Keys to Effective Supervision

Keys to Effective Supervision

Keys to Effective Supervision

With the developmental perspective in mind, Rising Sun Consultants recommends the following 10 keys to effective supervision:

With the developmental perspective in mind, Rising Sun recommends the following 10 keys to effective supervision:

1. Support growth - Provide support for employees’ professional development through:

 Professional Development Plans

 Strength-Based Performance Appraisal Systems

2. Unite with your team - Be available and accessible to employees by maintaining:

 Open door policy

 Regular one-on-one supervisory meetings

3. Praise others - Provide praise and encouragement through:

 Formal recognition systems

 Informal compliments

4. Expect excellence - Set high expectations for employees through:

 Clear position descriptions

 Regular feedback sessions with staff

5. Demand accountability - Uphold individual responsibility by:

 Creating a culture where staff hold each other accountable

 Creating a culture where staff hold themselves accountable

6. Verify Potential - Develop an atmosphere of hope and confidence by:

 Providing staff opportunities to succeed

 Having high expectations for employees

7. Instil independence - Allow autonomy of employee through:

 Appropriate delegation

 Encouraging risk taking

8. Share continuously - Establish two-way communication through:

 Active listening

 Being transparent

9. Optimize ownership - Create opportunities for employees to contribute through:

 Participatory strategic planning sessions

 Encouraging risk taking

10. Reinforce Relationships - Share with and care about employees by:

 Getting to know what motivates individual employees

 Creating opportunities for staff to share personal accomplishments.

In the light of the obvious relationship between supervision and productivity, the following recommendations are proffered for organizational success:

1. The need for organizations (public and private), to have well-trained supervisors who are prepared to provide the necessary and appropriate guidance, structure, and encouragement to their staff.

2. In order for an individual to develop the knowledge and skills to become an effective supervisor of others, he must first go through the process of effective supervision, particularly in terms of being supervised and mentored in the role of supervision.

3. Supervisors should create a safe environment in which the employee can work through the developmental issues or challenges of each level of the job in order to gain the necessary motivation, autonomy and self-awareness to successfully move to the next level of development.

4. Bearing in mind that most of what we call supervision consists of making it difficult for people to get their work done an effective supervisory relationship therefore, requires that the supervisor not only be a content expert, but also accept the enormous responsibility of mentorship.

5. Proper training and tools should be made available to employees by their respective supervisors to accomplish company tasks since poor training and tools were among the factors identified to have had a detrimental effect on employees’ productivity. It is essential that supervisors understand how to identify skill and tool deficiencies. It is also critical to keep personal skill levels at par with the ever-changing world of job requirements.