a teaching moment. Whether you do the work yourself or delegate to someone else, have them stay involved so they can continue to learn from the process.

If, however, a team member has the skills, the time, and the ability, and is just not willing to perform, then you need to look at the situation from a personnel perspective. Ask yourself what is causing the problem. What’s going on with this individual? Remember, even seemingly individual issues can cause problems for the team very quickly.

Of course, if a team member is tasked with a particularly sensitive file or job, you may want to stay hands-on since the threat of the information getting out, or the danger of there being a problem with it, is so high that safety and security is more important than ensuring that that person feels they have complete autonomy.

But when is it not okay to micro-manage? This is actually a gray area that managers have trouble managing. When employees are feeling micromanaged, they tend to manifest this by feeling frustrated or even fearful.

Often, this leads individuals to not trusting their own judgment. Remember, whether it’s due to your second-guessing them, or to asking too many questions about how they are arriving at a particular end result, a team member who doesn’t trust himself will find it much harder to take on any other delegated tasks.

The most cited reason for why employees leave a company is poor management. They may feel that they don’t have enough control, or autonomy, or the ability to grow, but the good news is that these are all things a good manager can control.

If Micromanaging affects the mental health of the staff or the overall efficiency of the organization, it’s not okay. If you’re constantly undermining an employee’s decisions and performance, that behavior will inevitably affect their ability to perform, and it’s also going to impact the team dynamic. To see where you fall on the micromanaging spectrum, answer the seven questions below.

1. Do you find it difficult to delegate tasks?

2. Do you believe you can perform most of the tasks of your team and probably better?

3. Do you feel it is more efficient to do the job yourself, rather than give the job to a team member?

4. Do you allow your staff to learn from their mistakes?

5. Do you spend a large amount of time overseeing single projects?

6. Are you and your team overworked?

7. Does your team take initiative, or do they have to check with you before doing anything?

Did you answer all the questions above honestly? Remember, it is not all black and white.