I used to think delegation meant losing control of quality. As a recovering perfectionist and full-time content writer, the idea of handing off client work felt impossible!
But when I started using Asana in 2020 to manage my first contractors, something clicked: Instead of losing control, I gained clarity. Instead of compromising quality, we elevated it!
Today, my team of talented professionals helps me serve more clients with better results than I ever could have achieved if working alone. And it all started with getting organized in Asana.
How I Organize Everything in Asana
Before diving into the specifics of how I manage my remote team through Asana, let me explain my organizational system.
Every Emily Writes client becomes a “project” in Asana, and everything related to that client lives within that project. This means all tasks, internal communications, and deadlines are centralized in one place.
Within each client project, I create different “sections” for various types of work – such as social media content, blog writing, email campaigns, graphic design, and admin.
Finally, individual “tasks” are assigned under each “section” for every specific piece of work that needs to be done. Many tasks are one-time tasks, and others are recurring tasks, repeating every week or month.
This structure ensures nothing falls through the cracks and makes it easy for team members to find exactly what they need.
How Asana Helps Me Scale Client Services
Remember how I mentioned that I’m a recovering perfectionist?
I’m still the point-of-contact for all my clients, and I put together a strategy for each and every one. But I’m NOT actually the perfect writer for each and every account!
Every contract writer on my team brings their own past experiences and creative perspectives. So, delegating some client work means elevating the quality of what we can provide.
Here’s how this works in practice:
Setting up a New Client in Asana
- I have a simple onboarding process (documented in Asana!) that initiates once I secure a client contract.
- As part of that checklist, I create a new project in Asana, create sections, and invite the relevant team members.
- In 95% of cases, I handle the first month or two of content writing, to ensure it meets client expectations, and then I can make adjustments as required.
- Once the client is satisfied with my work, I’m ready to delegate to a team member. Here’s how I do it (no Zoom calls required!):
- A team member with a strong background in content strategy compiles all my notes from discovery, onboarding, and initial writing. This includes background information about the business/nonprofit, our content strategy, voice/tone for writing, and (crucially!), posts that have already been written and approved.
- She creates what we call a “Background/Strategy” doc that is shared with the writer assigned to the account.
- The writer is encouraged to ask any clarifying questions before tackling her first assignment.
Delegating Client Work in Asana
- Every month, I send notes to my Executive Assistant to outline what I need completed for the next month’s content (blogs and social media) for all clients.
- She puts my notes into Google docs and links those Google docs within Asana tasks. Then, she assigns due dates to the individual writers.
- By each due date, the writer drafts their content and marks it “done” in Asana. Because I’m a collaborator on every task, I’m also notified!
- If someone falls behind or misses a due date, they can communicate directly in the task’s comments.
- If someone has any questions about what they’re assigned to write, they can tag me in the Google doc that my Executive Assistant created for her.
- By the date that my Executive Assistant has assigned me in Asana, I look over the content and make any necessary edits, then pass it on to the next step.
- When I work with agencies, the content goes directly to the agency for client approval.
- When I work with clients directly, the content goes to them for approval. (After a period of time, most clients don’t require sign-offs, so I can skip this step.)
- The next Asana task is for scheduling the social media posts or publishing the blog. Between my Executive Assistant and myself, we handle these tasks.
Other Delegated Tasks in Asana
My talented team handles even more behind-the-scenes work for clients, including:
- Researching topics
- Sourcing stock images
- Designing graphics
As a result of all these streamlined processes in Asana, I can confidently take on more clients simultaneously because I’m not the bottleneck for everything.
How Asana Frees Up My Time for Revenue-Generating Work
The second way Asana helps me scale is by delegating Emily Writes’ business tasks to my team, freeing up my time to focus on client work and business development.
✓ Copyedit Emily Writes blog posts – My talented copyeditor reviews my writing for grammar, flow, and clarity.
✓ Draft Emily Writes newsletters – One of my amazing writers turns my newsletter outlines into complete drafts.
✓ Build Emily Writes newsletters in Flodesk – My Executive Assistant puts together my biweekly email newsletter.
✓ Publish Emily Writes blog content – She also publishes my blogs on the website and my LinkedIn.
✓ LinkedIn Networking – In the past, I’ve relied on team members to help build out my LinkedIn network.
✓ Graphic Design – I’m lucky to know several talented graphic designers, who help with one-off projects such as creating my lead magnet PDF downloads or designing custom Canva templates for social media.
Some of these might seem like small tasks, but the time saved really adds up. By systematizing these processes in Asana, and giving the work to people who are more than qualified to handle it, I’ve reclaimed time to invest in high-value activities such as client strategy sessions, business development, and content writing.
The Results of Using Asana
Since implementing this Asana strategy for managing my business and team, I have:
- Grown annual revenue while working fewer hours
- Doubled my team size
- Drastically improved my personal work/life balance
Most importantly, our collaborative approach allows us to bring diverse skills and perspectives to every project, resulting in more creative and effective content than I could produce on my own!
3 Tips for Getting Started with Team Delegation in Asana
If you’re ready to scale your business using Asana, here’s my advice:
Start small: Don’t try to delegate everything all at once. Start with one team member or one type of task at a time.
Document everything: Create standard operating procedures for recurring tasks. This makes training new team members much easier.
Trust but verify: Give team members autonomy while maintaining quality control by regularly reviewing their work.
Ready to Use Asana for Remote Team Management?
Asana transformed my business from a one-person operation (where I was totally at capacity) to a collaborative team that consistently delivers exceptional results for clients. Using Asana strategically has allowed my team and me to create systems that allow talented people to do their best work.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed by your business’s growth or struggling to maintain quality while scaling, the solution might be to work smarter (not harder!) through strategic delegation and organization.