Being promoted from a team member to a supervisor or managerial role is an achievement worth celebrating. But with the new position comes new responsibilities and expectations. 

For many who move into a leadership role, the transition is both exhilarating and nerve-wracking, especially for first-time supervisors and managers. It takes a significant mindset shift to go from an employee mentality to a leadership mentality, where you are expected to guide the success of others. 

Yet most new supervisors and managers receive little to no new training before beginning their roles. Manex is here to change that.

In this guide, we will explore first-time supervisor tips, including what management really is, common management errors to avoid, the power of delegation and empowerment, and the essential skills needed to succeed as a manager.

Plus, we’ll show how structured training for managers and supervisors, such as Manex’s onsite leadership training for new supervisors, can give you the edge you need to succeed in your new role. 

What is Management?

We’ve all been managed by others at some point. But what exactly is the role of a manager? 

At its core, management is about coordinating, planning, and leading an enterprise’s resources towards the achievement of its goals. It’s less about accomplishing tasks yourself, and more about delegating responsibilities and putting others in position for success. 

Learning how to be a good supervisor for the first-time requires two critical shifts:

• From Individual Contributor to Team Leader: As a manager, you must shift your focus from your own individual contributions, to how you can improve your team’s output. 

• From a Task Mindset to a Leadership Mindset: A task mindset is focused on what you must do. A leadership mindset sees the goal, and decides how to put others in position to achieve that goal. 

As a first-time supervisor, your goal is to make the work of your team easier by actively supporting their efforts, clarifying objectives, removing obstacles, and fostering their growth. 

This shift in mindset—from a “get things done attitude” to a delegation-and-support approach—can be difficult for new managers to fully embrace because it goes against the fundamental way most of us have worked for much of our careers.

This shift in mindset is one of the first new skills you’ll need to master to make a successful transition to management. 

Common Mistakes to Avoid for First-Time Supervisors

As a first-time supervisor or manager, you’re bound to make some mistakes—and that’s okay. Manex is here to help you recognize and avoid some of the most common pitfalls that are easy to fall into without proper supervisory training or leadership development.

• Trying to do too much: Many new managers try to handle tasks that they should be delegating to their team members. Trusting your team to do their job is an essential part of being a successful manager. Otherwise, failing to delegate tasks can leave you overloaded and stressed out. 

• Avoiding difficult conversations: As a new manager, you may not immediately feel 100% comfortable discussing performance issues with your team members. Avoiding these conversations can hurt the entire organization, slowing progress and allowing issues to fester, rather than getting them resolved quickly. 

• Micromanaging instead of empowering: Your responsibility as a manager is to give employees direction, but allow them freedom to execute. Effective managers understand the difference between following up to understand if the employee is on track, and micromanaging their every move. This is how you build trust with your team. 

• Unclear communication: Your team needs you to clearly set expectations, priorities, and be open yourself to feedback. Without it, your team may struggle with their assignments and become frustrated. 

• Neglecting your own development: As a new supervisor, you will need time to grow into your role. Because most new supervisors lack proper supervisory training, it is difficult to transition from being a part of the team, to being the leader of the team. Focusing on your own growth is part of the mindset shift required to learn how to be a good supervisor for the first-time.

• Over-Delegation: Lastly, first-time managers must also be careful not to over-delegate. The best managers continue to be involved with their team, providing guidance and support, so that employees don’t feel abandoned. Stay connected to your team, offer feedback, and make sure they have the resources to succeed. 

Delegation and Empowerment

Delegation and empowerment go hand-in-hand. By delegating tasks, you build your team’s skills, which in turn empowers them to take ownership of their work. These are two of the most powerful tools you can develop as a new manager.

How to Delegate Effectively

Delegating responsibilities is about more than just handing off tasks. It’s about transferring responsibility for those tasks to your team members.

Effective delegation helps you:

• Free up your time to focus on higher-value leadership tasks
• Build your team’s skill set and confidence
• Prepare your team for growth
• Ensure people other than yourself know how to perform certain tasks

By delegating tasks effectively, you build redundancy. This ensures others can step in when needed and that your team doesn’t depend solely on you for progress. 

Empowering Your Team

Through delegation, you empower your team by creating an environment where they feel trusted, accountable, and able to make decisions without micromanagement.

Some first-time supervisor tips that you can use to delegate and empower effectively include:

• Developing your team’s skills so they can confidently handle delegated tasks.
• Matching tasks to team member’s strengths. 
• Clarifying expectations and clearly communicating outcomes, timelines, and decision-making boundaries. 
• Staying available for support, without “hovering” or micromanaging.
• Acknowledging your team’s successes, and providing constructive feedback when there is room for improvement. 

In effective first-time supervisor training programs, role-playing delegation, and empowerment exercises are often used to build these critical skills. 

Remember, as a first-time manager, you are growing and learning just as your team is. Review your delegation over time, and don’t be afraid to change things up to learn what works best. 

The Top 5 Essential Skills for First-Time Supervisors

Whether or not you have access to new supervisor training, these are the 5 key skills you’ll want to focus your development on for ongoing success in your role. 

1. Communication Skills

   This may be the single most important skill you can develop. Being a good supervisor or manager means being able to actively listen to your team and give appropriate feedback, whether positive or corrective. No one likes to be talked down to—how you communicate with your team will go a long way towards your success. 

2. Emotional Intelligence

   To become a successful manager, you’ll need to become adept at reading your team’s morale. You must be able to recognize when someone is feeling stressed or unappreciated, and be able to counteract that. Becoming a strong leader requires you to develop a deeper understanding of those you work with. 

3. Decision-Making and Problem-Solving

   There will be times when you will be faced with a crucial decision, where you don’t have all the information. You’ll need to make the best decision possible, with the information you have. Supervisor leadership training can help you develop your decision-making and problem-solving confidence.

4. Time Management

   As a first-time supervisor, you’ll be involved in more meetings, one-on-ones, and project check-ins. You’ll need to effectively prioritize the operational demands of your job, along with these other new responsibilities you may not be accustomed to yet. 

5. Coaching and Mentoring

   As a leader, you are responsible not just for your own growth, but for the development and growth of your team as well. That means your role might be to act more as a teacher guiding them to success, not simply directing them. Helping your team grow is a vital part of your journey as a first-time supervisor. 

Integrating these skills into your approach will help you become a stronger first-time supervisor. 

Practical First-Time Supervisor Tips

Here are some quick, actionable tips you can apply as a first-time supervisor:

• Consistency is better than perfection. You won’t always get everything right, but your teammates will appreciate consistency in your approach. 
• Communication is key. Check in regularly with your team and ask how you can better help them achieve their goals.
• Ask for feedback. A big part of training supervisors is figuring out what works and what doesn’t. Your employees are the best source of feedback for this. 
• Keep learning. Becoming a successful leader won’t happen overnight, but you can get better little by little, day by day, if you keep learning.
• Celebrate success and small wins. Recognize the good work your team does day in and day out. This is key to building morale—and momentum. 

How Manex’s Leadership Training For New Supervisors Can Help

Manex offers comprehensive first-time training for managers and supervisors, available both online and on-site with our consultants. 

With Manex, you can expect supervisory training that will prepare you for your new role. Our programs cover vital topics like:

• What is Management?: Foundational knowledge that helps you understand the shift from individual contributor to leader. 
• Common management errors in-depth, from micromanagement to avoidance of difficult conversations. 
• Practical modules on delegation and empowerment that help you build a stronger team.
• Development of essential skills, such as effective communication, emotional intelligence, decision-making and time management. 

For newly promoted supervisors or managers, learning on the job is tough. Without proper support, it’s easy to fall into common traps and miss opportunities to develop the leadership skills that will define your career. 

With Manex, our new supervisor training programs give you the foundational skills you need to make a real difference, both for you and your team. 

Contact Manex today to learn more about how our programs can accelerate your development with essential training for managers and supervisors.