5 benefits of counselling supervision

In any field of work, it’s important to get feedback on performances and processes in order to improve. There are a number of different ways to do this, but one that is often overlooked is giving staff members the opportunity for regular counselling supervision. Supervision in this sense is not about micromanaging an employee’s work or making sure they are sticking to company policies; instead, it’s about helping employees reach their full potential by offering constructive criticism and suggestions for improvement. 

This type of monitoring helps counsellors grow into even better professionals and also helps them identify early performance red flags that signal the need for intervention before things get out of hand.

In this post, we look at some of the benefits of counselling supervision as well as tips on how you can implement a system in your own practice.

1. A chance to enhance your counsellor’s clinical skills

Counselling supervision provides employees with an opportunity to reflect on their work and get feedback from their supervisors. This helps them identify any areas where they need to improve their skills, such as listening or helping others explore their feelings. If an employee requires more training in a certain area, then the supervisor is in a position to recommend relevant courses and resources. 

This is particularly helpful if your practice uses therapy models that require specific skills, such as emotion-focused therapy. Supervision can also help counsellors discover their own preferred therapeutic methods and identify which ones work best for them. This is particularly important if your counsellors offer different types of therapy, as they will need to tailor their approaches to different clients based on their needs and requirements. 

If a counsellor is still new to the field, then regular supervision can help them develop their skills even faster by providing constructive guidance and allowing them to receive feedback from their supervisors.

2. Help identify performance issues before they become problems

An important part of counselling supervision is monitoring employees’ performance, which gives you the chance to intervene and address any issues before they become serious problems. This could involve reviewing a counsellor’s client feedback to see if there is a particular problem that needs to be addressed or looking at their own self-reviews to determine if they are meeting the organisation’s standards.

For example, if an employee’s client feedback is consistently below a certain threshold, then you may want to discuss their performance with them and make suggestions for improvement. Even if an employee’s performance is above their client's expectations, this type of monitoring can still be valuable as it allows employees to reflect on their work and see what they can do to make it even better.

3. Help employees understand their strengths and weaknesses

When conducting regular counselling supervision, you should be asking your employees to rate their performance on certain aspects of their work. This way, you can establish a baseline of their abilities and help them understand where they excel and where they may need some improvement.

This information can be particularly helpful if an employee has a certain weakness that is preventing them from meeting their goals. For example, if an employee’s goal is to conduct 10 therapy sessions per week but they are consistently falling short, then you can use this information to help them identify why it’s happening and find ways to overcome the problem.

Even if an employee’s performance is above their client's expectations, this type of monitoring can still be valuable as it allows employees to reflect on their work and see what they can do to make it even better.

4. A chance for employees to voice any concerns they may have

With all of the feedback flowing between you and your employees, it’s important to create a safe space where your employees are comfortable voicing any concerns or worries they may have related to their work. This could include concerns about meeting their goals, feeling unprepared to conduct certain types of therapy sessions or any other issues they may be dealing with. 

If an employee has a concern but is too shy to share it with you, this could lead to performance issues or errors that will need to be addressed. It is much better to have these issues brought to light so that they can be discussed and solved before they become a big problem.

5. A chance for employees to provide suggestions for improvement

Counselling supervision is a two-way street, which means both you and your employees will be giving and receiving feedback. This makes it a perfect opportunity for your employees to provide suggestions for improvement for your organisation, such as suggesting that you offer workshops for new employees or that you extend therapy hours during certain times of the week. If you are open to receiving your employees’ suggestions, you are more likely to create a culture of collaboration and problem solving, which will help you improve your organisation as a whole.

Counselling supervision is a great way to help employees grow and excel in their jobs, as well as offer valuable feedback for future improvement. It is important to remember that when conducting supervision, you are there to help them improve their work, as well as their lives outside of work. 

While it is important to set expectations and hold employees accountable for their goals, you should also be open to receiving suggestions and feedback from your staff members.