The transition from colleague or peer to supervisor can be complex and difficult to navigate. It highlights issues of power and authority not previously experienced with colleagues. It requires conscious reflection on how the new relationship can be negotiated.[1]
Despite the challenging and important role, some supervisors may be relatively new to the sector. Supervisors in other fields report that their selection to the role involved no discussion or testing of their supervisory commitment, knowledge, or skill.[2] This is not uncommon in these sectors as well. Furthermore, some do not receive supervision training (up to one in five[3]) nor their own regular supervision.
This means that some supervisors have only their own experience of supervision to guide them and the transition to supervisor is a ‘sink or swim’ experience.[4]
‘Training as a supervisor is a necessity not a luxury … it is more difficult to unlearn than learn.’
— Carroll, 2014[5]
To help recruit, transition, and sustain supervisors, the following is recommended:
- selection questions that ask about their views and intended approach in providing supervision
- clear position descriptions and policies which outline their role
- shadowing opportunities (where a transitioning supervisor follows an experienced supervisor as they perform their role) for a day or two, allowing time for the transitioning supervisor to ask questions
- mentoring from more experienced supervisors as they commence in the role, and coaching as their learning needs change and they become more experienced
- supervision training, ideally within three months of starting the role
- regular, quality supervision which allows for the exploration of uncertainties and anxieties and facilitates self-reflection
- regular peer supervision so supervisors can learn from and gain support from a network of peers, in a learning community.[6]
Supervision training is an important early step in supporting and developing supervisors but should be accompanied by additional support (shadowing, mentoring and receiving their own supervision) to translate knowledge into practice.[7]
References
[1] Department of Human Services, Leading practice: a resource guide for child protection leaders.
[2] Morrison and Wonnacott, Supervision: now or never - reclaiming reflective supervision in social work.
[3] State of Victoria, 2019–20 census of workforces that intersect with family violence.
[4] Wonnacott, Mastering social work supervision.
[5] M Carrol, Effective Supervision for the helping professions, Sage Publications, UK, 2014.
[6] M Rankine, ‘“Moving out of the safe zone”: promoting learning communities and reflective supervision in a social work statutory child protection agency’, Aotearoa New Zealand Social Work, 2021, 33(2):88–103, doi: 10.11157/anzswj-vol33iss2id871.
[7] R Egan, J Maidment and M Connolly, ‘Supporting quality supervision: insights for organisational practice’, International Social Work, 2016, 61(3), doi: 10.1177/0020872816637.
Updated