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course, we look at why this development program does so well, in a corporate training market that is flooded with management courses.
For the last two years the EFC has seen record number of enrollers for its eight-week Supervisory Development Program. The program is conducted one day a week over eight weeks and is twice a year in January and June.
Covering topics such as work scheduling; understanding accounts; leading and motivating teams, and managing discipline, the course covers all the hard and soft skills that a junior manager needs to effectively manage a workforce.
The course is one of the oldest management training programs in the country. It was started in 2005 and over the past nine years has trained hundreds of junior managers from various national and multinational organisations based in Sri Lanka.
This year’s course saw participants from a variety of industries including retail, manufacturing, hotel and leisure, banking, garments and FCMG.
One of the reasons why the course is so popular is that it has always recognised the changing role of the supervisor in modern organisations. With this objective in mind, the program strives to create highly interactive course materials using real life management scenarios wherever possible.
Course participant Ashroff Yusoof from Amangalle Resort agreed, “The trainers are very good. I have been on many training courses but I gained something different from this one. The EFC Supervisory Program provides practical case studies, role plays and exercises that are fascinating to work through.”
One of the reasons why the EFC is able to develop such relevant training material, is that unlike any other training institution, nearly all of their trainers are also full-time professional employment relations specialists, who handle real staff management issues continuously, as part of their normal working day.
These working professionals bring not only the latest management theories to the classroom, but actual first-hand experience of how these strategies work in today’s corporate world. This makes the course material relevant and current every year. It is the reason why the program has been successfully sustained and grown over the last 9 years.
Being so attuned to the realities of corporate life has also made the EFC sympathetic to the difficulties of releasing supervisors for intense training programs like this one. At the request of it some of its company members, the EFC has delivered bespoke training packages on company premises, so that managers do not have to give up too much work time.
The changes in the modern day supervisor role mean that junior managers and supervisors can no longer passively manage just by being present in the workplace. A recent Gallup Poll cited that the number one reason why employees leave jobs is due to poor relationships with their immediate supervisor.
Senior Training Specialist at the EFC, Dhananjaya Jayakody said, “As front line managers, supervisors are considered the key link between management and the rest of the workers. It is their actions that play a pivotal role in the smooth running of any organisation. Supervisors are now expected to think on their feet. They must be prepared to take responsibility, attend real-time situations and be confident enough to make decisions that benefit both their workers and the organisation.”
When asked why he thought the Supervisory Program was so successful, Jayakody said, “The modern day supervisor must be able to explain, predict and influence workers’ productivity, their absenteeism, staff turnover and job satisfaction in the workplace. The EFC Supervisory Development Programme gives them the essential skills to do that.”
