|
Table of Contents
Published in The Oak Ridger
Published in The Oak Ridge Observer
Published in Y-Source
Back to INDEX page
 |
|
Jack Case in 1964 simply expected an outstanding job from every supervisor –
By Ray Smith
The following information is taken from the Y-12 Bulletin of January 29, 1964. The entire article is printed here for your reading pleasure. The reason for choosing this particular article is that the points made by Mr. Case are just as pertinent for supervisors today as they were in 1964.
The article reads:
Jack Case Leads Supervisory Conference on What Management Expects of Supervisors
Current Supervisor Conferences in Y-12 are being conducted by Jack M. Case, assistant Y-12 plant superintendent. The subject of th4e conferences is “What Management Expects of the Supervisor in the Y-12 plant.”
There are two questions each supervisor must ask himself, Case points out, “What is my job?” and “How can I do my job well?”
Certain goals were outlined… a well trained and competent work force, high morale in employees, pride in work and pride in organization, good working relations with others in the plant, and good knowledge of plant policies and procedures.
A supervisor’s most important tool, he pointed out, is the people who work for him. “Understanding people is a tough job because there are so many different kinds. Most people work because they want to get something for their effort, and pay is only one of the things they are looking for. T hey also want to enjoy security, recognition, and job satisfaction.”
Enthusiasm Contagious
Case also listed a few qualities supervisors could work on. “Enthusiasm, for instance, if we are enthusiastic about our work our people will usually be enthusiastic too, because this is contagious. Enthusiasm has worn many a ball game and has tot many a supervisor over some fairly rough places and has also got them promotions, I might add. Consciously try to develop greater enthusiasm for your supervisory job.”
“Honesty and Integrity… If your people can trust you, know that you keep your word and know that you are always honest, you have gone a long way toward being a successful supervisor. It is difficult to follow a leader that is erratic in this area. Your employees deserve your honest and loyal support as does your boss.”
“Concern for your people… If you develop a real concern for your people it will pay big dividends. If your people give you their best, the least you can do is to be concerned about their future, their personal well being, and their performance. Even in the Army one of the rules that every officer is directed to follow is ‘take care of your men.’ ”
“Develop your ability to communicate… This is extremely important to you, your supervisor and your people. Being able to discipline an employee and get across just exactly what you mean without being unjust or doing unintentional damage requires real communication ability. Also you need to be able to communicate effectively in order to sell your ideas to your boss and to your people.”
Results are Gratifying
“The various levels of supervision have different problems and somewhat different things are expected from each,” Case concluded. “I have made no attempt to outline all that is expected of us in detail. What I have tried to accomplish is suggest an approach of achieving what is expected of you and me as supervisors. That approach is simply to do the job in an outstanding manner. If you put out the effort the results will be gratifying to you, your people, and your supervisor.”
The conferences are running through Thursday, January 30, 1964. They are conducted in the Conference Room of the Cafeteria Tuesdays and Thursdays at 10 a.m. for straight day employees, and Mondays and Tuesdays at 5 p.m. for employees on shift rotations. The 5 p.m. conferences are held in the Conference Room of the Plant Shift Superintendents, in Building 9706-2.
The Training Department has arranged the conferences…and Superintendent Case is introduced by Training’s B. R. Pearson at the meetings.
The above article shows that Mr. Case understood what was expected of supervisors at Y-12 and that he knew how to effectively communicate those expectations to others. Don’t you just wish you could have been in the Cafeteria Conference Room to have personally heard him give this talk!
If he were here today, in that characteristic gravelly voice he just might say, “Those same expectations for supervisors in 1964 apply to you young folks today in 2006!” After all what Mr. Case expected was simply an approach to the job of a supervisor that he stated as, “That approach is simply to do the job in an outstanding manner.”
A note about documents with historical value: This bulletin was kept by John M. Mills, Jr. who was in the Y-12 Classification office for a number of years. It was located in the vault along with some other historical documents. Do you have or know of any similar locations where old documents are stored that might have historical value? If so, please contact Jennifer Dixon, 576-5715, userid (JEN) or Ray Smith at 576-7781, userid (SRD)
|
