Career profile for Plant Supervisor

What does a Plant Supervisor do?

Plant Supervisors directly supervise and coordinate the activities of production and operating workers, such as inspectors, precision workers, machine setters and operators, assemblers, fabricators, and plant and system operators.

In addition, Plant Supervisors excludes team or work leaders.

What kind of tasks does a Plant Supervisor perform regularly?

Plant Supervisors are often responsible for overseeing or executing some or all of the following tasks:

Enforce safety and sanitation regulations.
Keep records of employees' attendance and hours worked.
Inspect materials, products, or equipment to detect defects or malfunctions.
Read and analyze charts, work orders, production schedules, and other records and reports to determine production requirements and to evaluate current production estimates and outputs.
Plan and establish work schedules, assignments, and production sequences to meet production goals.
Confer with other supervisors to coordinate operations and activities within or between departments.
Interpret specifications, blueprints, job orders, and company policies and procedures for workers.
Observe work and monitor gauges, dials, and other indicators to ensure that operators conform to production or processing standards.
Direct and coordinate the activities of employees engaged in the production or processing of goods, such as inspectors, machine setters, or fabricators.
Conduct employee training in equipment operations or work and safety procedures, or assign employee training to experienced workers.
Evaluate employee performance.
Confer with management or subordinates to resolve worker problems, complaints, or grievances.
Determine standards, budgets, production goals, and rates, based on company policies, equipment and labor availability, and workloads.
Calculate labor and equipment requirements and production specifications, using standard formulas.
Recommend or implement measures to motivate employees and to improve production methods, equipment performance, product quality, or efficiency.
Maintain operations data, such as time, production, and cost records, and prepare management reports of production results.
Requisition materials, supplies, equipment parts, or repair services.
Set up and adjust machines and equipment.
Recommend or execute personnel actions, such as hirings, evaluations, or promotions.
Plan and develop new products and production processes.

The above responsibilities are specific to Plant Supervisors. More generally, Plant Supervisors are involved in several broader types of activities:

Activities	Importance	Details
Making Decisions and Solving Problems		Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
Getting Information		Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates		Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings		Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials		Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.

Making Decisions and Solving Problems

Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.

Getting Information

Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.

Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates

Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.

Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings

Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.

Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials

Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.

What is a Plant Supervisor salary?

The median salary for a Plant Supervisor is $62,850, and the average salary is $66,800. Both the median and average roughly describe the middle of the Plant Supervisor salary range, but the average is more easily affected by extremely high or low salaries.

Many Plant Supervisors earn significantly more or less than the average, due to several factors. About 10% of Plant Supervisors earn less than $37,990 per year, 25% earn less than $48,500, 75% earn less than $80,770, and 90% earn less than $102,510.

Between the years of 2020 and 2030, the number of Plant Supervisors is expected to change by 3.7%, and there should be roughly 63,400 open positions for Plant Supervisors every year.

Median annual salary: $62,850
Typical salary range: $37,990 - $102,510
Projected growth (2020 - 2030): 3.7%

What personality traits are common among Plant Supervisors?

Interests

Career interests describe a person's preferences for different types of working environments and activities. When a person's interest match the demands of an occupation, people are usually more engaged and satisfied in that role.

Compared to most occupations, those who work as a Plant Supervisor are usually higher in their Enterprising, Realistic, and Conventional interests.

Plant Supervisors typically have very strong Enterprising interests. Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business.

Also, Plant Supervisors typically have strong Realistic interests. Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.

Lastly, Plant Supervisors typically have strong Conventional interests. Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.

Values

People differ in their values, or what is most important to them for building job satisfaction and fulfillment.

Compared to most people, those working as a Plant Supervisor tend to value Independence, Support, and Achievement.

Most importantly, Plant Supervisors strongly value Independence. Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions.

Second, Plant Supervisors strongly value Support. Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees.

Lastly, Plant Supervisors strongly value Achievement. Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment.

Psychological Demands

Each occupation brings its own set of psychological demands, which describe the characteristics necessary to perform the job well.

In order to perform their job successfully, people who work as Plant Supervisors must consistently demonstrate qualities such as attention to detail, leadership, and dependability.

Below, you'll find a list of qualities typically required of Plant Supervisors, ranked by importance:

Demands	Importance	Details
Attention to Detail		Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
Leadership		Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.
Dependability		Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
Cooperation		Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
Self-Control		Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.

Attention to Detail

Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.

Leadership

Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.

Dependability

Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.

Cooperation

Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.

Self-Control

Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.

What education and training do Plant Supervisors need?

Plant Supervisors often have training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.

Plant Supervisors usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with this occupation.

Educational degrees among Plant Supervisors

10.0% did not complete high school or secondary school
38.5% completed high school or secondary school
25.6% completed some college coursework
9.1% earned a Associate's degree
13.2% earned a Bachelor's degree
3.1% earned a Master's degree
0.6% earned a doctorate or professional degree

Knowledge and expertise required by Plant Supervisors

Plant Supervisors may benefit from understanding of specialized subject areas, such as production and processing, administration and management, or personnel and human resources knowledge.

The list below shows several areas in which most Plant Supervisors might want to build proficiency, ranked by importance.

Knowledge areas	Importance	Details
Production and Processing		Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
Administration and Management		Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Personnel and Human Resources		Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
Administrative		Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
Computers and Electronics		Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

Production and Processing

Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.

Administration and Management

Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.

Personnel and Human Resources

Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.

Administrative

Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.

Computers and Electronics

Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

Important Abilities needed by Plant Supervisors

Plant Supervisors must develop a particular set of abilities to perform their job well. Abilities are individual capacities that influence a person's information processing, sensory perception, motor coordination, and physical strength or endurance. Individuals may naturally have certain abilities without explicit training, but most abilities can be sharpened somewhat through practice.

For example, Plant Supervisors need abilities such as oral comprehension, oral expression, and problem sensitivity in order to perform their job at a high level. The list below shows several important abilities for Plant Supervisors, ranked by their relative importance.

Abilities	Importance	Details
Oral Comprehension		The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Oral Expression		The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Problem Sensitivity		The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
Written Comprehension		The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
Deductive Reasoning		The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

Oral Comprehension

The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

Oral Expression

The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.

Problem Sensitivity

The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.

Written Comprehension

The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.

Deductive Reasoning

The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.

Critical Skills needed by Plant Supervisors

Skills are developed capacities that enable people to function effectively in real-world settings. Unlike abilities, skills are typically easier to build through practice and experience. Skills influence effectiveness in areas such as learning, working with others, design, troubleshooting, and more.

Plant Supervisors frequently use skills like active listening, speaking, and time management to perform their job effectively. The list below shows several critical skills for Plant Supervisors, ranked by their relative importance.

Skills	Importance	Details
Active Listening		Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Speaking		Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Time Management		Managing one's own time and the time of others.
Management of Personnel Resources		Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
Critical Thinking		Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.

Active Listening

Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Speaking

Talking to others to convey information effectively.

Time Management

Managing one's own time and the time of others.

Management of Personnel Resources

Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.

Critical Thinking

Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.

What is the source of this information?

The information provided on this page is adapted from data and descriptions published by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration under the CC BY 4.0 license. TraitLab has modified some information for ease of use and reading, and the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment, and Training Administration has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.

If you have any questions or suggestions about this information, please send a message.

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