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Improving Supervision

People are often promoted to the role of a supervisor because they have the ability to meet production targets and have had suitable technical training. However, that does not necessarily mean that they have completed training to enable them to become successful supervisors. This brochure aims to help both people new to this role, and also refresh the skills of those who have been supervisors for some time.

Supervisors are key to managing hazards and risks in business. Businesses put ‘barriers’ in place to stop a hazard becoming an undesirable outcome, and rely on their employees at different stages to highlight any problems (this is also known as the Swiss cheese model). A supervisor has a crucial role in this process, to make sure that employees talk to each other about hazards, and that any problems are highlighted. If there is a lack of supervision then these barriers become difficult to implement and maintain.

A supervisor should be using the following procedure:

• Plan the work in sufficient detail.
• Do the work so it is completed according to the plan.
• Review what happened, learn from problems.
• Feedback, what went right and can be done better.
• Implement improvements.
• Inform people outside the team about any learning points discovered.

The step-by-step process, in the centre of this brochure, will identify problems with the quality of supervision and drive improvement. The section on leadership styles will help people assess their own working style and how this is perceived by the people they manage. Six worksheets are included within Improving Supervision; they can be re-used, but additional copies can be ordered using the main order form if you wish. Additionally, there are extra support tools  available at the bottom of this webpage, in the form of a Powerpoint presentation, flipcharts and facilitator’s notes.

If you would like to order the full booklet click here or if you are a Shell employee please click here.

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