A B757-200 Captain reported his concerns with a new SOP that calls for the First Officer to handle exterior lights after landing.

Narrative

As part of the countless SOP changes we have witnessed at [my company] lately; the First Officer is now responsible for handling the exterior lights upon landing. This is not a wise change. The First Officer is over tasked at this point; and while light management is not all that critical during daylight hours; it is vitally important during night time. As the First Officer is busy making radio calls and handling all sorts of switches as we are turning off the runway; it is not always obvious which lights should be used. It is much easier for the Captain to handle the light switches himself instead of engaging in verbal communications; competing with the ATC and company radio calls for the attention of the First Officer. This is a very critical phase of flight prone to serious consequences in case of error. That is precisely why it is part of the sterile flight phase. On this flight I suddenly found myself taxiing in total darkness. This SOP change should be rescinded immediately as it is inherently unsafe. This is not the first problem I have encountered with this poorly thought out SOP.