During the training session for new supervisors, I raisep up the question of what is the biggest chalenge in playing supervisory role? And one of them said that he has not enough skill in operating the machineries in his area that could demotivate him in manage his operators because he was worry if one of his operators would asked him a question such as, “you (the supervisor) tell me to do this and that but can you show me how to do it better?”. That supervisor then asked me back, “what should I answer that question?”, and I replied him back, “what do you think you should?”, my supervisor said, “I have no idea, do you?.” And how can I answer that challenging question?
To explain it simply, I show them the technical and non-technical required by level of management as you can see in the picture above. On the extreem left is the operator who require none but technical skill, and on the extreem right is the investor who require none but non-technical skill. In the middle are people in the line management position, such as supervisor, manager and executive level. Higher your managerial position, more non-technical skill such as conceptual and interpersonal skill required. Once you understand your role, you should know how to answer the question. And to answer the question, you must improve your non-technical skill.
So, if I were a supervisor who got that challenging question, and I know that I do not have enough skill to demonstrate it, I would say, “as your supervisor, I have observed that you (the operator who ask the chalenging question) are one of the best person in my area in handling the job, that is why I am quite sure you will achieve the target better than me. The best thing I can do is to ensure nothing would stop you showing your best performance.”
So, if I were a supervisor who got that challenging question, and I know that I do not have enough skill to demonstrate it, I would say, “as your supervisor, I have observed that you (the operator who ask the chalenging question) are one of the best person in my area in handling the job, that is why I am quite sure you will achieve the target better than me. The best thing I can do is to ensure nothing would stop you showing your best performance.”