A painting supervisor supervises the painting of a customer’s home or business painting crews. The typical painting supervisor may oversee both crews, which are usually divided into two areas: interior and exterior. A painting supervisor’s responsibilities include ensuring that the paint is properly mixed and applied, as well as inspecting all masking areas to ensure that no areas are left unprotected. Many supervisors are also seasoned painters who have worked their way up through the ranks of the company.
Painting is usually one of the last steps in any room or building renovation or new construction project. While paint can hide or cover mistakes made in other steps, mistakes made during the painting step are difficult to conceal. The painting supervisor supervises the painting process to ensure that it is completed correctly and quickly. The supervisor ensures that the paint is thick enough to properly cover the walls testing both the mixed paint and the walls. The painting supervisor also looks for splatter and drips, and directs the crew to any areas that need to be repaired or repainted.
The painting supervisor’s job on exterior painting jobs is to make sure that all outside bushes, shrubs, and flowerbeds are properly protected from dripping or splattering paint. Similarly, sidewalks, driveways, and porch steps are covered to prevent paint from leaking onto the hard surfaces. If a painting crew runs into a problem or receives a question from a customer, the crew will usually direct the questioner to the painting supervisor. This is also true when a customer requests a touch-up or repaint of a particular area. Customer warranty issues are also forwarded to the supervisor, who is usually better prepared to provide sound advice.
A paint crew may occasionally require additional paint or supplies while on the job, and instead of having the crew pull off the job to resupply itself, the supervisor will typically deliver the goods to the crew. If a minor touch-up is required, a supervisor may transport a crew to a different job site or a member of a crew to a different job site. The supervisor of a painting crew is usually the last worker to inspect a painting job after it is completed in order to approve the work and sign the job bill. If any irregularities are discovered, the supervisor will determine the best course of action for resolving the problem and assign a crew to do so.