Want to Increase New Frontline Supervisors’ Success? Train ’Em.

A high performer doesn’t automatically make a good manager — and yet, that is the main criteria two-thirds of organizations use in selecting and promoting individuals to supervisory roles, according to recent Gallup research.

Training is a simple but effective tactic to avoid talent misalignment — and the dreaded Peter Principle (promoting people to a “level of respective incompetence”) — but the same research found organizations aren’t doing it.

Let’s dig in.

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• Tool for Transition: A Developmental Self-Audit for New Supervisors

Decisions and Drawbacks

According to the survey and analytics firm’s report, just 30% of surveyed frontline supervisors said they were placed into their role based on supervisory skills, experience as a supervisor or because they began their career as a supervisor. Conversely, 65% said they obtained their position based on performance or tenure in a frontline role.

“The benefit to hiring supervisors who are good individual contributors is that they know the job,” said Corey Tatel, a research associate at Gallup and the co-author of the frontline supervisor report.

Those workers can use that knowledge to teach and coach others on how to be better at specific tasks and responsibilities, he said.

“The definitive drawback is that there’s no guarantee that they have the talent or skills to manage people effectively,” said Andy Stewart, an associate principal at Gallup and report co-author.

According to the study, the two-thirds of supervisors who were promoted due to tenure or individual performance were less engaged (31%) in their new management role than the one-third who were promoted for their supervisory skills or manager experience (42%).

And this engagement gap flows down to their teams — another Gallup study reported that managers’ own engagement, effectiveness and natural talents account for at least 70% of the variance in team-level engagement.

“Our research suggests the less common approach [promotion based on supervisory skills/experience] is advantageous, but the key [in either case] is figuring out how to do it effectively,” Tatel said.

Key Predictors

Anne-Claire Roesch, a principal at global consulting firm Deloitte, agreed that tenure alone is no longer a reliable predictor of supervisory success.

“As artificial intelligence and automation take over routine, task-based work across industries, the role of the frontline supervisor is shifting toward higher-value responsibilities that require human judgment and adaptability — such as resolving disruptions, navigating interpersonal tensions, engaging customers and coaching teams through change,” she said.

As such, Roesch stated that traditional selection methods, which assume that time in a role builds the skills needed to supervise others, are becoming increasingly outdated.

“Future-facing capabilities like sound judgment, emotional intelligence, communication skills and decision-making under uncertainty are becoming far more important indicators of effectiveness,” she said.

And while autonomy and independence are strengths of a high performer, teamwork is a more important skill — and predictor of success — for managers, though it is a skill often overlooked in promotion decisions, according to one study.

Screening and Training

Researchers have identified six key competencies that distinguish good managers from good individual contributors. These include:

• Openness to feedback and personal change;
• Support of others’ development;
• Openness to innovation;
• Effective communication;
• Good interpersonal skills; and,
• Support of organizational changes.

But many experts agree that too many organizations expect new supervisors to acquire these key abilities on their own after promotion.

The Gallup study found that frontline supervisors who completed training in the past year on becoming a better supervisor are 79% more likely to be engaged, 19% less likely to feel burned out and 11% less likely to be actively looking for a new job.

However, only 45% of frontline supervisors reported taking part in supervisor training or education in the past year, and nearly a quarter (23%) reported never taking part in such training.

“Organizations should invest in robust training and development to help workers successfully transition from individual contributors to managers,” Roesch said. “Formal leadership programs, rotational assignments and targeted skill-building initiatives can help prepare managers with the behaviors, capabilities and mindset required to succeed in the evolving landscape of frontline work.”

To set such workers up for the best chance of success, she also suggested organizations consider “pre-boarding” to help them understand what the work, workplace and experience looks like before signing up.

HR professionals also can construct and deliver supervisor training on proper ways to delegate, identify signs of mental distress among workers and communicate pay decisions.

Also, according to Tatel and Stewart, consider assessments to screen for supervisory talent in the first place.

Gallup’s meta-analysis of 136 studies in which science-based structured interviews and assessments were administered to 14,597 managers found that hiring based on managerial talent increased sales or revenue by 21% per manager and profit by 32% per manager.

To check if your assessments and training offerings are working, look at team metrics including employee engagement, turnover, productivity, profitability or other performance indicators, Stewart said.

“It’s possible that high-performing frontline workers can make good supervisors,” he said. “Practical steps can involve assessments, and training efforts are key as well. The goal of these efforts is to find people who naturally lead others, not just those who are good at the frontline job.”

Editor’s Note: Additional Content

For more information and resources related to this article, see the pages below, which offer quick access to all WorldatWork content on these topics:

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