Decision Salad

Supervisors face tough decisions every day.

Making these decisions is like making a Chef’s salad. One has to decide on the ingredients needed to make it good. What lettuce to use because there’s a choice of Boston, Bibb, Butter, Iceberg, or Romaine. One needs salt but even that also requires a decision because there is Kosher, iodized, or sea salt. The cheese decision is next and there is American, Swiss, or Colby available to choose from in the refrigerator. And then there is a salad dressing decision with choices like shallot or herb vinaigrette, ranch, or bleu cheese. Finally comes the decision on the meat which may include ham, Turkey, roast beef, or all three. Then you have to decide whether to include egg wedges or avocado.

So, as you can see, many decisions go into making a chef’s salad. Likewise, many decisions go into being a good supervisor.

After supervisors make decisions on a task to be performed, they must decide which employees are best suited for the tasks and what specific parts of the tasks should be assigned to each. The next decision is how the tasks will be performed and which employees will require detailed instructions and guidance and which ones will require minimal guidance.

Next, the supervisor must decide how to monitor the progress of the work and which employees need praise for a good job and which employees are not producing satisfactorily. The supervisor will have to decide which steps to take if an employee’s performance is not meeting requirements.

Finally, supervisors need to decide how to keep their managers informed and whether to request assistance from the manager if the work is not going well. Just as making good decisions will make a great salad, making good decisions will make a great supervisor.