Supervisor Core Skills to Apply For the Job Position [entry-level, medium, senior]

A supervisor is a lower-level manager who commonly serves as a link between a team or an individual and top management. Becoming a Supervisor does not require special education but rather showcasing your natural Supervisor skills. 

This article will tell you which skills you need to win a job as a supervisor. We will also show you how to organize your skills to craft a winning resume that shows your professional accomplishments. And don't forget that our online resume writer service is always ready to help you with your perfect resume!

What is Supervisor?

A supervisor is a professional who ensures that the team’s needs are satisfied both on the collective and individual levels. In short, supervisors are naturally confident leaders responsible for the well-being of their team members. 

But what do supervisors do on a daily basis?

• Manage the work environment, so each employee’s needs are met;
• Organize team schedules;
• Create team performance reports;
• Provide on-work training for new employees;
• Solve disputes between the coworkers;
• Contribute to one’s career advancement.

Supervisor Technical Skills

Most hard skills for a supervisor coincide with skills required for other managerial positions. 

Supervisor technical skills include the following: 

• Computer skills. Software knowledge for creating protocols and performance reports;
• Interpersonal communication. Supervisors work with people directly. Yet resolving conflicts and training new employees is a must;
• Written and verbal communication. Supervisors must communicate a message effectively both verbally and in a written form;
• Organization. A supervisor organizes the work process and implements policies on a team level;
• Time management skills. A supervisor manages deadlines.

Supervisor Non-Technical Skills

The soft skills of a supervisor come as secondary but are of the same importance to a professional in a management field. 

• Excellent decision-making skills. A supervisor is supposed to predict possible outcomes both for the company’s future and the nearest future of work. 
• Mentorship. Being a supervisor is all about helping people. Especially newbies who need job training;
• Ability to constantly learn. To manage one’s teammates and colleagues effectively, a supervisor must learn new managerial techniques;
• Flexibility. Sometimes supervisors work extra hours or non-traditional schedules, which include night shifts. 

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Must-Have Skills to Target the Position

There is no special course which would tell you how to be a good supervisor. Certainly, you can engage in a few managerial courses to impress recruiters. While acquiring your certification through special training, remember the core skills for a resume to focus on.

• Written and oral communication for effective cooperation;
• Excellent time management;
• Strong decision-making to solve problems efficiently;
• An ability to learn new concepts quickly;
• Leadership skills, since supervisors are leaders in their team or department.

Communication

A supervisor must know how to communicate ideas to both team members and top management. Because often, the effectiveness of solutions depends on how supervisors depict the problem and persuade the listener in need to solve it. 

In addition, supervisor communication skills are especially important while giving verbal and written instructions. 

As a supervisor, you will also have to provide feedback to coworkers. Which puts your communication skills at the top of the skills list.

Time Management

The next important skill in the list of the skills needed to be a supervisor. As a professional in the managerial field, you must follow deadlines and create a weekly schedule for the team. Moreover, you are supposed to control whether other professionals in your team follow task deadlines. If unforeseen circumstances happen, you are the person in charge to prioritize tasks and make sure that everyone keeps calm.

Fast Decision-Making 

Making quick and efficient decisions is especially important for supervisors working in fast-paced settings. Among all skills for supervisor, being able to navigate the team in stressful times is a must. 

Nowadays, companies require specialists who can predict changes in their daily work and navigate the company to new heights. Yet searching for quick solutions is a top-searched-for skill in times of COVID-19 when the future is unclear and the chances to go bankrupt are high. 

Quick Learner

The nature of work processes is under constant change. Yet being able to adapt to a brand new reality and absorb knowledge are among top-rated skills for a supervisor. In fact, learning agility means one can easily identify a problem, see a new opportunity, and solve it.  Also, high learning agility implies seeing nuances in the industry and predicting possible negative outcomes. In the end, effective learners inspire others to be more creative and efficient in their job.

Leadership

Supervisors are both leaders and managers. Being able to lead is among the top skills needed for supervisor because good leaders build trust within their team. Supervisors with leadership skills take charge of the department or team members while effectively communicating business goals. Meanwhile, team players who trust their supervisor and understand the company’s vision are motivated to contribute to the company’s success. 

Also, a supervisor with leadership skills makes effective decisions for the team and resolves conflicts if such occur.

How to Improve Supervisor Skills

Knowing how to make a team performance is not enough for being a good supervisor. In fact, great supervisors with management and leadership are born at the workplace as a result of long years of practice. But you should enter the job market first. Regardless of your passion for helping people, the ATS bots will be strict with your resume. 

Check our services. Our Skillhub professional resume writers will gladly and effortlessly help you write a job-winning resume within the shortest deadline!

Follow Influencers in the Field

Blogs

• Great Leadership. Dan McCarthy has all credentials to teach you how to develop your leadership skills.
• How We Lead. Learn about servant leadership and why it is an important concept nowadays. 
• Presentation Zen. This blog will help you get good supervisor skills by teaching you effective communication and presentations skills.
• Management Issues. Check articles about problems that junior and mid-level supervisors experience and how to solve them.
• Leadership Freak. Find everything about leadership you’ve always wanted to know but were afraid to ask. 

Twitter Experts

• Jim Kouzes. Ever wondered ‘what is the role of a supervisor’? Check what Kouzes has to say about it.
• Steve Roesler. Check practical tips on how to be a smart leader.
• Jennifer Miller. This expert knows everything about managing sales and building teams.
• Matt Monge. Perfect place for supervisors specializing in finances.
• Whitney Johnson. Another specialist to teach you the importance of culture at work.
  

Sample for Supervisor Resume Skills Section

To beat an applicant tracking system, your supervisor skills for resume must shine out. Your resume Skills and Experience section should contain professional keywords. Other tips to beat the ATS bots are as follows:

• Keep hard and soft skills for resume separate;
• Mention only job-related skills;
• Use statistics and numbers if possible.

Supervisor Skills in a Resume Skills Section [Example]

Keep your skills for supervisors in the resume organized and neat. To impress your future employer, check the grammar twice in the Skills section. Also, keep Hard and Soft skills subsections separate.

The example of a possible resume Skills section is as follows:

Hard Skills

• Following protocols on work ethics;
• Applying amazing people skills;
• Resolving conflicts efficiently;
• Excellent computer knowledge;
• Superb written and verbal communication;
• Excellent time management;
• Effective organization skills.

Soft Skills

• Effective decision-making skills;
• Excellent mentorship;
• Flexibility in time management and work approach;
• High learning agility.

How to Organize Skills in the Supervisor Resume Experience Section [Example]

Use the resume Experience section to persuade your employer that you can gauge different solutions and take responsibility for your actions.

Check one of the supervisor resume skills examples below.

Experience

Operations Supervisor

Buy Me Joy Inc., California

June 2018 - December 2020

• Recruited, trained, and managed the workflow of 28 employees in the call services department;
• Assisted the career growth of the team members;
• Organized an additional monthly training in communication for the team;
• Created targeted incentive programs;
• Performed reviews each quarter which, in turn, resulted in the KPI boost by an average of 16%.

To Sum Up

We hope this article helped you understand the important skills for supervisors one needs to have in order to apply for a managerial position. To get more interviews, you should have a superbly crafted resume. 

To sophisticate your expertise and skillset as a supervisor, we advise you to join communication and management courses. Also, ask for professional feedback from your colleagues and get additional info on how to present your skills and work experience in both your resume and cover letter.

You may want to engage in online courses to hone your supervisor skills. Which is great news! But before applying for a supervisor job position, check our services to ensure your future job experiences are smooth. Our experts will write an ATS-beating resume for you with the greatest care. Contact us and check it yourself!