AI delegation means handing off specific business tasks to an AI assistant that’s trained on your business context. The best approach is the Describe-Train-Handoff framework: describe the task in plain language, teach the AI about your business by sharing relevant files and examples, then hand off the work and review its output. Most business owners can delegate their first task to AI in under 5 minutes.
I used to spend every Monday morning writing client research briefs. Three hours minimum. Pulling company data, finding recent news, summarising it into a format my team could actually use.
Now I wake up on Monday and the briefs are done. My AI team member does them while I sleep.
That’s not magic. It’s delegation. The same skill every manager learns with human team members, but just applied to AI.
The problem is, most “AI productivity” advice tells you to “leverage AI to optimize your workflow.” That means nothing. What you actually need is a simple framework for deciding what to hand off, how to hand it off, and how to make sure the output is good enough.
Here it is.
The Describe-Train-Handoff Framework
Step 1: Describe the Task
Don’t think about AI capabilities. Think about YOUR week. Pull out your calendar and ask: “What did I do last week that didn’t require my unique brain?”
Tasks that delegate well to AI:
Repetitive: You do it the same way every time Template-able: It follows a consistent structure Research-heavy: It involves gathering and summarising information First-draft worthy: A 70% good first draft saves you more time than starting from scratch
10 tasks most business owners can delegate today:
Client research briefs before meetings First drafts of proposals and pitch decks Meeting notes and action item summaries Competitor analysis updates Social media post drafts Customer FAQ responses Email follow-ups after calls Weekly report compilation Job description writing Blog post outlines and first drafts
Pick ONE. The one that annoys you most. That’s your starting point.
Step 2: Train It on Your Business
A generic AI gives generic answers. A trained AI gives answers that sound like they came from your team.
“Training” doesn’t mean you need machine learning skills. It means:
Share your files: Upload past examples of good work – old proposals, client briefs, reports, email templates. The AI learns your style from examples. Set the context: Tell the AI who your clients are, what your business does, and what tone to use. (See our system prompts guide for the full framework.) Give it your templates: If your proposals always follow a specific structure, share that structure. If your emails have a particular sign-off, include it. On LaunchLemonade, this takes about 3 minutes. You upload files, describe the role, and your AI team member is ready.
Step 3: Hand Off the Work
This is where most people get stuck. They ask the AI to “help” instead of asking it to “do.”
Weak delegation: “Can you help me research this company?” Strong delegation: “Research Acme Corp. Create a 1-page brief covering: company overview, recent news from the last 90 days, key decision makers, and 3 potential pain points we can address. Use the same format as the brief I uploaded for Client X.”
Good delegation to AI follows the same rules as good delegation to humans:
Be specific about the deliverable Set a clear scope (length, format, depth) Reference past examples of good work Define what “done” looks like
The Review Loop: Trust but Verify
I never send AI-generated work to a client without reading it first. Neither should you.
But here’s the shift: you’re reviewing and editing, not creating from scratch. That’s the difference between 3 hours and 20 minutes.
My review process:
Scan for accuracy. Are the facts correct? Any hallucinations? Check the tone. Does it sound like me/my brand? Add the human touch. Drop in a personal reference, a specific detail from a real conversation, something the AI couldn’t know Approve or iterate. If it’s 80% there, I edit. If it’s way off, I give feedback and let it try again.
Over time, the AI gets better. Your first delegation will require more editing. By your 10th, you’ll be making minor tweaks.
What NOT to Delegate
Not everything should go to AI. Keep these for yourself:
Relationship decisions. Who to partner with, who to fire, who to invest in Strategy. AI can research and analyse, but final strategic decisions need your judgment Creative vision. AI can draft, but your brand voice and creative direction should come from you Sensitive communications. Firing someone, delivering bad news, or handling a crisis Legal and financial sign-offs. AI can draft, but a human reviews
The rule of thumb: delegate the research, the first drafts, and the grunt work. Keep the decisions, the relationships, and the final sign-off.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is AI delegation?
- AI delegation is the practice of assigning specific business tasks to an AI assistant that has been trained on your business context, style, and requirements. Unlike simple AI chatting, delegation means the AI produces complete deliverables like research briefs, email drafts, reports, that require minimal human editing before use.
What tasks should I delegate to AI first?
- Start with your most repetitive, time-consuming task that follows a consistent format. The top three first-delegation tasks for most business owners are: client research briefs, email follow-ups, and first drafts of proposals. These are high-frequency, template-friendly tasks where AI saves the most time immediately.
How long does it take to train an AI on my business?
- On platforms like LaunchLemonade, initial training takes 3-5 minutes… upload a few example documents, describe the role, and set basic instructions. The AI improves over time as you give it more examples and feedback. Most users report their AI producing usable output within the first session.
Can AI delegation replace hiring employees?
- AI delegation doesn’t replace humans, but it replaces the tasks that make humans miserable. An AI team member handles repetitive research, drafting, and data compilation, freeing your human team to focus on relationships, strategy, and creative work. Think of it as hiring a tireless junior assistant, not replacing your senior team.
How do I know if the AI’s output is good enough?
- Apply the 80% rule: if the AI’s first draft is at least 80% of what you’d produce yourself, delegation is working. You should spend no more than 20% of the original task time on editing and review. If you’re spending more than that, refine your system prompt or provide better examples.
What would you do with 10 extra hours a week? Stop doing everything yourself.
Delegate your first task in 2 minutes: https://launchlemonade.app?utm_source=blog&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=how-to-delegate-tasks-to-ai
Cien Solon is the founder and CEO of LaunchLemonade, building AI team members for every business. Follow her on LinkedIn for daily insights on AI, delegation, and building in public.
