Page 292 - Business Principles and Management

Chapter 11 • Management Functions and Decision Making

Whether oral or written, communications must be specific and clear. Supervisors
need to plan the content of their communications and determine the best method,
place, and time to communicate the information. Supervisors should follow up
on communications and ask for feedback to make sure the receivers understood
the messages. Listening is an important communication skill for supervisors.

CONTROLLING QUALITY

The final daily management skill for supervisors is quality control. In some compa-
nies, employees spend a great deal of time correcting errors and redoing work that
was not done well the first time. Supervisors can reduce those problems by planning
work carefully, developing quality standards, and regularly checking the quality of
the work being done. Also, supervisors can help employees recognize the impor-
tance of quality work, so the employees will take responsibility for reducing errors
and controlling costs.

CHECKPOINT
What are some common tools used by supervisors and how does
each help with day-to-day management responsibilities?

Improving Supervisory Skills

One of the most difficult problems facing new supervisors is to accept the fact
that they must spend less time on nonmanagerial activities and more time on
management functions. Because supervisors are usually
skilled employees, they often want to continue to do business note
the work they were doing before being promoted.
At times, they may think that their employees are not
doing the job as well as it can be done. Therefore, new
supervisors are often tempted to step in and do the job Managers are expected to read a large num-
themselves. ber of business reports that provide impor-
If a supervisor spends a little time helping an employee tant information. Often reports are long and
improve his or her work procedures, the employee will complex. To help managers recognize, under-
usually value the supervisor’s support. However, if the stand, and remember the important informa-
supervisor steps in and takes over the employee’s task, tion in a report, an executive summary is
the employee will resent that action. Both the quality and placed at the beginning. An executive sum-
quantity of the employee’s work will suffer and the supervi- mary is a concise overview of the full report.
sor will have less time for important management work. It highlights each major section and summa-
Supervisors must rely on their employees to get the work rizes key information.
done, so they can concentrate on management activities By reading the executive summary, man-
and use the talents of the people with whom they work. agers understand what the report is about and
Today, more companies help supervisors develop what they will learn from it. They can read
and improve their management skills. Many companies the full report faster and with greater under-
provide formal training programs for new supervisors. standing. They can also use the executive
Employees moving into supervisor positions might, for summary as a way to remember the impor-
instance, participate in management classes full-time tant information at a later date without
for a few weeks and then continue training through a having to read the entire report again.
series of meetings and short training sessions during
their first weeks and months in the new job. Or, they

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