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Date: 05/17/2025

First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers

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. Excludes team or work leaders.

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    Work Activities

    Work Activities

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

    Skills

    • Time Management

      Managing your time and the time of other people.

    • Learning Strategies

      Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.

    • Complex Problem Solving

      Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.

    • Writing

      Writing things for co-workers or customers.

    • Active Learning

      Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.

    • Quality Control Analysis

      Testing how well a product or service works.

    • Science

      Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.

    • Social Perceptiveness

      Understanding people's reactions.

    • Equipment Selection

      Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.

    • Judgment and Decision Making

      Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.

    • Negotiation

      Bringing people together to solve differences.

    • Speaking

      Talking to others.

    • Management of Personnel Resources

      Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.

    • Repairing

      Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.

    • Programming

      Writing computer programs.

    • Systems Analysis

      Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.

    • Instructing

      Teaching people how to do something.

    • Mathematics

      Using math to solve problems.

    • Reading Comprehension

      Reading work-related information.

    • Active Listening

      Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.

    • Equipment Maintenance

      Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.

    • Operations Monitoring

      Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.

    • Persuasion

      Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.

    • Operation and Control

      Using equipment or systems.

    • Coordination

      Changing what is done based on other people's actions.

    • Troubleshooting

      Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.

    • Technology Design

      Making equipment and technology useful for customers.

    • Critical Thinking

      Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.

    • Management of Financial Resources

      Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.

    • Monitoring

      Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.

    • Service Orientation

      Looking for ways to help people.

    • Management of Material Resources

      Managing equipment and materials.

    • Installation

      Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.

    • Systems Evaluation

      Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.

    • Operations Analysis

      Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.

    WorkKeys®

    Applied Math
    5
    Workplace Documents
    4
    Graphic Literacy
    4

    Abilities

    • Number Facility

      Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.

    • Visual Color Discrimination

      Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.

    • Wrist-Finger Speed

      Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.

    • Speed of Limb Movement

      Quickly moving your arms and legs.

    • Inductive Reasoning

      Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.

    • Written Expression

      Communicating by writing.

    • Manual Dexterity

      Holding or moving items with your hands.

    • Time Sharing

      Doing two or more things at the same time.

    • Auditory Attention

      Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.

    • Gross Body Equilibrium

      Keeping your balance or staying upright.

    • Far Vision

      Seeing details that are far away.

    • Visualization

      Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.

    • Spatial Orientation

      Knowing where things are around you.

    • Extent Flexibility

      Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.

    • Peripheral Vision

      Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.

    • Perceptual Speed

      Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.

    • Trunk Strength

      Using your lower back and stomach.

    • Problem Sensitivity

      Noticing when problems happen.

    • Information Ordering

      Ordering or arranging things.

    • Oral Comprehension

      Listening and understanding what people say.

    • Dynamic Strength

      Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.

    • Near Vision

      Seeing details up close.

    • Category Flexibility

      Grouping things in different ways.

    • Multilimb Coordination

      Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.

    • Reaction Time

      Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.

    • Deductive Reasoning

      Using rules to solve problems.

    • Written Comprehension

      Reading and understanding what is written.

    • Static Strength

      Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.

    • Gross Body Coordination

      Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.

    • Hearing Sensitivity

      Telling the difference between sounds.

    • Sound Localization

      Noticing the direction that a sound came from.

    • Arm-Hand Steadiness

      Keeping your arm or hand steady.

    • Explosive Strength

      Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.

    • Fluency of Ideas

      Coming up with lots of ideas.

    • Originality

      Creating new and original ideas.

    • Flexibility of Closure

      Seeing hidden patterns.

    • Response Orientation

      Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.

    • Rate Control

      Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.

    • Dynamic Flexibility

      Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.

    • Control Precision

      Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.

    • Finger Dexterity

      Putting together small parts with your fingers.

    • Selective Attention

      Paying attention to something without being distracted.

    • Depth Perception

      Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.

    • Glare Sensitivity

      Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.

    • Speech Recognition

      Recognizing spoken words.

    • Speech Clarity

      Speaking clearly.

    • Oral Expression

      Communicating by speaking.

    • Night Vision

      Seeing at night or under low light.

    • Memorization

      Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.

    • Mathematical Reasoning

      Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.

    • Stamina

      Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.

    • Speed of Closure

      Quickly knowing what you are looking at.

    Knowledge

    • Telecommunications

      Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.

    • 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.

    • English Language

      Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.

    • Physics

      Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.

    • Sales and Marketing

      Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.

    • Mechanical

      Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.

    • Geography

      Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.

    • Transportation

      Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.

    • Sociology and Anthropology

      Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.

    • Medicine and Dentistry

      Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.

    • Mathematics

      Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.

    • Fine Arts

      Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.

    • 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.

    • Philosophy and Theology

      Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.

    • Economics and Accounting

      Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.

    • Computers and Electronics

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

    • Law and Government

      Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.

    • Education and Training

      Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

    • History and Archeology

      Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.

    • Chemistry

      Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.

    • Customer and Personal Service

      Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

    • Communications and Media

      Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.

    • Biology

      Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.

    • 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.

    • Production and Processing

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

    • Building and Construction

      Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.

    • Food Production

      Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.

    • Psychology

      Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.

    • Engineering and Technology

      Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.

    • Public Safety and Security

      Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.

    • Foreign Language

      Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.

    • Therapy and Counseling

      Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.

    • Design

      Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.

    Career Video

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    Pay

    • Ohio Annual Salary 63480/yr
    • Typical Salary
    • Ohio Hourly Wage 30.52/hr
    • Typical Hourly Wage

    Ohio Employment Trends

    • Currently Employed 32,940
    • Yearly Projected Openings 3030

    Typical Education

    Personality

    Enterprising: People interested in this work like activities that include leading, making decisions, and business.They do well at jobs that need:
    • Attention to Detail
    • Dependability
    • Leadership
    • Cooperation
    • Self Control
    • Initiative

    Tools

    • Desktop computers
    • Hard hats
    • Hazardous material protective apparel
    • Laser printers
    • Notebook computers
    • Personal computers
    • Respirators
    • Safety glasses
    • Safety shoes
    • Scanners
    • Touch screen monitors

    Technology

    • Analytical or scientific software
    • Cloud-based data access and sharing software
    • Computer aided design CAD software
    • Computer aided manufacturing CAM software
    • Data base user interface and query software
    • Electronic mail software
    • Enterprise application integration software
    • Enterprise resource planning ERP software
    • Financial analysis software
    • Human resources software
    • Industrial control software
    • Internet browser software
    • Inventory management software
    • Materials requirements planning logistics and supply chain software
    • Office suite software
    • Operating system software
    • Presentation software
    • Project management software
    • Spreadsheet software
    • Time accounting software
    • Word processing software

    Tags

    • InDemand occupations are considered a priority by the state of Ohio.

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