Managing Up: A Guide to Cultivating an Effective Relationship with Your Supervisor

The employee-supervisor dynamic is inherently difficult to navigate due to the power differential. When this relationship is challenging, employees may be at risk for reduced effectiveness and performance. A poor relationship can even impact your health and well-being.

This webinar offers concrete actions and insights to positively influence your relationship with your supervisor. This proactive, empowering approach is not manipulation or sycophancy. Instead, this presentation provides perspective and tips about how to handle persistent supervisor-employee pain points that get in the way of you doing your best work. You will learn essential skills to build trust, including how to align your goals with your boss’s strategic priorities. Discover how to communicate effectively by tailoring your style to their preferences. We will also discuss how to disagree strategically by looking at the risk of not saying something when you have a different idea. By learning these necessary skills, you can unlock practical strategies for fostering a productive, respectful, and effective relationship with your supervisor.

Sonya Schryer Norris
Sonya Schryer Norris is a third-generation Michigan library worker. She has over 26 years of experience in libraries, including 16 years as a Consultant in Library Development for the Library of Michigan. Since founding Plum Librarian LLC in 2020, she has served as a consultant and trainer to 12 state libraries. She’s also worked as the Niche Academy administrator for seven states including the Library of Virginia, California Libraries Learn (CALL) and the Washington State Library.

Sonya has created 35+ courses on Niche Academy that have been adopted in all 50 states and internationally. Her timely Burnout in Public Libraries series became the Library of Virginia’s top tutorial in 2025. For 22 years, Sonya’s articles have appeared in Library Journal, Computers in Libraries, and for Cengage. She presents regularly for organizations including Library 2.0, PCI Webinars, the Southeast Collaborative Online Conference, the Public Library Association and state library agencies. Her current topics include intellectual freedom, cultivating effective relationships with supervisors, burnout, moral panics and reading materials, and eAccessibility training.