Management Lesson 2 - Effective Supervision

Goals

• Understand what makes a supervisor effective
• Identify the responsibilities of supervisors
• Describe the day-to-day activities of supervisors
• understand the role of a Work Coach

The Effective Supervisor

 Great workers are often chosen by the companies they work for to be supervisors. The hope is that these workers will be able to replicate and multiply their effectiveness by teaching and motivating subordinates who work for them. A supervisor's effectiveness is judged based on three factors:

• Quality
• Efficiency
• Worker Satisfaction

Responsibilities

To achieve these goals, supervisors take on certain responsibilities

1. Bridge - Supervisors serve as a bridge between management and the employees. The supervisor must communicate the goals and objectives of management to the employees. At the same time, the supervisor can take concerns and ideas to management.

2. Coach - Supervisors use their expertise and experience to teach and motivate employees to improve workplace performance. Supervisors often use performance reviews to evaluate the work and accomplishments of employees. Supervisors also encourage their subordinates though verbal encouragement and recognition.

3. Guard - Supervisors also serve as a guard of the company's resources. by using resources efficiently, supervisors keep costs low and directly contribute to the company's bottom line.


Tools

A supervisor uses tools to maintain an efficient workplace.

A work schedule is often used to schedule jobs to be completed and assists in assigning responsibilities to employees for getting specific tasks done. Much of supervisors' time is consumed in scheduling work to keep tasks completed on-time.

Another critical component of a supervisor's job is to communicate effectively with employees and management. Company's often use e-mail, text messaging and phone calls to communicate critical aspects of a company's operation. Supervisors also use job tickets and order forms to communicate specific job plans with employees and management.

The final task that supervisors must oversee is quality control. If errors or defects are detected, a supervisor must find out the cause and have it corrected. This may involve additional training for an employee or repairing or replacing a piece of mechanical equipment.

Supervisors are not left alone to complete all these tasks. Companies often provide work coaches to assist in training supervisors in becoming more effective in their work. Work coaches can provide training, advice, and supervision when necessary.