Supervisor behaviors

Weiss, H. M. (1977). Subordinate imitation of supervisor behavior The role of modeling in organizational socialization. Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 19, 89-105. 

The expected supervision scale has 6 items, and both versions are shown in Table 9.6. Scale items were developed based on the discussion of supervisor behavior required to ensure new employee safety in Chap. 4, Sect. 4.2.8. At the time of writing, no data on the psychometric properties of this scale had been collected. As noted in Chap. 3, supervision of new employees should be a specific task assigned to supervisors. Furthermore, new employees are likely to expect that supervisors will be there to ensure their safety. As noted in many places in this book, the perception that a system has a component which is there to protect a person from risk can lead to more risk being taken. Thus, it is very important that new employees have a realistic perception of the degree of supervision that they will receive. It is also important to note that employees (job incumbents) are asked to complete this scale—not supervisors. Employees should be able to respond to the items in terms of the experiences they have had with supervision, whereas supervisors may respond in terms of what higher management expect of them, rather than their actual supervision of new employees. 

Figures 25.1 and 25.2 show the solid effectiveness of the driving safety index. Figure 25.1 shows the increased average team levels of safe driving performance while Figure 25.2 shows the decrease in vehicle accidents, medical aids, and lost-workday incidents after the behavioral safety intervention. An index was also developed to monitor supervisor behavior. The supervisor index listed items related to their role in the safety process, examples being held safety meeting, provided feedback to employees on safety behaviors, posted data on graph, and the like. Supervisors completed the index each time a driver was radioed to conduct a selfobservation.

Disadvantages may arise because the behavior observed may not be fully realistic. A static simulation, for instance, may not reveal the true nature of operators dynamic interaction with the system. There is also the possible disadvantage of behavior in a simulator not fully replicating that found in the real situation. This can happen because of the absence of real stressors found in the actual task, for example, risk to life, criticality of the process, and presence of other workers and supervisors. 

The most effective way to track and refer fo all fhis information is to set up a memory file. This can be as simple as a file folder. If can include notes on exceptional (positive or negative) performance or behavior by an employee. If can also include copies of documenfs such as leffers of appreciation or warning. By keeping a memory file on each employee, a supervisor can track an employee s performance progress as well as whaf coaching has been provided. Depending on how accessible and complefe fhe files are, employees may want to set up their own memory files fo ensure fhat all key aspects of their performance are recorded. 

People must be held accountable for results. If action items are not completed in a timely basis, there needs to be an analysis of why and a plan for improvement. If standard operating procedures (SOP) checklists are not used rigorously, there needs to be an analysis of why with appropriate consequences (punishment should be a last resort). There should be reasons why objectives are not met and those barriers need to be removed. Individual sites within an organization may establish specific process safety goals, activities, and behavior on individual performance contracts, which are reflected in the annual performance review process that links to merit pay raises, bonuses, advancement opportunities, and the like. Consequences for poor process safety performance must not be limited to supervisors or facility managers but must be a factor in performance appraisals throughout the organization. 

In summary, criticism should be avoided here and in all management behavior, simply because it s counterproductive, and employees who feel accepted and valued by their supervisor will engage in self-criticism. This is, by far, more productive over the long term. 

Supervisor s role in promoting safety, rewarding safety behavior, and correcting unsafe acts. 

Best-seller for supervisors improving safety by modeling and other techniques, factors leading to accidents, and behavior modification. Industrial Training Systems Corporation Rental 95 (3-day), 175 (10-day) Purchase 495... 

Chankvetadze, B.G. (1985) Behavior of dissymmetric nickel and copper -nickel catalysts in enantioselective hydrogenation, Cand. Diss. Thesis, N.D. Zelinskii Institute of Organic Chemistry, Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Moscow (supervisors Vedenyapin, A.A. and Klabunovskii, E.l.). 

In defining hazardous work practices, there are a number of sources of information that should be examined. Injury and accident reports such as the OSHA 301 Form provide information about the circumstances surrounding an injury. Often employee or management behaviors that contributed to the injury can be identified. Employees are a good source of information about workplace hazards. They can be asked to identify critical behaviors that may be important as hazard sources or hazard controls. First-line supervisors are also a good source of information because they are constantly... 

Changes in managerial behavior from supervisors to trainers... 

As we began to develop the inclusive leadership series, we asked employees to identify leaders behaviors that affected whether they felt included, engaged, and valued. A number of situations were identified (on and off the job) in which employees personally experienced exclusion. Based on this input, we decided to create a learning experience in which leaders could better understand the impact of exclusive behavior on achieving organizational results. We determined that engagement, retention, and satisfaction are all directly related to the quality of the relationship with the supervisor or team leader. As a result, we felt that an actionplanning component, which helps the leader incorporate inclusive behaviors into work practices and processes, was needed. 

While it is clear that a new employee s behavior will (more or less) go through a period of adjustment in their initial employment period, itis also likely that their verbal behavior will change (also see Chap. 4. sect. 4.2.9). It is well established that employees voicing of safety concerns is an important aspect of workplace safety (Hofmann and Morgeson 1999 Kath et al. 2010). To a considerable extent the development of voicing behaviors will be dependent on the development of trust relationships with supervisors (Conchie et al. 2012), and with co-workers... 

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