Optimal Consulting Group

Development
Action Plan

Prepared for
Maya Chen
Claims Team Leader
AIA Hong Kong
4 August 2026
Where you're headed
The leader your team trusts with the hard calls.

You hold every decision because you believe staying close prevents mistakes. The shift is to build the judgement around you, so your team carries the hard calls with you, and that is what finally frees you to lead.

Your daily anchor
“Trust the room I built.”
  • Ask what they'd do first
  • Name the decision-owner every handover
  • Leave one call fully to the team, daily
From
Holding
every call
To
Building their
judgement
“I can stay accountable without holding every answer.”
Your focus
01
Development tip
Give others clear ownership, authority and deadlines for decisions.
In the work

On the next three complex cases, hand full ownership to a team member with a named deadline, and step back.

With others

In weekly one-to-ones, ask each report which decision they want to own next, and tell your manager who owns it.

On your own

After each hand-off, note where you were tempted to step in, and what happened when you didn't.

02
Development tip
Ask team members for their proposed solution before offering your own.
In the work

Open every case review with “what's your recommendation?” before you give a view of your own.

With others

Ask a trusted peer to flag, in your Friday check-in, any meeting where you answered first.

On your own

Keep a one-line log of the calls your team made well without you, and reread it when the queue spikes.

The year ahead
01
0–3 months
Hand full ownership of complex cases to named team members.
EvidenceThree cases closed by the team without escalating to you.
02
3–6 months
Your reports bring decisions already made, not questions.
EvidenceYour manager notices you're out of the approval loop.
03
6–12 months
The team carries the hard calls; you shape judgement.
EvidenceYou take a full week off and the queue clears without you.
The goal
The leader your team trusts with the hard calls.
Watch out for

If the queue spikes and you feel yourself stepping back in, then hand the next decision away on purpose. Pressure is the test, not the exception.

The first week
Name one complex case and hand it over, in writing, before Friday.
The plan only becomes real at the first hand-off. Start there.
Inclusive Leadership and Business Agility remain important, but for now, focus on embedding this first shift before moving on to them.
Prepared byOptimal Consulting Group
Issued 4 August 2026, 10:45
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