By Joanne Forbes, PhD, CPRP, Author, Consultant, Founding Board Member Baltic Street Wellness Solutions

Developing a written job description is an important part of the process of hiring or promoting a person who will be a “peer-informed” supervisor. Frequently, there is not a clear job description for supervisors because there is a flawed assumption that supervision entails overseeing a job with which they are already familiar by having practiced it. 

If you do not have someone with experience in delivering peer support services to offer supervision, additional preparation may be required for working with this unique workforce that can benefit from a clarifying job description. 

Here are some questions to think about when identifying the supervisor’s role in your agency.

1. Is there an understanding of the overall role of a peer specialist/advocate (PS/A)? If not, some steps you can take are to:

• Download and review the National Practice Guidelines for Peer Specialists and Supervisors (https://www.peersupportworks.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/National-Practice-Guidelines-for-Peer-Specialists-and-Supervisors-1.pdf). 
• Watch recordings of the PeerTAC Supervision Summit, Supervision Learning Network, and other PeerTAC resources on supervision.
• Consult with an experienced PS/A as you develop a job description for the supervisor in supporting the PS/A in their role.
  

2. How should a PS/A supervisor be identified?

• Request for a volunteer?
• Assigned?
• Through a job posting?
• By contracting with a peer-run or family-run organization?

Because the role of a PS/A may be relatively new to your organization, the PS/A supervisor ideally should be a more experienced PS/A. This can be accomplished by hiring an experienced PS/A/ or by contracting with a local peer-run or family-run organization. 

Regardless of how the supervisor is identified, they will benefit from having a clear job description of the qualifications and responsibilities for supervising PS/A. 

Supervisor Job Responsibilities

The overall purpose of supervision is to accomplish an organization’s objectives by supervising staff and organizing and monitoring work processes. When the work is specific to PS/A this may include things like reviewing organization-specific policies to ensure they promote recovery and apply for a non-clinical workforce, or training clinical staff on the functions of the PS/A, or managing boundary differences as they pertain to peer support services.

Five Critical Functions of Supervision

It can be helpful to use the Five Critical Functions of Supervision model by Dr. Jonathan Edwards to identify core skills and competencies required for offering peer-informed supervision. Understanding these essential skills and tasks can be an especially helpful tool when developing a job description for supervisors of PS/A.

Developing a PS/A Supervisor Job Description

The supervisor works collaboratively with PS/A while they perform the tasks of peer work. These supervision tasks may include feedback on recovery-oriented peer services, skill-building, ethical problem solving, optimizing professional growth, and performing administrative duties such as teaching or monitoring the PS/A in writing peer support documentation. Using the Five Critical Functions, the tasks of the supervisor can be further categorized and defined as: 

• Administrative supervision tasks, which focus on the effective implementation of the agency’s policies and procedures and the management of the peer worker’s work performance. Tasks include overseeing quality of work; work load; liaison to operations – payroll, human resources; using program resources, including time, effectively; conformance or fidelity to the service model; and documentation or record keeping 
• Supportive supervision tasks, which focus on the person’s morale and job satisfaction. Tasks include feedback on work; discuss personal reactions to the work; validate and provide encouragement; promote self- care practices; advocate for peer support roles
• Educative supervision tasks, which focus on sharing perspectives and learning from one another that may include educating other team members about the role of the PS/A and educating the participants/family members on the role of PS/A. The Educative function also includes the professional development of the worker through training, modeling, and structuring learning experiences. In this area, it is important for the supervisor to take time and space to reflect on peer practice; focus on knowledge, skills, and attitudes; provide (or contract out for) individualized training and support; provide opportunities for the peer worker’s to connect with other peer workers for professional development. 
• Advocative (Advocacy) supervision tasks, which focus on steps that realize the vision for including peer support into organizational service delivery that are best led by example. Tasks may include training the interdisciplinary team; call out stigma/microaggressions; combating isolation-champion for more PS/A staff; champion for career ladders; attendance at conferences and peer networking
• Evaluative supervision tasks, which focus on the creation of mutual feedback loops that determine progress towards self-identified organizational and professional goals. Tasks may include mastering strengths-based focus and language; co-reflection-how are we doing; identifying strategies for professional and organizational changes required for full implementation of PS/A services.

[Work Hours & Benefits] Now that supervisors know what’s required of them, here is where you may want to include details about your working hours and benefits. 

[Call to Action] The best performing PS/A supervisor job descriptions also include a strong call to action, giving potential applicants specific details on exactly how to apply. Provide PS/A supervisors with contact information for your human resources manager, advise them regarding required supporting documents, etc.

Note: Dr. Forbes has authored a newly released workbook for PeerTAC titled, The Supervision of Peer Support Specialists.