Individualized New Supervisor Learning - Positive Start Flex

About the Program

Category: Personnel Management, Employment and Training (Best in Category)

Year: 2015

Becoming a new supervisor in a large government organization can be overwhelming at first, and being required to participate in lengthy, structured classroom training can add unnecessary frustration. For nearly two decades this was the process at Broward County Government. A new program was needed to accelerate the learning and be flexible to the schedule of a first year County supervisor. Tasked with this challenge, the Human Resources Learning and Organizational Development (LOD) team recognized that a blended approach was needed and that approach should be driven in part by the learners themselves. LOD identified the components of the current program that still needed “face time”. These were instructor-led policy sessions where Human Resources and County staff were able to build relationships with new supervisors. The remaining supervisory skills development (i.e. behavioral skills) could be taken online and/or in the classroom. Participants were able to choose what they wanted to take and when they wanted to take it. As a result, the blended program addressed the needs of both the learner and the organization. The training is administered during a rolling calendar year thus it is continuously offered. The program has been successful for the organization and the new supervisors.