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Print ArticleBECOMING ONE OF THE VERY BEST SUPERVISORS
With the right approach and a serious commitment to developing their management muscles, your supervisors can rank among the very best. They can be the kind of people that attract other good workers to them. They can become a mentor for those they manage; completely eliminating the dividing line that often exists between those who produce and those who track production.
There is a simple and effective way to inject excellence and modern-day management philosophy directly into the mind of your new supervisor — expose them to professional supervisor training as soon as they are given the job. There are so many great courses available to you; don't stop with the fundamentals — train for life. Give them access to expert guidance on leadership, team-building and mentoring. These are not management fads to ignore. Practice them. Perfect them. If you stop the education, how can you expect continued growth from anyone?
WHAT MATTERS MOST
It's been my experience that those special managers and mentors who have the quiet power to lead people into an unknown future — combat even — share something very special, deeply buried in their DNA and human characteristics. They aren't the kind of qualities you can teach but certainly you can help amplify them in their makeup.
Credibility, accountability and trust are virtues which make any boss highly effective in creating loyalty and record-breaking performance. Employees feel pleased to work for supervisors that are authentic in their hands-on knowledge — the top managers are often referred to as "the Real McCoy." If these supervisors are truly genuine and they don't hesitate to assume responsibility for their mistakes, credibility and accountability are on their side. If, to that, your people feel safe on their watch and confident in their assessment, you have a winner in your midst. Anything you do to support them will support everybody, including the customer.
The change from buddy to boss is one of careful transition. Because it is rarely smooth, your guidance and aggressive support (especially moral support) will mean the difference between failure and success. So often, success is simply the ability to convert ideas into actions. As natural-born converters, the outcome looks great!
About the author: Chris Traynor, SPHR, is the Director for Whip-Smart™ Management Consulting, Wayne, N.J., and has 25 years of experience in the solid surface industry as a consultant to fabricators, distributors and manufacturers. He can be reached at ctraynor@whip-smart.com.
