Category: recruitment and retention

  • Finding Shared Purpose at the 2024 Annual Conference

    Finding Shared Purpose at the 2024 Annual Conference

    by Julie Burrell | October 9, 2024

    At the CUPA-HR Annual Conference and Expo 2024, the three keynote sessions offered insights on how higher ed can articulate its value proposition for employees. How can HR, campus leaders and other culture architects ensure their institutions are places where candidates want to work and where employees want to stay? And how can we bridge the cultural, political and intergenerational divides so many of us are experiencing on campus to help our communities thrive?

    There isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution to these challenges, but the keynote speakers reminded higher ed HR pros not to underestimate the value of a shared purpose. Here are a few of their insights into remaking workplace culture through deliberate community-building, connecting through traditions and reinforcing our collective values.

    Fighting Burnout and Finding Community

    Workplace culture strategist Jennifer Moss opened the conference in Orlando with a reminder that, while it’s been many years since the COVID-19 pandemic, its lessons still linger. During that time, many of us asked, is what I’m doing important? Does it make a difference?

    For so many in higher ed, the answer is yes. But Moss also shared a hard truth: the passion that leads people to work in higher ed may lead to burnout or passion fatigue. The solutions offered for burnout are often focused on the individual (“take a bath” or “meditate”), when they need to be systemic and even societal. Burnout isn’t about having a bad day — it’s chronic stress, classified as a disease by the World Health Organization. A strange irony is that burnout from overperforming at work often looks like underperformance (exhaustion, disengagement and cynicism).

    One solution that Moss proposed is to encourage employees to deliberately build stronger community and positive social connections, both essential to building bridges and combatting loneliness. According to the data Moss shared, eating just one lunch per week with coworkers, rather than alone at a desk, can aid employee happiness and performance. So can spreading positive gossip (saying nice things about others behind their backs), which subconsciously supports psychological safety.

    Takeaway: It’s key that workplaces tie efforts to reduce employee burnout to specific objectives and key results so that individuals aren’t responsible for solving the crisis on their own.

    Great Storytelling for a Shared Purpose

    Annual conference attendees experienced the magic of Disney firsthand during the closing night EPCOT excursion. But what makes Disney so magical? According to keynote speakers Jeff Williford and Jay Pyka of the Disney Institute, it’s all in the details. Disney excels in the finer points, with each park and resort providing a unique and immersive experience, from what music guests hear, to what smells are piped in, to the thatched roofs in Animal Kingdom made by South African artisans.

    How does Disney engage over 70,000 employees — aka, cast members — to ensure that the details are done right? While cast members’ jobs may be different, from serving food at EPCOT to directing riders on Space Mountain, they all share in one common goal: creating happiness. In their talk, Williford and Pyka emphasized that culture is defined by how people behave, and training is critical to achieving desired behaviors. Caring and communication are also vital elements of culture. The extent to which organizations genuinely care for their people is the extent to which those people will, in turn, care for customers and each other. And high-quality communication can reinforce culture as much as lack of communication will undermine it.

    Disney uses their expertise in storytelling to train and unite cast members in the common goal of creating happiness and embracing Disney culture. In fact, the first class new employees attend as part of their onboarding is one on Disney traditions because it helps them connect with the history and culture.

    Takeaway: Higher ed workplaces can create a powerful connection between employees and the institution’s mission, fostering a sense of belonging and commitment.

    Gen Z and the Future of Work

    In her closing keynote, Heather McGowan, a future-of-work expert, offered a hopeful vision of work — and of a society where more of us are united than divided. But she also admitted that “it’s difficult to be a human right now.” There’s a profound lack of connection among people, an uptick in loneliness and disconnection, and social divisions stemming from the pandemic, politics and social media.

    Why? One reason is that work has replaced what people once found in community, whether through church or bowling leagues or book clubs. McGowan said that’s why current and future generations entering the workforce seek jobs that reflect the totality of their values and personality.

    Gen Z is especially known for seeking greater meaning in work. They desire mentorship, they want to be part of something bigger than themselves (meaning), and they want to live their values through work (mission). They’re rejecting the work contract of previous generations, which promised job security in exchange for employee loyalty. Why, McGowan asked, are workplaces still demanding loyalty without offering the same security they did in previous generations?

    In asking for work to be meaningful, Gen Z is sending a critical lesson for the future of work, McGowan believes, one that workplaces need to take seriously to recruit new employees and retain existing ones. The data show that what employees want most in a job is growth, autonomy, achievement and respect.

    Takeaway: The future of work might just be in listening to what Gen Z is trying to convey: We all need a shared purpose and meaning in work.  

    Looking for More on Work Culture?

    Jennifer Moss’s new book, Why Are We Here?: Creating a Work Culture Everyone Wants, will be published in January. You can also check out these CUPA-HR articles and resources:



    Source link

  • Living Our Values: Courage, Care and Calling at CUPA-HR’s Spring Conference – CUPA-HR

    Living Our Values: Courage, Care and Calling at CUPA-HR’s Spring Conference – CUPA-HR

    by Julie Burrell | May 2, 2024

    “Wherever we go, we are CUPA-HR.” That’s what CUPA-HR President Andy Brantley reminded members at the recent Spring Conference in Minneapolis. Though institutions differ in mission and scope and despite daily crises that threaten to divert attention from long-term goals, CUPA-HR members live their values every day.

    The keynote speakers struck a similar theme, encouraging attendees to align their internal values with work, tapping into courage, care and a sense of calling.

    The Courage to Embrace Failure

    In her opening keynote, Kris McGuigan, an author, executive coach and corporate trainer, emphasized the power of authenticity in helping to overcome fear. At some point in our lives, we have all allowed our fears — including of failure, inadequacy and uncertainty — to dictate our future. “How often do we identify that a path is not serving us, but we stay the course, we cling to the status quo?” But clinging to the status quo out of fear can lead to apathy and disengagement. This lack of motivation and confidence can be tied to the engagement crisis at work.

    Facing Down Fear of Failure

    McGuigan believes courageously embracing failure can help move employees past apathy and disengagement. One way to start embracing failure is by taking a cue from tech. In their relentless testing and pushing out new releases, tech adopts a model of “perpetual beta.” This allows for constant innovation, with failure built into the model. If something doesn’t work, it’s scrapped and fixed — think of your smart phone’s frequent software updates. McGuigan asked, how can higher ed leaders bring this model of embracing failure to their teams?

    Takeaway: Having the courage to embrace failure can increase engagement and satisfaction and decrease apathy and disengagement.

    Creating a Caring Campus

    In his keynote, Dr. Kevin R. McClure, Murphy distinguished scholar of education and associate professor of higher education at the University of North Carolina Wilmington, drew from his forthcoming book, The Caring University, for which he interviewed staff, faculty and administrators. What he found will likely sound familiar. Higher ed employees were working tirelessly and generously, and frequently sacrificed their physical and mental health for their jobs. Consistent with CUPA-HR’s findings, McClure cited higher ed employees’ primary concerns as overwork, inadequate compensation, lack of recognition for their contributions, and lack of career pathways, among others.

    The Work “Just Kept Coming”

    McClure interviewed one higher ed staff member who said the work “just kept coming.” Her campus leaders talked about care, but there was no structural change to her workload, so she started looking for a new job. Many of his interviewees felt they were required to be superhuman — a worker without a body or personal life — who “exists only for the job.”

    Structural changes are needed in policies and procedures, he emphasized. What happens when practices like service awards and merit pay reward only ideal workers and not real people, or when leave policies don’t account for people’s caregiving or health needs? Employees will disengage and look for jobs elsewhere. HR has a crucial role to play in transforming the workforce, he says, and institutions need to empower HR as experts.

    Takeaway: Structural change is urgently needed to transform higher education into a workplace that values the well-being of its employees.

    Living your Calling Through Job Crafting

    In the closing keynote, Dr. Amy Wrzesniewski shared insights into what makes work meaningful for the individual. In her research, Wrzesniewski, who is William and Jacalyn Egan professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, identifies three main ways people understand their work: as a job, career or calling.

    Out of these, it is people who see their work as a calling who are more satisfied with the work and with their lives, tending to be absent less and engaged more. So how do people come to treat their work as a calling? That’s where “job crafting” comes in.

    Finding Purpose in Work

    Wrzesniewski interviewed members of a cleaning crew in a university hospital. This work is often stigmatized as non-meaningful, but employees who found a calling in the work were engaged in job crafting, often doing a different job than their job description, while still completing their required duties. For example, one cleaning crew member said that she tailored the cleaning schedule around patients who might be sensitive to the smell of cleaning chemicals. She made a tangible difference in the lives of others, even though she risked getting written up for doing so.

    Wrzesniewski argues job crafting has several benefits. It can increase satisfaction and commitment to the job, intensify happiness at work, boost job mobility, and even maintain or increase performance.

    Takeaway: Job crafting — the practice of living out your values by making work your own — can help make a work a calling, not just a job.



    Source link

  • CUPA-HR’s Equal Pay Day Data for Higher Education: Women in Higher Ed Are Paid Just 82 Cents on the Dollar, Most Women of Color Are Paid Even Less – CUPA-HR

    CUPA-HR’s Equal Pay Day Data for Higher Education: Women in Higher Ed Are Paid Just 82 Cents on the Dollar, Most Women of Color Are Paid Even Less – CUPA-HR

    by Julie Burrell | March 12, 2024

    Since 1996, the National Committee on Pay Equity has acknowledged Equal Pay Day to bring awareness to the gap between men’s and women’s wages. This year, Equal Pay Day is March 12 — symbolizing how far into the year women must work to be paid what men were paid in the previous year.

    To help higher ed leaders understand, communicate and address gender pay equity in higher education, CUPA-HR has analyzed its annual workforce data to establish Higher Education Equal Pay Days for 2024. Tailored to the higher ed workforce, these dates observe the gender pay gap by marking how long into 2024 women in higher ed must work to make what White men earned the previous year.

    Higher Education Equal Pay Day fell on March 5, 2024, for women overall, which means that women employees in higher education worked for more than two months into this year to gain parity with their White male colleagues. Women in the higher ed workforce make on average just 82 cents for every dollar a White male employed in higher ed makes.

    Highlighting some positive momentum during this Women’s History Month, some groups of women are closer to gaining pay equity. Asian American women in higher ed worked two weeks into this year to achieve parity on January 14 — not ideal, but by no means insignificant. In fact, during the academic year 2022-23, Asian American women administrators in particular saw better pay equity than most other groups, according to CUPA-HR’s analysis.

    But the gender pay gap remains for most women, and particularly for women of color. Here’s the breakdown of the gender pay gap in the higher ed workforce, and the Higher Education Equal Pay Day for each group.* These dates remind us of the work we have ahead.

    • March 5 — Women in Higher Education Equal Pay Day. On average, women employees in higher education are paid 82 cents on the dollar.
    • January 14 — Asian Women in Higher Education Equal Pay Day. Asian women in higher ed are paid 96 cents on the dollar.
    • March 1 — White Women in Higher Education Equal Pay Day. White women in higher ed are paid 83 cents on the dollar.
    • March 12 — Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander Women in Higher Education Equal Pay Day. Native of Hawaii or Pacific Islander women in higher ed are paid 80 cents on the dollar.
    • March 28 — Black Women in Higher Education Equal Pay Day. Black women in higher ed are paid 76 cents on the dollar.
    • April 12 — Hispanic/Latina Women in Higher Education Equal Pay Day. Hispanic/Latina women in higher ed are paid 72 cents on the dollar.
    • April 22 — Native American/Alaska Native Women in Higher Education Equal Pay Day. Native American/Alaska Native women are paid just 69 cents on the dollar.

    CUPA-HR research shows that pay disparities exist across employment sectors in higher ed — administrators, faculty, professionals and staff — even as the representation of women and people of color has steadily increased. But with voluntary turnover rising, not addressing pay disparities could be costly.

    CUPA-HR Resources for Higher Education Equal Pay Days

    As we observe Women’s History Month and Higher Education Equal Pay Days for women, we’re reminded that the fight for equal pay is far from over. But data-driven analysis with the assistance of CUPA-HR research can empower your fight for a more equitable future.

    See our interactive graphics that track gender and racial composition, as well as pay, of administrative, faculty, professional, and staff roles, collected from CUPA-HR’s signature surveys:

    *Data Source: 2023-24 CUPA-HR Administrators, Faculty, Professionals, and Staff in Higher Education Surveys. Drawn from 633,020 men and women for whom race/ethnicity was known.



    Source link

  • At Hudson County Community College, Inclusion Drives Recruitment and Retention – CUPA-HR

    At Hudson County Community College, Inclusion Drives Recruitment and Retention – CUPA-HR

    by Julie Burrell | February 27, 2024

    The motto at Hudson County Community College is “Hudson is Home,” a saying created by their students that reflects HCCC’s commitment to community across their three New Jersey campuses. Located in one of the densest and most ethnically diverse counties in the country, HCCC uses inclusive strategies to boost employee recruitment and retention.

    HCCC’s focus on promoting a culture of care and belonging positions them well to contend with voluntary turnover, which remains on the rise nationally as higher ed employees report feeling overworked and undervalued. HCCC’s inclusion and belonging initiatives, including their new peer-to-peer recognition program, address the top three predictors that employees will seek work elsewhere: recognition for contributions, being valued at work, and having a sense of belonging.

    In their recent CUPA-HR webinar, HCCC’s Anna Krupitskiy, vice president for human resources, and Stephanie Sergeant, assistant director of human resources, explained how they use inclusive strategies to engage their approximately 1,000 employees, including:

    Prioritizing a Culture of Care

    Addressing the needs of parents is one way HCCC creates a culture of care through inclusion. In the past, parents who were employees or students were confronted with unclear and inconsistent guidelines. But the institution’s new parent-friendly children on campus policy makes it clear that children are welcome on HCCC’s three campuses. With the new policy, Krupitskiy says, “we wanted to make sure that there’s a strong message that we do allow children on campus.” HR has also collaborated with campus partners on their Take Your Child to Work Day program, where children of employees engage in a range of campus activities, like participating in science projects or watching a nursing demonstration, before ending the day with an ice cream social.

    Using Checkpoints During Recruitment to Ensure Inclusive Hiring

    HCCC has created checkpoints to ensure there are meaningful milestones to reflect on inclusion during the recruitment and selection process. The first checkpoint is the composition of the hiring committee itself. Krupitskiy and Sergeant stress that screening committees should be representative of HCCC, not just in terms of demographics, but also such characteristics as how long a person has been employed at HCCC, what role or level of position they hold, what union affiliation they have, etc. They’ve also invited students to participate in searches when appropriate.

    Job descriptions are another area they’ve scrutinized, asking if certain minimum qualifications inherently limit a pool of applicants. Might a minimum qualification, like years of experience, be listed as a preferred qualification instead?

    Implementing a Peer-to-Peer Recognition Program  

    Recognizing employee contributions is a critical retention tool. Only 59% of higher ed employees say they receive regular verbal recognition for doing good work, according to CUPA-HR data. To address recognition, HCCC holds a years-of-service event, with awards for five to 40-plus years of service for both part-time and full-time employees. Their new Hudson is Home employee recognition program allows colleagues to nominate each other for awards ranging from Collaboration and Team Achievement to a Part-Time Spotlight award. Employees receive an email notification when they’ve been nominated, which has driven up participation overall.

    To learn more about the programs and initiatives at HCCC — including working to close pay equity gaps and establishing professional development funds — view the recording of Retention Strategies for an Inclusive and Engaged Workforce. For data on higher ed retention challenges and recommendations, see The CUPA-HR 2023 Higher Education Employee Retention Survey.



    Source link

  • Ten Higher Ed HR Stories That Defined 2023 – CUPA-HR

    Ten Higher Ed HR Stories That Defined 2023 – CUPA-HR

    by Julie Burrell | January 17, 2024

    Last year brought major changes to the higher education landscape. Turnover reached a peak, prompting more attention than ever to retention and recruitment, while looming policy changes in overtime pay and Title IX regulations further complicated long-term planning. And, though it may feel like unprecedented change is the new normal, timeless HR topics like onboarding and compensation strategy also captured readers’ attention in 2023.

    We’ve rounded up the CUPA-HR articles, resources and research that defined 2023 and will continue to shape your 2024. These are the most-viewed stories on our website as well as some resources you may have missed.

    Top Stories

    CUPA-HR members were understandably concerned about the impact of two issues — the retention crisis and the potential shake-up to overtime pay rules — on their campuses.

    1. The Higher Ed Employee Retention Crisis — And What to Do About It

    Key Takeaway: Turnover in higher ed reached a peak last year — the highest level since we started tracking it in 2017 — so it’s no surprise that talent management and recruitment was top of mind. This article marshals a wealth of insights from our members and the CUPA-HR research team to aid HR pros, including a blueprint for employee recognition, as well as strategies for rethinking compensation and flexible work.

    1. The CUPA-HR 2023 Higher Education Employee Retention Survey

    Key Takeaway: The data provided here help explain the record-high turnover. The report also digs into the factors that most impact retention, offering a model for understanding higher ed retention. Analyzing data from 4,782 higher ed employees — administrators, professionals and non-exempt staff, with faculty excluded — from 529 institutions, the survey found that more than half (56%) of employees are at least somewhat likely to search for a new job in the coming year. (Looking for an overview of report findings? Check out our press release.)

    1. Overtime and Title IX Final Rules Targeted for Early 2024 Release in Fall Regulatory Agenda

    Key Takeaway: Last year, the Department of Labor announced that they would target April 2024 for the release of a final rule to update the Fair Labor Standards Act’s overtime pay regulations. The rule seeks to substantially increase the minimum salary threshold required for white-collar professionals to maintain exempt status. To stay abreast of any updates, don’t forget to register for our Washington Update webinars and visit our FLSA overtime resources page.

    Relationships and Well-Being

    The demands on HR pros are at an all-time high. Last year, our members sought ways to care for themselves, their team and their campuses. Two of the most popular resources of 2023 addressed mental health and resolving interpersonal conflict.

    1. Managing Stress and Self-Care: “No” Is a Complete Sentence

    Key Takeaway: In this highly rated recorded webinar, Jennifer Parker, professional development and training manager of the Colorado Community College system, gives practical tools for minimizing stress and leads participants in creating a self-care plan.

    1. Ushering in the New Wave of Conflict Resolution: Tulane University’s Restorative Approach

    Key Takeaway: Learn how Tulane University’s Office of Human Resources and Institutional Equity launched a conflict resolution program, all while successfully managing the pivot to virtual offerings during the pandemic. One of the few university programs in the country to provide a restorative approach, Tulane’s program is a roadmap for fostering and maintaining campus relationships.

    Retention and Recruitment

    Our members offered real-world case studies of talent management and attraction in these feature articles in Higher Ed HR Magazine. They provide success stories and practical tips you can tailor to fit your needs.

    1. Modernizing Workplace Culture and the Employee Experience — Strategies for HR

    Key Takeaway: Workplace culture encompasses so much that it’s tricky to pin down. Jacob Lathrop, consultant to the vice president/CHRO at Michigan State University, defines workplace culture as the feeling employees are left with when they leave work. It’s how they describe their days to family or friends. Old ways of doing things may be harmful to employees’ well-being, while modernizing workplace culture might mean retaining and attracting talent. Lathrop’s tips include embracing flexibility and autonomy, evolving your paid-leave policies, and updating career exploration programs, among others.

    1. A Tale of Two Onboarding Programs: North Carolina State University and
    2. A Tale of Two Onboarding Programs: The University Of St. Francis

    Key Takeaway: A perennially popular topic, onboarding can look very different depending on the institution. In the first article, North Carolina State University’s onboarding manager Amy Grubbs tells the story of their efforts to create consistent new-hire experiences, get supervisors involved in the onboarding process, and bring a full-service Onboarding Center to life through strategic campus partnerships. (Check out Amy’s webinar too, which provides even more information on the Onboarding Center and strategic partnerships.) With more limited resources, Carol Sheetz, formerly of the small, private University of St. Francis, shares her solo effort to build USF’s onboarding program from scratch. This article contains her top tips and resources for other HR pros in the same situation.

    1. Investing in Employees During an Economic Downturn: How We Implemented Our Living Wage Strategy

    Key Takeaway: A decade ago, the Maricopa County Community College District committed to a $30,000 livable wage for its full-time employees, but employees found it challenging to keep up with inflationary pressures and the COVID-related economic downturn. Maricopa responded by raising the livable wage by 15.5 percent, from $14.42 to $16.65. This article explains how HR managed to implement this raise, while preventing additional pay compression and reduced employee morale. (The second phase of MCCCD’s plan, focusing on progressive pay practices, internal pay equity and market alignment, is explored here.)

    1. Recalibrating Employee Recognition in Higher Education

    Key Takeaway: “Most of us continue churning out the same recognition programs — many decades old — often without questioning their value, validating their impact or reviewing for bias,” says author Sharri Margraves, the executive director of organization and professional development for Michigan State University’s human resources. She surveyed 65 higher education institutions to find out how they formally and informally recognize employees. This article not only presents these findings, but also suggests ways to redesign your own recognition program, including a self-audit tool to assess your strengths and weaknesses.



    Source link

  • Three Questions to Help You Build a Better Workplace Culture — Annual Conference Takeaways – CUPA-HR

    Three Questions to Help You Build a Better Workplace Culture — Annual Conference Takeaways – CUPA-HR

    by CUPA-HR | October 18, 2023

    Culture was at the heart of the three keynote events at CUPA-HR’s 2023 national conference, which took place recently in New Orleans. Our keynote speakers asked thought-provoking questions that resonate with higher ed HR’s mission. Engaging with these questions can help you boost employee engagement, promote a culture of inclusivity and strengthen collaboration with your campus colleagues.

    1. Are You Creating an Ecosystem of Opportunity?

    Organizations with strong learning cultures tend to have significantly higher retention rates.

    In her keynote presentation on employee retention, business strategist and author Erica Keswin pointed out that the days of climbing the same corporate ladder for 50 years are long gone. Organizations are flatter, which means you need to get creative to give people opportunities to move not only up, but sideways, helping them gain new skills and find new pathways for their careers. Instead of thinking “ladders,” Keswin said, think “lilypads.”

    She also encouraged attendees to talk about employee learning opportunities early and often, beginning with their onboarding programs! Managers should be talking regularly with employees about what skills they want to learn and giving them the opportunity to learn with no strings attached.

    The mission, values and priorities of higher education have learning at their core, and that culture of learning is a value proposition higher ed is uniquely positioned to provide as an employer. Make it work to your advantage by prioritizing learning and opportunity for all employees.

    Another key takeaway from Keswin’s presentation was the importance of being a “human professional” and checking in with your team on a regular basis. She shared the story of a company that starts team meetings with a quick check-in called “Pick Your Nic.” Referring to a popular meme of Nicolas Cage images representing different feelings (happy, relaxed, excited, focused, stressed, meh, etc.), each person picks the Nic that represents how they’re feeling that day. The goal isn’t to address the responses in the meeting, but rather to give the team leader the opportunity to take a pulse and to give team members the opportunity to be seen and heard.

    You’ll find more retention strategies in Keswin’s new book, The Retention Revolution: 7 Surprising (and Very Human!) Ways to Keep Employees Connected to Your Company. And be sure to check out the article “The Higher Ed Employee Retention Crisis — and What to Do About It” in the fall issue of Higher Ed HR Magazine.

    2. Are You Treating Diversity as a Problem to Be Managed or a Value to Be Cherished?

    When it comes to creating and sustaining a more inclusive culture, Princeton professor and religion scholar Dr. Eddie S. Glaude Jr. prompted attendees to consider a question: Do you view diversity as a problem to be managed or a value to be cherished?

    Through a problem-solving lens, we might see diversity as a series of goals to be met and obstacles to be overcome. Through the lens of a cherished value, on the other hand, we are more likely to see every situation as an opportunity to expand and celebrate diversity of people and ideas. A problem-solving lens divides “us” from “others,” while a value-based lens sees diversity as constitutive of who we are, as a people, a country and an institution. Instead of envisioning inclusion as something undertaken in response to a mandate or in compliance with a law, what if diversity was seen as key metric of an institution’s success?

    The data support the positive impact of diversity on metrics like productivity and creativity in the workplace, and Glaude urged higher education to also view diversity as an integral part of its core identity and a reflection of its regional or national reach.

    To see how your institution compares to others when it comes to composition of your workforce and pay equity for employees, see the results of CUPA-HR’s signature surveys.

    3. Are You Ramping Up Retention Efforts in Your Most Vulnerable Departments?

    Retention and recruitment were on everyone’s mind at CUPA-HR’s annual conference. The closing panel discussion brought together leaders in student affairs, campus facilities and IT and provided insights on how HR can partner with these campus constituencies to support a culture of belonging. Here are a few of their recommendations:

    Provide training opportunities.

    John O’Brien, president of EDUCAUSE, which represents IT professionals in higher ed, stressed the importance of career pathways to support employees’ desire to grow in their careers.

    Noting that “supervisors will make or break us,” Lander Medlin, president and CEO of APPA, which serves the needs of facilities professionals, stressed the critical role that supervisor training has on retention and workplace culture in facilities, where the aging of the skilled craft workforce has posed unique recruitment and retention challenges, and all areas.

    Ensure employees feel they belong and are valued.

    No matter their role on campus, employees want their opinions to be heard and valued.

    Kevin Kruger, president of NASPA, the association for student affairs administrators in higher education, noted that millennial and Generation Z employees especially want to feel cared about at work and to believe their opinions matter. Today, as all student affairs professionals find themselves on the front lines of the mental health crisis, they need supervisors who have the skills to meet them where they are and to create a culture of belonging.

    Medlin seconded the importance of feeling heard when it comes to job satisfaction. She would ask supervisors this question: Are you a coach and mentor, or are you a boss?

    Offer job flexibility.

    Some campus jobs don’t easily lend themselves to remote work, but that doesn’t mean institutions can’t build in flexibility, which CUPA-HR found is a key retention factor.

    For example, facilities employees might take advantage of a compressed workweek, with employees having the option to work four 10-hour shifts.

    Since student affairs professionals often work outside of a typical nine-to-five day, there’s room for remote work. In fact, students might prefer to meet with student affairs professionals remotely.

    If year-round remote work isn’t a possibility, seasonal flexibility might be. When students are off campus during holiday and summer break, your staff might be able to work from home.

    See employees as a strategic asset (and pay them accordingly).

    The three areas represented by the panel — IT, facilities and student affairs — are among the most vulnerable to turnover and recruitment challenges on most campuses. How can HR lead the way in creating a culture that positions these employees as strategic assets? The panel offered these suggestions, based on their unique perspectives:

    • O’Brien encouraged satisfaction surveys. Find what’s working well and replicate it.
    • Kruger recommended streamlining job searches, posting salary ranges, and focusing on internal pay equity and livable wages.
    • Medlin asked conference attendees to help us help you. How we treat people matters, and HR leads the way in building that culture of belonging.



    Source link