Build A Better Career

Whenever you have to supervise or manage a department, it can definitely be challenging. Keeping track of all those employees and making sure they are doing their job, plus being a people person and balancing all the other skills is not easy.

You will notice that your staff is extremely diverse. Whether its personalities, cultures, skill levels, or anything else, this mix can be overwhelming. If a situation arises you can just step back for a moment and realize they are people just like you.

The first area you will want to focus on is having good communication. For instance there might be a couple workers you can joke around with, but a couple others who are more serious. Learning each individual personality will take time, but it will help you develop business relationships in a comfortable manner.

The most important thing to understand here is you DO NOT want to build personal relationships. In the beginning it will seem harmless, but it will come back to haunt you if an employee needs to be reprimanded.

When you have to do this you will see that the person will take it much more personally then they should. They will feel like you have betrayed the bond that you have formed when actually you have just done your job. Falling into a situation like this is easy, the first time.

You will also notice that employees always want to come to the manager when they are enduring personal problems. They basically just need to vent, and since you are not attached to the situation there is a bull’s-eye on your back. There is nothing wrong with listening to them, but don’t offer any advice. Even if they ask for it, just step around it or tell them you feel uncomfortable. If you do offer advice they will believe you are forming a bond. Worst of all this is a situation outside of work.

What you really need to do is make sure your staff reaches their goals set forth by the big wigs. You can be helpful in different ways other then offering advice. For instance is someone is having a bad day, let the Leads know they should give the individual their space for awhile.

You do not have to offer solutions to their personal problems in order to be an effective leader. You must simply be there when they need to talk, let them get it off of their chests and then motivate them to get back to work and to concentrate on the job at hand.

Great Managers and Supervisors can maintain a friendly balance between their employees while keeping the manager/employee relationship in check. If your employees respect you because you are humble and not afraid to admit that you have made mistakes then they will work hard for you. If you let them vent when they need to and are there to support them through the rough business related times then you should have no problems at all.

Supervising your staff effectively is only one of the many topics covered on Michael Murray’s Job Cover Letters website. Visit it for more career articles.