It continues to be amazing to me how people in supervisory positions tend to focus on what they themselves are trying to do and not so much on how they can develop their staff. They are focused on what they can do, not on what they can develop their staff to do.
I encourage supervisors to think about how they’re developing those they oversee. What meetings do you need to have with them? What questions do you need to be asking them? How can you help them identify the key results they want to accomplish? What training do they need?
Essentially, all of these questions come down to: How can you come alongside the people you oversee to coach and develop them?
One supervisor had in his mind what he wanted his team to accomplish, but he hadn’t taken the time to process that goal with his staff and get agreement on the results they were looking for. We need to do the thoughtful prep work with our team to ensure we’re on the same page and moving forward toward the same goal.
Another supervisor has 6 or 7 direct reports. I asked him, “What meetings do you have with each of them to help them be able to move forward?” He responded, “Well, I have one day a month when I am in the office with no appointments. I’m available then if they want to see me.” Not surprisingly, very few of his direct reports came in during his office hours.
As a supervisor, you need to work with your people directly to clarify the results they are working toward. You need to assess their current capacity and consider how you can increase it. You need to look beyond your own next project and consider how you can develop the people serving under you for future kingdom work… wherever it may take them.