Participants will be introduced to the expectations of today’s supervisor as it relates to the success of California and the individual missions of each department and agency. Additionally, classroom activities will include exercises meant to challenge and/or confirm participant views of supervision and their influence. Participants will also engage in accelerated teambuilding activities, designed to quickly build strong relationships and provide a solid foundation for the entire coursework of the Leadership for the Government Supervisor certificate program.

Participants will look at the relationships between supervisors and supervisees, and the relationships between generations, organizations, initiatives, and the success or failure of projects. Individually, and in groups, the following topics will be investigated from the perspective of human relationships within the workplace: competencies; workforce planning; communication; leadership; teamwork; and performance.

Participants will apply their newly acquired ideas and techniques in a learning lab environment. Instructors, guests and participants will work together to practice and experiment with techniques for leveraging the knowledge and skills of a multigenerational workforce, including utilizing tools and systems for improving individual and organizational performance through motivational techniques while managing expectations. The learning lab will enable participants to reinforce skills for seeking and sharing best practices across departments, agencies and varying levels of government.

Participants will discover how to: understand change, implement change, and recommend and design change. Participants will be exposed to the connections in both intentional and imposed “change” between organizations, people, and processes by learning tools for successfully managing change.

Participants will be provided the opportunity to apply their newly acquired ideas and techniques in hands-on applications. Participants will work together to practice and experiment with techniques for managing change by utilizing new and previous coursework ideas and tools.

In this course, supervisors in State service will learn concepts, tools and standards to help them make decisions that are ethical and reflect their organizational mission, vision, goals, and values. Participants will understand and eliminate challenges to individual and group decision making barriers, and explore techniques for communicating decisions to varying levels of staff and stakeholders.

Participants will identify ways to develop a professional, influential relationship with upper management, peers and staff to create a productive and enjoyable work environment. Participants will learn techniques and improve their ability to influence others in variety of situations. Through individual and group exercises, participants will also build skills in conflict resolution.

Participants will deliver individual presentations on course-related professional development and strategies for fostering long-term development. Presentation concepts will show that they are designed to link development opportunities to real scenarios within California state government and ensure each participant demonstrates their comprehension of the program and commitment to the “next steps” in their role as a supervisor and a civil servant.