The Role of a Supervisor: How to Become an Effective Supervisor

Effective Supervision in the Workplace

A supervisor’s words and actions have great impact on the behavior of subordinates and the responsiveness of the organization to leadership efforts.

Your success as a leader will depend on your skill as a supervisor. Your supervisory skills, in turn, depend on how well you learn and apply key principles of supervision.

Remember the difference between a boss and a leader: a boss says, “Go!”- -a leader says, “Let’s go!” E.M. Kelly

Supervision means literally, the “overseeing” (not the “overlooking”) of people within a work unit, with the purpose of achieving maximum productivity through them. For a supervisor to “oversee” people implies not only a power relationship but also a knowledge relationship. If the hierarchical organization is a pyramid, the person at the top sees more by virtue of that vantage point. The supervisor is able to take in the whole of the section’s integrated mission, as well as observe each person’s contribution to that mission. However, the supervisor’s task doesn’t end here. The supervisor communicates what he/she sees to his/her subordinates.

Course Objectives

• Comprehend the concept of effective supervision.

• Identify the five rules of supervision.

• Identify tasks that shouldn’t be delegated.

• Identify common mistakes made by supervisors while delegating.

• Explain the four steps in delegation.

• Respond positively to the importance of executing effective supervision.

• Provide examples of the benefits of effective supervision.