Tell me about a time when you effectively delegated tasks.
Whether you are a junior engineer or a senior project manager, you will likely need to delegate work to a coworker at some point while working at Jacobs. Walk your interviewer through a time in which you were successful in this area and include the following:
- a brief description of the task or tasks you delegated and why you needed to delegate them
- if applicable, how and why you selected the resource you delegated to
- the steps you took to communicate the goals and expectations for the work
- any follow-up discussions you had to ensure success
- the results
"In my current position, I was asked to put together a team for a special client project. I was able to handpick the team members and organize the project execution. I chose my strongest employees in a variety of areas. In our initial meeting, I delegated the tasks while explaining my reasoning. This situation was a great opportunity for me to show each team member that I had the utmost confidence in their abilities. I played to their strengths and checked in with them regularly to offer support and ensure that we were on target. We delivered to our client on time and under budget."
"I was working on a response to an RFP on a job that required several adjustments to the standard equipment we'd typically use. While I am normally able to draw up the specs and estimate the work, I determined it made more sense to request the assistance of a mechanical engineer to validate the level of work required to make those adjustments.
I walked her through the details of the job and the basic changes that were required. I asked her to brainstorm a solution and provide me with the list of materials needed and then checked in with her along the way to offer assistance as needed. She knocked it out of the park and came up with several creative solutions that the client loved. I am grateful I delegated that aspect of the work to her as her inventive problem-solving went a long way toward helping us land the job."
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Anonymous Answer
Delegating tasks in a balanced manner, appropriate to each team member's profession, is vital to project success. I believe that a project manager should act as a facilitator rather than an engineer or other similar roles. Although I came from an engineering background and can do engineering tasks, I have always delegated these tasks to the project technical office. I use my engineering background when I want to check something prepared by others or when an issue is raised in that field.
For example, in my current position, we have monthly meetings where tasks are delegated to team members. Progress is checked during weekly progress monitor meetings and daily catchup meetings every morning.
Amanda's Feedback
It sounds like you know how to delegate tasks to effectively manage the project process. You can improve your response by sharing how you used the approach and tools you discuss in your answer to delegate tasks in a specific project management scenario and how it benefited the team or project outcome.
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