Delegation Poker

Delegation Poker is a card game that helps teams and managers clarify who is allowed to make which decisions. The key insight behind it: delegation is not an either-or between full control and full autonomy but a spectrum with seven levels, from Tell (the manager decides and informs) to Delegate (the team decides entirely on its own).

Each participant receives seven cards representing the delegation levels. For each decision area, everyone plays a card face-down, then all cards are revealed at once. It becomes interesting when there are discrepancies: if the manager plays a 3 for architecture decisions while the team plays a 6, the differing expectations become immediately visible. The ensuing discussion leads to a shared understanding that is documented on a Delegation Board. This produces clear agreements instead of implicit assumptions about who may decide what.

The format was created by Jurgen Appelo and published in 2011 as part of Management 3.0. It is especially useful during team formation, role changes, or when recurring conflicts about decision authority arise.