Increase Speed by Letting Go

Delegation

“When field commanders are trusted by headquarters and given authority, they are not slowed down by unnecessary checks. They execute the mission with a strong sense of responsibility, and the speed of execution increases,” says Damian McKinney. “What is essential is a mission that is simple and clear.”

Under a clearly defined mission, leaders who are freed from excessive oversight and unnecessary interference move quickly.

Deep Dive

“Delegating authority under a clear mission increases the speed of execution throughout the organization” was one of Damian McKinney’s favorite sayings.

“When I joined the military in the 1970s, command-and-control management — where superiors dictated even the smallest details of HOW things should be done — was dominant,” he said.

During one military exercise, the operation itself failed, yet the senior officer commanding the exercise carefully reviewed each KPI and declared:

“You achieved eight out of ten KPIs, so you pass. You only achieved four, so you fail.”

Damian was furious.

“How can anyone talk about passing or failing when the mission itself was not accomplished?!”

He said that when this kind of management is repeated, field commanders and soldiers inevitably begin to think:

“The higher-ups are going to check this anyway, so we’d better do it, even if it adds no value.”

“Let’s aim cautiously for the minimum acceptable line so we can reduce the risk of failure.”

He experienced firsthand how excessive control slows organizations down and encourages defensive behavior instead of decisive action.

Later, as the conflict with the IRA (Irish Republican Army) forced the military to adapt to unpredictable terrorism, the principles behind Mission Leadership® began to spread throughout the British military.

Damian said he was delighted.

“At last, my era has arrived!”

In 2021, I personally experienced how delegation increases speed while helping organize a university karate tournament as an alumnus.

Tournament operations in minor sports are typically handled by alumni from participating universities. That year, my alma mater was responsible for hosting the event. The host university managed everything — venue arrangements, referees, accommodations, meals, and overall coordination.

The entire operation was led by Professor S, a former junior member of our karate club who had remained at the university as a researcher. Since I had been away from karate for many years, Professor S told me:

“Iwamoto-san, there’s no way you can serve as a referee anymore, so please handle the COVID countermeasures.”

Things went smoothly at first. I prepared infection-control measures based on government guidelines and arranged masks and disinfectants. But three days before the tournament, a serious problem emerged.

The student affairs office at University N refused to grant permission for its athletes to participate.

A young coach from University N, Coach T, contacted Professor S and explained:

“The student affairs office is stubbornly insisting on unusually strict participation standards and keeps saying, ‘Management will not approve it.’ I became emotional as well, and now the discussions are going nowhere.”

Professor S then told me:

“If we keep playing telephone relay through multiple people, we’ll run out of time. From here on, please handle things directly yourself.”

“And don’t forget the mission: to give students the opportunity to compete for the first time in two years.”

That was the mission.

Acting as a tournament committee member, I first called Coach T directly to understand the situation. I then contacted the student affairs office at University N and asked:

“What documents do you need, and what exactly must be proven in order for the students to participate?”

Because I dealt with both sides directly and respectfully, both calmly explained their positions.

I then prepared the required documents on behalf of the University N karate club, sent them by email to the student affairs office, and immediately followed up with another phone call.

The staff member replied:

“Thank you for the materials. With this, I can explain the situation to my supervisor. To be honest, our university has experienced several incidents recently, so our standards for student participation during COVID have become unnecessarily strict compared to other universities.”

The official then promised approval for participation.

From the moment I started taking action to the final resolution, the entire issue was solved in less than two hours.

The reason it was resolved so quickly was that Professor S had delegated authority to me clearly and decisively:

“The mission is to give students a chance to compete again after two years.”

“The constraint is that the issue must be solved within one day. Beyond that, you are free to contact anyone directly and submit whatever documents are necessary.”

What amused me afterward was how unexpectedly complimentary Professor S and Coach T became once everything was resolved.

“With all due respect, I was surprised by how skillfully you negotiated.”

“I hope this doesn’t sound condescending, but I thought karate was the only thing you were good at. It turns out you’re capable in business too.”

I found myself thinking:

“It’s been twenty years since I was praised as someone on the front line. That actually feels pretty good.”

For the first time in many years, I experienced firsthand from the operational side that:

“Clear missions and bold delegation dramatically increase speed.”