Team Leader as Supervisor

Resource Description

This course was written by Ken Guenther. Ken serves as the Director of SEND U (since 2008) and lives in Kiev, Ukraine, after serving with SEND International for 10 years in the Philippines and then another 10 years in Far East Russia. He has served as a church planting team leader, a department head, an area director, and the leader for the SEND U staff and Leadership Team. Since January 2015, he also leads the International Services Leadership Team for the International Office. Over the years in both the Philippines and in Russia, he has frequently taught courses or seminars on leadership to church leaders and aspiring church leaders. Since becoming Director of SEND U (SEND’s training department) and moving to Kiev, he has coached several different team leaders throughout SEND and has also helped to train mission leaders in “live” workshops.

This is the second online course that Ken has developed for mission team leaders. The first one was entitled “Team Leader Orientation” and focused on the role, character, job description and ongoing growth of the team leader. It has been offered several times since 2010, and dozens of SEND leaders as well as many World Team leaders have completed the course. This course builds on the first course and is focused more specifically on the team leader as a supervisor or manager of people. Although the learner will find it advantageous to have first completed the “Team Leader Orientation” course, it is not a requirement to enroll in this course.
In order to take this course, you must serve in a supervisory role in a cross-cultural mission organization. Although the course was designed for team leaders of SEND International, mission leaders at other levels of authority (area directors, ministry directors, department heads) will also be able to benefit from this course. Because of the highly practical nature of the assignments, the course will not be meaningful and the requirements will simply be frustrating for those who are not providing direct supervision for other missionaries or staff.

Outline of course and learning outcomes for each unit:

Week 1 – Serving as a Steward. What does it mean to be a supervisor?
Learning Outcomes:
* You will understand what it means to be a steward of your team and will have identified various ways you are accountable as a steward.
* You will better understand the difference between management and leadership and which is more needed in your organization.

Week 2 – Clarifying Expectations. How do I help each team member figure out what they are to be doing?
Learning Outcomes:
* You will have decided what type of job description is needed for each of your team members and what needs to be done to improve them.
* You will have some data regarding whether your team members understand what is expected of them.
* You will have some ideas about how to keep team members focused on team goals.

Week 3 – Connecting Regularly. How do I provide regular assistance and accountability to my team members?
Learning Outcomes:
* You will recognize how Jesus provided support and accountability for his team of disciples.
* You will have determined the purpose of your one-on-one meetings with team members, the agenda for those meetings, and the frequency of your meetings with your team members.

Week 4 – Providing Feedback. What do I do when a team member is not meeting expectations?
Learning Outcomes:
* You will have learned how to give effective feedback.
* You will have received feedback on your own performance.
* You will have developed a plan for how to effectively communicate feedback to someone you supervise.

Week 5 – Promoting Growth. How can I help my team members develop?
Learning Outcomes:
* You will have developed a plan for how you could reinforce the training that one member of your team receives.
* You will have identified how you could improve as a coach for your team members.
* You will have identified some ways that you could use your team meetings to promote growth and peer-coaching.