Here’s some other talent you can develop

Want to make a difference in your bottom line? How about your long term competitive advantage?

Well, you can probably do it, if you’ll just spend some time and resources on who you promote to your first line supervisory positions. They’re important. And you don’t have to take my word for it.

In 2005, Fast Company interviewed Jeff Immelt, CEO of GE, about a number of things. They asked about his father, who spent 28 years on the line at GE. The interview includes the following exchange.

“But when your dad had a bad boss, did he behave differently at home?

Yeah. He came home in a bad mood, uncertain about the future. And when he had a good boss, he was pumped. The frontline folks are critical to how the company does.”

That’s an example of something we’ve known for a while. Your boss has more impact on your morale and productivity, and on the morale and productivity of your team, than anything else. And, first line supervisors are the bosses who, in aggregate, have an effect on the most people.

They’re also the bosses who get the least attention. A 2009 Wall Street Journal article said that first line supervisors, despite their numbers, benefit from less than 10 percent of training budgets. Here are some tips for doing a better job of selecting and supporting your first line supervisors.

Give them an option. Moving into “management” shouldn’t be the only way a person can get more pay and prestige.

Let them try on the role. Give those who are interested some opportunities to lead small task forces and project teams. That’s the only way they can find out if they like the boss’s role.

Select supervisors based on demonstrated possibility of success. Evaluate their ability to talk to others about behavior and make decisions. Evaluate whether they enjoy helping others succeed.

Train them in supervisory work, and fast. Before they have the opportunity to develop bad habits or poison relationships, give them some training in basic supervisory skills.

Support them during the transition. The transition from individual contributor to supervisor will take twelve to eighteen months. During that time, training, review, and mentoring should be a regular part of their life.

Support them when the transition is done. Mentors and peer support groups help them learn on the job. Specific training programs can build skills.

One more thing. Since so few companies really pay attention to their first line supervisors, you can gain some competitive advantage by doing it.

Wally Bock

Wally Bock is a coach, a writer and President of Three Star Leadership.