How Competent Is Your Supervisor?

Too many people are promoted as supervisors without knowing how to do their job. Many of them either go about doing their old work trying to do everything themselves or commit the opposite blunder of just issuing orders without giving proper guidance.

For a newly promoted supervisor to succeed in his position, it is the company’s responsibility to train him on how to do the job. Usually lacking are basic management skills to help him handle his subordinates. Below are basic skills a supervisor must master in order to cope with his new position:

• Planning. To ensure effective planning, the person must develop the skill of anticipating or forecasting what should be accomplished. Developing plans means setting objectives to give direction to succeeding efforts. Along this process, schedules and deadlines must be drawn up to assure that tasks are accomplished on time. At the same time, supervisors should be consulted on the expenditures. Even if the supervisor won’t be the one setting the final budget, he will be responsible for not exceeding the budget by making sure his unit runs efficiently.

• Organization. A disorganized supervisor would find it hard to be productive. There would be duplication of tasks, often with the wrong people assigned to the work. The supervisor must know how to balance the workload and assign it correctly, such that no person is overworked while others are left with little to do. Another sign of an organized supervisor is when you see that his workplace is clean, equipment is well maintained, and everything is in its proper place.

• Leadership . While a supervisor’s position gives him authority, he must still learn to gain the cooperation of his workers without being dictatorial. He must be able to motivate people to attain company objectives.

• Control. To make sure things are going according to plan, your supervisor must be able to establish control measures. In consultation with both your workers and upper management, there should be agreed upon standards that can be measured. This will enable you to know if corrective measures need to be done.

While all that was stated above are very important, the most difficult but most critical is the change in attitude that must be adopted. Supervisors, especially those coming from the rank and file, must realize that they are now part of management. As such, a shift in loyalty – and not just a change in function – is needed.

To train your supervisors, BusinessCoach, Inc., a leading business seminar provider, conducts a seminar entitled, “Supervisory Skills Training.” Contact (02) 727-5628, (02) 727-8860, (0915) 205-0133, or visit www.businesscoachphil.com for details.

Click here to view details of the seminar: Basic Supervisory Skills Training »

*Originally published by the Manila Bulletin. C-6, Sunday, January 26, 2014. Written by Ruben Anlacan, Jr. (President, BusinessCoach, Inc.) All rights reserved. May not be reproduced or copied without express written permission of the copyright holders.