In management, you must strive to excel for the health of your organization as well as your bottom line. Supervisors determine the success of your company.
If you are an effective supervisor, you live your life by the following 10 rules:
1. Be a positive role model. Remember that your actions speak louder than your words.
2. Support your co-workers and your entire management team. Choose your words and audience carefully.
3. Listen more than talk. A true leader encourages two-way communication.
4. Be flexible. Things can get done without having to do them your way. When you ask for and listen to your staff’s ideas, they become part of the solution.
5. Be a coach, not a judge. Focus on mentoring your staff instead of beating them up for them not doing something correctly. Chances are they just haven’t learned the “right” way to do it.
6. Realize that it’s OK for people to make mistakes. That’s how people learn. Teach your staff to open the dialogue after an error by saying something like this: “This is what I did, this is what I learned, and this is how I will handle a similar situation in the future.”
7. Sleep on those big decisions. And re-read memos before distributing, and make sure they are fair and clear. Before responding to an e-mail, ask yourself, “How might this be perceived by the receiver?”
8. Praise publicly, share failure and counsel privately. Period.
9. Don’t bark orders and tell people what to do. Instead, ask for assistance.
10. When identifying your focus, set priorities daily. Choose your starting point by asking yourself, “Which task is most important to the big picture?”
Follow these 10 commandments of an effective supervisor and reap the benefits of being well liked and respected by your staff.
(Photo by iStock)
About Ruby Newell-Legner
GREAT stuff, Ruby!! A refresher is always nice! I’ll also share w/ all my supervisors!
Have a GREAT day, Mick