--- title: PeopleWork Supervisor Program description: Give supervisors the people skills they need to succeed. Transform technical experts into leaders who keep people engaged, safe & productive. image: https://www.kevburns.com/hubfs/supervisors_300x175-1.jpg --- PeopleWork Supervisor Program [![KevBurns Learning: We teach industrial supervisors how to be really great leaders.](https://www.kevburns.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Kev-Burns-Learning-white.png?width=240&height=118&name=Kev-Burns-Learning-white.png "KevBurns Learning: We teach industrial supervisors how to be really great leaders.")](https://www.kevburns.com/) - [About](https://www.kevburns.com/about-kevin-burns) - [Supervisor Training](https://www.kevburns.com/supervisors) - [Try First 6 Days Free](https://www.kevburns.com/6days) - [52 Benefits of Safety](https://www.kevburns.com/52-benefits) - [Hope Calculator](https://www.kevburns.com/calculator) - [Issues](https://www.kevburns.com/safety-issues) - [Safety](https://www.kevburns.com/safety-issues) - [Operational](https://www.kevburns.com/operational-issues) - [Growth](https://www.kevburns.com/growth-issues) - [Resources](https://www.kevburns.com/books) - [Books](https://www.kevburns.com/books) - [Newsletter](https://www.kevburns.com/newsletter) - [Downloads](https://www.kevburns.com/downloads) - [Case Study NBU](https://www.kevburns.com/nbu-case-study) - [Case Study WCC](https://www.kevburns.com/wcc-case-study-2026) - [ROI Videos](https://www.kevburns.com/videos) - [Speaking](https://www.kevburns.com/speaking) - [Media/Podcast](https://www.kevburns.com/media) - [Blog](https://www.kevburns.com/blog) - [Contact](https://www.kevburns.com/contact-us) - [About](https://www.kevburns.com/about-kevin-burns) - [Supervisor Training](https://www.kevburns.com/supervisors) - [Try First 6 Days Free](https://www.kevburns.com/6days) - [52 Benefits of Safety](https://www.kevburns.com/52-benefits) - [Hope Calculator](https://www.kevburns.com/calculator) - [Issues](https://www.kevburns.com/safety-issues) - [Safety](https://www.kevburns.com/safety-issues) - [Operational](https://www.kevburns.com/operational-issues) - [Growth](https://www.kevburns.com/growth-issues) - [Resources](https://www.kevburns.com/books) - [Books](https://www.kevburns.com/books) - [Newsletter](https://www.kevburns.com/newsletter) - [Downloads](https://www.kevburns.com/downloads) - [Case Study NBU](https://www.kevburns.com/nbu-case-study) - [Case Study WCC](https://www.kevburns.com/wcc-case-study-2026) - [ROI Videos](https://www.kevburns.com/videos) - [Speaking](https://www.kevburns.com/speaking) - [Media/Podcast](https://www.kevburns.com/media) - [Blog](https://www.kevburns.com/blog) - [Contact](https://www.kevburns.com/contact-us) # Operators Get Trained. Supervisors Don't. #### You'd never let an operator touch a machine without training. But the people who lead those operators are learning by trial and error. [What Is This Costing You?](https://www.kevburns.com/calculator) Build supervisory people skills. Give supervisors the tools to succeed. Grow more long-term leaders. ## You Promoted Your Best Technical People - But Nobody Taught Them How to Lead You run a solid operation with good equipment, proven processes, and safety standards that work. But your supervisors are learning how to manage people through trial and error. On your best employees. Some teams perform consistently while others struggle with identical equipment and processes. Good people walk out for competitors where supervisors know how to connect with them. Problems that should be solved by the supervisor keep landing on your desk. #### You know the difference isn't technical skills - it's the people-skills your supervisors never learned. [![ What Is This Costing You? ](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/237929/interactive-208780788847.png)](https://www.kevburns.com/hs/cta/wi/redirect?encryptedPayload=AVxigLLuLGNYScppnf0KUPvT3AuvTXWF%2FcAYaacYt0Dc1Ul1GKz8NHVyOjk9aG8YYiomjxsXAcf5mHPtRvwwJiMvE6SDb%2FO0RgPWMJGVymYlWjsEWv5%2Fjb8EjjKvg3RSu5fCM80NVVUA7nvLzYD9AdmvSxq8muNbVuBrjXhyuS4r7zayKaM2VNpDJlmxoSJm86VSqMCYze26PAeS&webInteractiveContentId=208780788847&portalId=237929) ## Your Supervisors Touch Every Metric You Measure. Every One. Retention - Good people don't quit companies. They quit supervisors who don't know how to value them. Every exit interview that says "better opportunity" is actually a supervisor problem in disguise. Productivity - Same equipment. Same processes. Wildly different output depending on who's supervising. That gap isn't mechanical. It's people-skills. Safety - Compliance gets you the minimum. A supervisor who knows how to lead people gets you a team that looks out for each other without being told. That's the difference between a safety program and a safety culture. And at least a dozen more metrics.   ## We've Transformed Over 1000 Supervisors More than 1,000 industrial supervisors have been through this program. We know what works and what doesn't. The solution isn't hope — it's real people-skills training.   [What Is This Costing You?](https://www.kevburns.com/calculator) ## Here's Our Simple 3-Step Process: 1 **Build People Skills Foundation** Your supervisors learn the seven skills employees actually want from them (technical skills rank last). 2 **Build Confidence** They discover how to coach and motivate instead of just giving orders, creating teams that solve problems independently. 3 **Get Everyone Leading the Same Way** All supervisors learn the same proven approach, so you stop getting different results from different shifts. ## Here's How the full Academy Program Works! **Weeks 1-8: The Intensive Foundation (60 days)** Your supervisors go through our 7 *CareFull Supervisor* modules - the core training that changes how they see their role. They get daily video lessons (under 10 minutes each) delivered by email so they can watch whenever and wherever they are. Then, we supplement their learning with 7 weekly live coaching Zoom calls with Kevin Burns.  **Weeks 9-58: Ongoing Support** After the intensive 60-day learning, supervisors continue with twice-weekly support. They're building habits, not just learning concepts. We set a weekly mindset on Mondays (and review the learning materials, latest trends and discuss business books that can help), and then we focus on getting employee buy-in to safety every Friday with a new video from the 52 Benefits of Safety program for frontline employees. **No Operational Disruption** All video lessons are under 10 minutes. All Zoom coaching sessions are scheduled around your operations and schedule. Supervisors don't have to leave their teams alone for days at a time - they learn while they work. Moments after learning, they can be front-facing their teams, putting into practice what they just learned.  Seriously, where are you going to find another program designed like this without building it yourself? And why would you build it yourself when you could start your team of supervisors next Monday? > This was such an eye-opener for me in the way I approach people, and my attitude. This is some of the best training I've ever been involved with. > > \- Ben Ortegon > For 30 years I've been in some type of management position and have seen myself in a lot of the segments discussed in this program. But now I have new tools and techniques to get better results. > > \- Steve Tucker > I think it's a great program. I wish I'd had it earlier in my career. I will use these tools on a daily basis. > > \- Bruce Patterson ## What Your Supervisors Will Learn **Module 1: Know Your Role** Your supervisors discover the seven skills employees actually want from them (technical skills rank dead last). They learn why being a "gunslinger" who handles everything alone destroys team cohesiveness, and how to become the example they'd want to work for. **Module 2: Become Premium-Brand** Your supervisors understand they already have a brand - the question is whether employees see them as "budget-brand" or "premium-brand." They learn what makes the difference and how to build engagement that keeps good people around. **Module 3: Focus Down, Not Up** Your supervisors stop trying to impress you and start focusing on their team. They learn why people don't leave jobs - they leave supervisors - and get three things they can do immediately to be more effective. **Module 4: Create Elite Teams** Your supervisors learn what separates elite teams from ordinary ones: certainty and trust. They learn the three types of supervisors and why only one creates elite-level performance. They get tools for setting standards, identifying team strengths, and building mission focus. **Module 5: Selling the Safety Brand** Your supervisors learn how to get genuine buy-in to safety instead of just compliance. They learn how to "sell" safety by getting permission to help people be better, and what benefits employees actually get from working safely. **Module 6: Motivating Your Team** Your supervisors learn what really motivates people (hint: it's not money). They learn the six things more important to employees than pay, and how to use safety meetings the way sports teams use pre-game talks - to build buy-in and enthusiasm. **Module 7: The Supervisor As Coach** Your supervisors learn how to replace chasing people with coaching and mentoring. They learn why consistency builds trust, why conversations matter more than commands, and four things they should be talking about in safety meetings to make them actually work. [Let's Talk About Academy](https://www.kevburns.com/contact-us) ## You Can't Build a Safety Culture Without Your Frontline Supervisors! And your frontline supervisors can't build one without the right people-skills. Every metric your company measures — safety, retention, productivity, quality, engagement — is touched by your supervisors every single day. Without the skills to lead people, they're guessing. And your employees are paying for it. Find out how much your unskilled supervisors are costing your organization today. Click the Hope Promotions Calculator button below. [Hope Promotions Calculator](https://www.kevburns.com/calculator) ## Frequently Asked Questions How long does each module take to complete? Each module has 5 lessons (10 minutes each), plus a few practical exercises. Your supervisors should consider that they will need to invest only 10 minutes per day to review the video the same day it arrives. Tomorrow, we will build on what they learn today. Also, a few minutes after watching the video, they can try it out with their team. One idea per day. Will this work for experienced supervisors who think they're doing fine? Yes. Even supervisors who've been in the role for years tell us they wish they'd had this training earlier. Most have never received any formal people-skills development, so they don't know what they don't know. Some of the worst supervisors I ever worked for thought they were amazing bosses. Many of our graduates were also highly experienced supervisors who had their eyes opened to so many new ideas and strategies they never knew existed. What is 52 Benefits of Safety? It's a year-long employee engagement program — 52 short videos, one per week, each giving your employees a specific reason to buy in to safety. It comes with a Facilitator's Guide that has discussion questions and coaching tips for every week. Your supervisors or safety managers play one video per week at crew meetings or toolbox talks. No preparation needed. It's not a course your supervisors take — it's a tool they use with their teams all year long. What if we don't have time for training? That's exactly why we built our program the way we did. *The Academy* is non-disruptive. All video lessons are under 10 minutes. The weekly Zoom coaching sessions are scheduled around your operations. Supervisors don't leave their teams alone for days at a time — they learn while they work. If your supervisors can't find 10 minutes in their day to get better at the job, that's worth paying attention to. How do we track progress and know it's working? For the *Academy*, we can provide your operations or safety manager with backend access to view engagement stats — who's watching and who isn't. You'll see it in team performance, fewer escalated problems, improved retention, and more safety feedback from employees. What industries is this designed for? It is perfect for any industrial operations where supervisors manage people in hands-on, where there are potentially dangerous work environments - manufacturing, construction, oil & gas, mining, utilities - any industry really. If your people work with their hands and safety matters, then this is for you. Who leads the program, and how many do we need to start? All video content in both programs features Kevin Burns — founder of the *PeopleWork Supervisor Academy* and author of the international bestseller *PeopleWork: The Human Touch in Workplace Safety* and *The CareFull Supervisor.* For the *Academy*, you will need a cohort of 12-15 supervisors to get started. That can include supervisors, lead hands, forepersons, shift leads, managers, and senior leaders. Got 12? Let's get started.   ## Ready to Stop the Trial and Error Approach? Your supervisors are experimenting on your employees right now. Every single day without the right people-skills costs you — in turnover, safety incidents, problems that land on your desk instead of getting solved on the floor. You already know something has to change. The only question left is when? - About - [Supervisor Training](https://www.kevburns.com/supervisors-old) - [Blog](https://www.kevburns.com/blog) #### © 2026 PeopleWork Align Inc. [![Kev-Burns-Learning-white](https://www.kevburns.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Kev-Burns-Learning-white.png?width=180&height=89&name=Kev-Burns-Learning-white.png "Kev-Burns-Learning-white")](https://www.kevburns.com)