Managing - Supervision

Introduction to supervision

The organisation of different industries varies according to their specific requirements and the name given to people doing similar jobs in different industries may also vary. Some companies will require operatives, technicians, technologists; others need craftsmen, supervisors, managers, and the supervisory function of the charge hand, foreman, chef de parti, supervisor may be similar.

The structure of the catering industry is made up of people with craft skills, the craftsmen who are involved with production; the supervisors and those who use managerial skills and determine policy. The group of people who have a supervisory function are those with whom we are now concerned.

Good supervision is the effective deployment of money, material and manpower.

Supervision

The function of the supervisor is to be an overseer, and in the catering industry the name given to the supervisor may vary - for example, in the kitchen it could be the sous chef in the restaurant it is the restaurant manager. The restaurant manager will be responsible to the F&B manger, while in the kitchen the chef the parti will be responsible to the chef de cuisine. The exact details of the job will vary with different aspects of the industry and the size of the various units, but generally the supervisor performs three functions:

• technical
• administrative
• social

Technical

Technical skills and ability to use a range of equipment are essential for the supervisor. Most supervisors will have worked their way through a couple of sections before reaching supervisory responsibility. The supervisor needs to be able "to do" as well as knowing "what to do" and "how to do it". He also needs to be able to do it well and to be able to pass on some of his skill to others.

Administrative

The supervisor will, in many restaurants, be involved with the menu planning, sometimes with complete responsibility for the whole menu but more usually for parts of the menu in close liaison with the chef. This includes purchasing, which is an important aspect of the supervisor's job in a catering establishment, and of course accounting and recording materials used. The administrative function includes allocation of duties and in all instance basic work-study knowledge is needed to enable the supervisor to operate effectively. The supervisor's job may include the writing of reports, particularly in situations where comparisons are carried out and when developments are being tried.

Social

Perhaps the role of the supervisor is most clearly seen in staff relationships because the supervisor's purpose is to motivate the staff for which he is responsible. To motivate could be described as getting movement and action; and having got the staff moving, then the supervisor needs to exert control. To achieve the required result the staff need to be organised. From this it is clear that the supervisor has a threefold function regarding the handling of staff, namely: to organise, to motivate, to control; in other words this is the essence of staff supervision.

Elements of supervision

• Forecasting and planning
• Organising
• Commanding
• Co-ordinating
• Controlling

Each of these will be considered within the sphere of catering.

Forecasting and planning

Before one can plan it is necessary to look ahead, to foresee possible and probable outcomes, and to plan for them. If the restaurant manager knows that on the following it is his assistant's day off, he looks ahead and plans accordingly. When the supervisor in the knows that there is a flu epidemic and two of his waiters are "under the weather" he plans for their possible absence. If there is a spell of fine hot weather and the chef in charge foresees a continued demand for cold foods or when the anticipates an end to the hot spell, then the plans are moderated. Forecasting for the supervisor is the using of judgement acquired from previous knowledge and experience. Because many people are on holiday in august fewer meals will be needed in the office restaurant; no students are in residence at the college hostel, but a conference is in for the day needing 60 meals; because of the Motor Show, the Spring Holiday, the effects of a rail strike or a wet day, as well as less predictable situations such as the number of customers anticipated on the opening day of a new restaurant - all need forecasting.

From the forecasting comes the planning; how many meals to prepare; how much to have in stock (should the forecast not have been accurate); how many staff will be needed; which staff and when. Is the staff capable of what is required of them? If not, the supervisor needs to plan some training. This of course is particularly important if little equipment is installed. Imagine an expensive item such as a microwave oven ruined on the day it is installed because the staff have not been instructed in its proper use; or what is more likely to occur, equipment lying idle because the supervisor may not like it, considers it is sited wrongly, does not train staff to use it, or because of some similar reason.

As it can be seen from these examples the necessity is for forecasting to precede planning. Fromplanning we now move to organising.

Organising

Organising consists of ensuring that what is wanted is where it is wanted, when it is wanted, in the right amount, at the right time, and this applies to food, to equipment and to staff.

Arranging for this to happen requires the supervisor in the productions of duty rotas, maybe training programmes and cleaning schedules. Consider the supervisor's part in organising an outdoor function where a wedding reception is to be held in a church hall: 250 guests require a hot meal to be served at 2 p.m. and in the evening a dance will be held for the guests at which a buffet will be provided at 9 p.m. The supervisor would need to organise his staff to be available when wanted, to have their own meals, maybe to see that they have get their transport home. Gas oven may be needed, and the supervisor would have to arrange for the stoves to be serviced and for the equipment to be cleaned after their function. The food would need to be ordered so that it arrived in time to be prepared. If decorated in time so that they could be prepared, cooked and decorated over the required period. If the staff has never carved ham before, then instruction would need to be given - this entails organising training. Needless to say the correct amounts of food, drinks, equipment and cleaning materials would have to be at the right place when wanted, and if the situation were not organised properly problems could occur.

Commanding

The supervisor has to give instructions to his staff of how, what, when and where; this means that orders have to be given and a certain degree of order and discipline maintained. The successful supervisor is one who is able to do this effectively and it entails a certain amount of decision making, which in turn necessitates, very often, deciding on priorities. Explanations of why a drink is prepared in a certain manner, why this amount of time is needed to dress up the cocktail, say for a aperitif reception, why this decision in taken and not that decision, and how these explanations and orders are given, determine the effectiveness of the supervisor.

Co-ordinating

Co-ordinating is the skill the supervisor needs to get staff to co-ordinate and work together. To achieve this, the supervisor has to be interested in the staff, to deal with their queries, to listen to their problems and to be helpful. Particular attention should be paid to new staff, introduce them into the situation so that they become part of the team; the other area for which the supervisor has particular responsibility is maintaining good relations with other departments. The important persons to consider are the customers, who are to receive the service and good service is dependent on co-operation between waiters, cooks, hostesses, other catering staff, store men, suppliers and so on. The supervisor has a crucial role to play.

Controlling

This includes the controlling of people and products and preventing stealing as well as improving performance. Checking that staff arrive on time, and do not leave before time, and do not misuse time in between. He has to check that the product is of the right standard, meaning the correct quantity and quality. Checking to prevent waste, and also to prevent stealing and to ensure that staff operates the portion control system.

This aspect of the supervisor's function involves inspecting and requires tact; controlling may include the inspecting of the bin to observe the amount of waste, checking the disappearance of a quantity of food and drinks, supervising the preparation of all cold and hot drinks and the cooking of the meat so that shrinkage is minimised and reprimanding the unpunctual member of the team.

Standards of any catering establishment are dependent on the supervisor doing his job efficiently, and standards are set and maintained by effective control, which is the function of the supervisor.

How to supervise

It is recognised that delegation is the root of successful supervision - in other words, by giving a certain amount of responsibility to others the supervisor can be more effective himself. To do this there need to be a desire to develop the potential of those under his control, recognition of the abilities of those subordinated to him, and, having delegated, the wisdom of allowing the person entrusted with the job to get on with it. Naturally, the supervisor has judged the person to be capable before he delegates responsibility.

But since not everyone is capable or wants responsibility, the supervisor still needs to motivate those less ambitious, and since most people like to be occupied with other people to have companionship and because it is the accepted thing to do, they are prepared to work to improve their standard of living. There is, however, another very important motivating factor: most people desire to get satisfaction from the work they do. The supervisor must be aware of why people work and how different people achieve job satisfaction and so be able to act upon this knowledge.

People work best in good working conditions and good working conditions include freedom from fear: fear of becoming unemployed, fear of failure at work, fear of discrimination, profit sharing and time for further study, etc., encourage a good attitude to work, but as well as these concrete factors people need to feel wanted, to feel important, and the supervisor is in an excellent position to do this. Personal worries affect the individuals' performance and can have a very strong influence on how well or how badly they work. The physical environment naturally causes problems if the atmosphere is humid, the working situation ill lit, too hot or too noisy, and there is constant rush and tear and frequent major problems to be overcome. In these circumstances staff are more liable to be quick-tempered, angry and aggressive.

The supervisor needs to understand both men and women, to anticipate problems, and build up a team spirit to overcome the problems. This involves always being fair when dealing with staff and giving them encouragement. It also means that work needs to be allocated according to ability and to keeping everyone occupied as well as checking that the environment is the most conducive to work.

Lastly, and perhaps most important, the supervisor must be able to communicate. To convey orders, instructions, information, and manual skills requires the supervisor to possess the right attitude to those with whom he needs to communicate. The ability to convey orders and instructions in a manner, which is acceptable to the one receiving the orders, is dependent not only on the words, but the emphasis given to the words, the tone of voice, the time selected to give them and who is also present when they are given. This is a skill, which supervisors need to develop. Instructions and orders can be given with authority without being authoritative.

Therefore the supervisor needs technical knowledge and the ability to direct staff and to carry responsibility so as to achieve specified targets and standards as set out by the policy of the organisation; This he is able to do by organising, co-ordinating, controlling and planning through effective communication.