The Construction Foreman—Working without a Net
May 2007
The first-line supervisor or the foreman is
a critical link between management and the workforce. The foreman plays a crucial
role in managing productivity, quality, and safety outcomes. But traditionally,
the foreman is not provided the critical skills and knowledge with which to
effectively carry out this important undertaking.
by Peter
G. Furst
Liberty Mutual
Group
Craftsmen who excel at their work are usually selected for promotion to foremen.
They come to management's attention because they have good technical skills,
are self-directed and productive, and show initiative. Though these skills are
necessary to successfully do foremen work, there are a host of other skills
and knowledge that are required to be an effective first line supervisor.
Since supervisors (foremen) are the link between management and the workforce,
they have to be able to successfully respond in multiple directions. The supervisor
must understand and be sensitive to management, to employees, to staff specialists,
and other supervisors, and possibly maintain a relationship with the union.
Of all the supervisory skills, four loom the largest:
- Meeting production or operating goals
- Meeting prescribed quality standards
- Being sensitive to cost and resources
- Maintaining a cooperative attitude with the employees
Supervisors' primary responsibility is to management, and therefore they
have to understand and follow company policies and procedures and to ensure
that those reporting to them do the same. Another critical responsibility of
the first-line supervisor is to ensure that the production, quality, and safety
goals of the organization are met. To facilitate achieving these objectives,
supervisors have to ensure that the workforce has the necessary resources, tools,
and equipment with which to execute.
To accomplish this, foremen have to be able to utilize some basic management
skills, such as planning, organizing, staffing, energizing, directing, and controlling.
Planning is essential in achieving production objectives and requires goal setting,
organizing the various resources and the workforce to achieve those objectives.
Important to goal achievement is controlling the process so that deviations
may be identified and changes implemented to overcome any barriers to reaching
the organizational goals. Though managing somewhat varies from company to company
and project to project, there are a number of regularly performed supervisory
duties that are universal. In the broadest terms, we may call them performance
management.
Performance management is an ongoing process of clearly communicating performance
expectations to employees so that they fully understand them. Then the supervisor
must provide coaching, counseling, and feedback to ensure they perform according
to expectations. To successfully achieve this critical task, the supervisor
must balance the need for production with the concern for the people who perform
the work.
FIGURE
1
Figure 1 presents four possible outcomes:
Quadrant 1: The supervisor's concern for
both people and production is low. The result is that both the workforce and
management will be unhappy, and in all likelihood this person will not be a
supervisor for very long.
Quadrant 2: The supervisor's concern for
people is high but low for production. The result may be a happy workforce,
but an unhappy management, which will not bode well for the supervisor.
Quadrant 3: The supervisor has high concern
for production and low concern for the workforce. The production goals may be
reached, but the workforce will be dissatisfied, requiring a lot of supervisory
effort. The company may have issues with turnover, absenteeism, and other workforce
issues. Maintaining production goals in this situation may prove difficult as
well.
Quadrant 4: This is the best situation,
where the supervisor has a balanced concern in both areas. In all likelihood
this supervisor will not only meet but exceed the production goals and have
a cooperative and involved workforce, with a myriad of secondary benefits.
Most managers will agree that the mark of a good supervisor is getting results.
But to consistently meet and exceed the organization's expectations, the supervisor
must understand the workers' expectations and build a good working relationship
with them. So what skills does the supervisor need to achieve quadrant 4 results?
Leadership is the term that comes to mind. The supervisor must lead the workforce
as well as the process to get outstanding results.
This may be the time to address the difference between leadership and management.
Both are necessary skills for an effective supervisor. To be a good supervisor,
you have to have good management skills but to be a great supervisor you also
have to have leadership skills. Managers do things right while leaders do the
right things. Managers get the workforce to achieve their goals while leaders
get them to exceed their goals.
FIGURE
2
Leadership is a way to focus and motivate the workforce to enable them to
achieve both their and the organization's goals. There are a number of leadership
styles, (Autocratic, Democratic, Participative, and Situational), and the foreman
would best be served in understanding and learning more about the situational
style of leadership because it provides the greatest flexibility and utility.
The autocratic or directive style of leadership vests all decisions with
the leader, and the workforce must obey the edicts. In the short-term they may
produce results, and in certain situations, may be the style of choice (when
schedules are tight, or there is an emergency, etc.) Over time, most employees
will not function well in such an environment and morale issues will develop.
The democratic or consultative style of leadership involves the workforce.
The leader presents the problem, solicits input, allows discussion, and takes
the team's input into consideration in the final decision. This style of leadership
promotes involvement, gives the workforce a sense of control, and is good for
morale. Though this style tends to be popular, it has its drawbacks. Decision-making
takes more time, the results may require consensus, and may not be optimum from
management's perspective.
The participatory leadership style allows for the greatest involvement, fosters
empowerment, signals trust, and allows the team to select the "best" solution.
As a result, the team is highly motivated, and has ownership of the implementation
and results. This requires a lot of highly skilled, motivated, knowledgeable,
and well-informed team members who also have to have good judgment and be "vested"
in the outcome. It also requires the supervisor as well as the organization
give up some authority. The risks are that the workforce may not be able to
effectively handle or willing to take on such a responsibility and not all decisions
can be made at the task level.
Situational leadership selects the style that is most appropriate for any
given situation. This approach also mixes the styles to varying degrees so as
to best meet the needs of any group or situation. This gives the supervisor
the greatest flexibility in meeting any particular job condition.
FIGURE
3
To effectively lead the workforce, the supervisor must have influence and
gain its trust and respect. To accomplish this, the supervisor must demonstrate
integrity and treat the workforce with fairness and respect. To effectively
lead, the supervisor must also be able to motivate the workforce. To effectively
motivate, the supervisor must understand and be sensitive to the needs of the
workforce. Understanding those needs, the supervisor must then use persuasion
and influence to show the workforce how it will get what it wants by following
the supervisor's lead and direction.
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