University Supervisors' Meeting: March 19 Resources

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Meeting Topic

Career Development as a Leader: Yourself & Your Teams

Meeting Resources

Meeting Summary

At this month's supervisors meeting, we discussed the topic of career development. The poll results from the beginning of the presentation said a lot before we even got into the content. Only 24% of supervisors said they regularly make intentional time to discuss development with their teams. Most, about 57%, said only occasionally, and 19% said rarely or almost never. No judgment there, just a good gut check on where we are and the opportunities for skill growth, and additional investment of resources.

The bulk of the conversation touched on two things that are easy to blur together: developing yourself as a leader and developing the people you lead. We looked at the Reflect, Gather, Align framework as a way to do a honest personal check-in, and spent time on the coaching versus mentoring versus supervising question that comes up constantly. Knowing which role a moment actually calls for is something most of us are still figuring out. A second poll backed that up: 18% feel confident switching between those roles, 51% feel somewhat confident, and 31% are still working on it.

The meeting wrapped with a resource share and clear next steps for supervisor. Referenced again were ‘The 9-Minute Monday’ ritual and the Eisenhower Matrix from February’s meeting. These simple tools remain some of the simplest ways to carve out the time and headspace to actually lead, not just respond.

Key takeaways

  • Most supervisors are fitting development conversations in only occasionally. Recognizing that is a starting point for doing something about it.
  • Knowing when to supervise, coach, or mentor is a skill most leaders are still building, and that is completely normal.
  • The Reflect, Gather, Align framework gives you a simple, repeatable way to stay connected to your own growth and your team's contributions.
  • Small consistent habits like 9-Minute Mondays make it easier to show up as a developer of people, not just a problem solver.
  • Career development resources are readily available;  building awareness and intention around those resources is the first step to utilizing them successfully.

Action steps

  • Try the Reflect, Gather, Align framework as a personal career check-in this week.
  • Download the Career Wins Tracking Log and set a recurring reminder to update it quarterly.
  • Pay attention to which hat you are wearing in your next team interaction and whether it fits the moment.
  • Log into your LinkedIn Learning account and browse the Career Growth & Development or Mentoring collections.
  • Sign up for an upcoming spring workshop: LinkedIn Explorers (April 6-17) or Crucial Conversations (April 27-30, register by April 20).

Next Meeting

April 23, 2026

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