Engaging
Supervision: The
Relationship Factor
that Can Make or
Break Your Team
Carol Edwards, LCSW
Big Bend Community
Based Care
Session Objectives
 Explore
differences in styles of learning and
behaving and the impact on relationships.
 Discover the implications for how the way
supervisors see themselves impacts their ability
to bring out the best in the individuals within
their teams.
 Utilize your own personality and skills to tailor
supervision to the strengths and style of each
individual staff person.
 Understand the role of Coaching in Supervision.
Decide to Strive
for Excellence!
 Decide
what kind of
Supervisor you desire to
be.
 Identify your strengths
and challenges.
 Find
 Set
great examples.
specific goals
The Two Most Important Keys to
Effective Leadership
 Trust
and confidence in top leadership
 Effective
communication
Inspiring Your Employees
 Be
passionate
 Get your employees
involved in the decision
making process
 Know what your
organization is about
"A leader sees greatness in other people. He nor she can be much
of a leader if all she sees is herself.“ Maya Angelou
3 Keys to Being a More Effective Leader
 Knowing
your strengths
and investing in others'
strengths
 Getting people with the
right strengths on your
team
 Understanding and
meeting the basic needs
of those who look to you
for leadership.
How Leaders Lead: 4 Domains
of Strength
1.
Strategic Thinking
2.
Influencing
3.
Relationship Building
4.
Executing
Strategic
Thinking
Keep
team
focused on
what could
be.
Influencing
Help
their
people
reach a
broader
group.
Relationship Building
Hold a team together.
Executing
Know
how
to make
things
happen.
4 Basic Needs of Followers
Trust
Compassion
Stability
Hope
Gallup Poll result of 10,000
respondents.
Trust
 Keep
his or her word.
 Buffer
against unreasonable work demands.
 Serve
as a supporter between them and
upper management.
 Will
follow through on commitments made.
 Will
protect them and advocate for them
 Has
their best interests at heart.
Compassion

Balance performance needs of the agency with
individual needs of staff.

Make adjustments during high stress periods.

Respond to staff need for support when he or she is
struggling with a personal need or issue.

Acknowledge staff regularly.

Pay attention and acknowledge when staff have
exceeded expectations.
Stability
 Have
well-known core values that do
not change.
 Implement
 Can
consistent practices.
be counted on in times of need.
 Debriefs
difficult professional
experiences.
Hope
 Help
others see good
outcomes in the future.
 Provide
a vision that
success is possible.
 Pace
the team and
remind them of small
successes.
 Encourage
outlook.
a positive
What makes a person want to
follow a leader?
When people are deciding if they respect
you as a leader, they do not think about
your attributes, rather, they observe what
you do so that they can know who you
really are. They use this observation to tell if
you are an honorable and trusted leader
or a self-serving person who misuses
authority to look good and get promoted.
From Group To Team—Getting There
 Leaders
should not think of themselves as simply
managers, supervisors, etc.; but rather as “team
leaders.”
 Thinking of yourself as a manager or supervisor
places you in a position of traditional authority
based solely on respect for the position.
 By understanding the personal work preferences
and motivations of your team members, you as
an individual, rather than your position, will earn
their real respect and trust.
What do people want from their jobs?
Supervisor Rankings:
Employee Rankings:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
1. Full Appreciation of Work
Being Done
2. Feeling of Being In On Things
3. Help on Personal Problems
4. Job Security
5. High Wages
6. Interesting Work
7. Promotion in the Company
8. Personal Loyalty of Supervisor
9. Good Working Conditions
10. Tactful Discipline
High Wages
Job Security
Promotion in the Company
Good Working Conditions
Interesting Work
Personal Loyalty of Supervisor
Tactful Discipline
Full Appreciation of Work
Being Done
9. Help on Personal Problems
10. Feeling of Being In On Things
Team Elements
A
team goal
 Productive participation of all members
 Communication
 Trust
 A sense of belonging
 Diversity
 Creativity and risk taking
 Evaluation
 Change compatibility
 Participatory leadership
Common Team Problems





Leaders select too many members in their own
image. As a result, teams become unbalanced with
too many people overlapping in the same areas,
leaving skill gaps in other areas.
Leaders do not understand their own strengths,
abilities, and preferences.
Individuals in unbalanced teams feel their talents and
abilities are not being used.
Leaders feel they do not know how to motivate
people. This is because they do not know them and
their individual needs.
Team members feel that the team does not work
smoothly. They believe individual work preferences
conflict rather than complement each other.
Team Leadership
 Keep
the purpose, goals,
and approach relevant
and meaningful.
 Build commitment
and confidence
 Manage relationships
with outsiders
 Create opportunities for
others
 Create a vision
Are You Ready to be a Team Leader?






You are comfortable in sharing leadership and decision
making with your employees.
You prefer a participative atmosphere.
The environment is highly variable or changing quickly
and you need the best thinking and input from all your
employees.
Members of your team are (or can become) compatible
with each other and can create a collaborative rather
than a competitive environment.
You need to rely on your employees to resolve problems.
Formal communication channels are not sufficient for the
timely exchange of information and decisions.
Tips for Team Building:
 Be
Enthusiastic—it's Contagious
 Develop a Sense of Urgency
 Set Clear Rules of Behavior
 Keep Them Informed
 Grow Together
 Reinforcement Works Wonders
Team Mission
Our Team’s Mission:
 To
develop a workforce that is
competent, knowledgeable, ethical,
compassionate, empowered,
collaborative, resourceful and
committed to providing excellence in
child welfare practice.
Team Goals
Our Team Goals:
 Assist colleagues in creating and maintaining a positive
work environment.
 Increase morale and job satisfaction by offering
opportunities for professional and personal development.
 Facilitate a case management redesign effort to reduce
workload and realign job tasks.
 Develop an action plan and proposal for a training system
redesign.
 Develop a regular process for increasing communication
between training and upper management.
 Promote change that improves child welfare practice.
 Provide leadership on system initiatives.
 Offer cutting edge training.
 Increase opportunities for experts to facilitate training and
build professional relationships with staff.
Over-Supervision
Where Are You?
Under-Supervision
DIVERSITY IS AN ESSENTIAL
COMPONENT OF A STRONG
TEAM
“In diversity there is beauty and there is strength.”
Maya Angelou
Personal Awareness- Knowledge of your own
personal values, beliefs, biases, and behaviors
and the impact they have on others.

Demonstrate the ability to question one’s own cultural
assumptions and expectations.

Demonstrate an awareness of his or her personal biases
and beliefs.

Practice what he or she verbally advocates.

Learn about his or her own culture, focusing on how they
it impacts their behavior and communication style.

Value and demonstrate a sense of cultural pride.
Cultural Awareness and Sensitivity of other Culturesbeing aware that differences exist between individuals
as well as cultural groups. Approaching individuals and
groups with some degree of thought for who they are.

Recognize that everyone has a unique perspective.

Demonstrate a tolerance and even a fascination for
difference.

Refrain from trying to impress people from other cultures
by telling them everything and everybody they like from
that person’s culture.

Refrain from attempting to use the jargon, dialect and
style of expression of groups they are communicating
with, unless they are bilingual.
Knowledge of other Cultures – having knowledge
of cultural perimeters, similarities, and differences
in how individuals and groups respond to their
family, community and society.

Acquire knowledge of other cultures via books, journals,
magazines, workshops, etc.

Develop cross-cultural relationships that extend beyond
professional boundaries.

Understand that he or she does not know everything
about culture and diverse groups.

Expand the circle in which he or she lives; experience
other cultures and values.
Diversity Development – acquiring a set of
behaviors that facilitate meaningful relationship
development in one’s own cultural group and
many other cultures as well.

Ask questions when you don’t understand.

Listen without making judgments.

When you make a mistake, admit it and accept
assistance.

Make decisions based on reliable information and
experience.

Question cultural assumptions and check his or her reality
before taking action.
Learning Styles
The Big 3 Reasons Why Coaching is the Key
1. Overcome costly and time-consuming performance
problems
2. Strengthen employees’ skills
3. Improve retention
Leadership Purpose Statement
 My
leadership purpose is to facilitate the
growth and development of BBCBC training
professionals in a manner that affords them
maximum work satisfaction. Additionally I am
committed to provide outstanding
leadership in building an impactful training
and professional development program that
supports high performance, excellent
customer service, dedication to children and
families and unparalleled successful
outcomes.
Closing Message
"I've
learned that people will
forget what you said, people
will forget what you did, but
people will never forget how
you made them feel.“

Maya Angelou