Supervisor 101 course launches
April 14, 2023
The new course arms E&G Custodial Services supervisors with skills for success
A crop of newly hired talented supervisors in E&G Custodial Services desired and generated the idea to provide some relevant training to help them reach their full potential.
When Staff Development Manager Sandra Smith proposed the creation of a Supervisor 101 course, Associate Director Vibha Buckingham and Superintendent Ryan Gumlock embraced the concept.
“One of our most important responsibilities is to strengthen skills and competencies of frontline management team. When we increase and strengthen their abilities to think critically and holistically, everyone benefits and we are well positioned to succeed today and well into the future,” said Buckingham.
“One of the key tenets of this course is to connect topics to ‘What's In It For Them’ (WIIFT),” said Smith. “Each segment in Supervisor 101, includes some core management principles and draws a line to each participant to gain maximum benefit and increase their chances of achieving greater success.”
The course was developed in February and launched March 21 with the first lesson on SMART Goals and Performance Management, delivered by Buckingham. Next, Smith shared the importance of effective communication as one of the most important skills required for success. The ensuing weeks covered topics such as critical thinking, self-awareness and situational leadership.
In addition to soft skills, technical training concepts are also being shared such as Superintendent Ryan Gumlock's presentation of the anatomy of planning projects and events. He provided supervisors with an event planning form and shared the importance of developing pre-and post-mortems to identify and manage risks.
“Because we're expecting the Return On Investment (ROI) on this effort to yield meaningful results, we're planning on making our Supervisor 101 course a continuing series and including existing supervisors in the mix,” said Buckingham.
Jane Centofante
Communications senior generalist
UVA Facilities Management
(434) 982-5846
janecentofante@virginia.edu