Shortly after I first came to work at the University of Iowa, it became clear that this place offered something special. I had just finished a master’s degree at Minnesota State University in Mankato, but I missed my home state of Iowa. I was excited to find work as a hall director for Burge and Daum residence halls.
Even though I was a young professional, my supervisors and directors gave me a chance to take initiative and grow. I was supported in pursuing my dreams, and in time I found many opportunities to develop and advance my career.
One such opportunity led me from the residence halls to the Department of Physics and Astronomy. As departmental administrator, I was excited to support the work of researchers and staff who, among other things, studied the building blocks of matter and helped build spacecraft for NASA. This work led me to an opportunity to join the Office of the Vice President for Research and Economic Development (OVPRED).
My time in OVPRED was a defining period in my life. My colleagues supported my interest in joining Staff Council, and I was eventually elected president. I was humbled and honored to work with a group of motivated, compassionate staff. In addition, I met and worked with campus leaders in an experience that connected me with the people and opportunities that have shaped my career since.
I’m happy to discover that I’m not alone in thinking this university is special. University Human Resources (UHR) recently asked staff what they like about working here. Among the top responses was an appreciation for working with others who are committed to our world-class education, health care, and research.
“Hawkeye family is a real thing,” one staff member said. “We are all pushing for a bigger goal, even if we don’t do anything directly related to it.”
Staff also demonstrated appreciation for the diversity of people in our community, their friendliness, their willingness to work together, and the vital, safe city in which we live.
“Residing and living in a college town such as Iowa City and the surrounding area is invigorating,” said a staff member. “There is always something going on and there are always new people to meet and new experiences to be had.”
Finally, our research showed that staff greatly appreciate opportunities to find their passion and follow their interests, just like I did. From housing students to healing patients to studying the technology that will change the world, staff said they are grateful for opportunities to take on new challenges and learn new skills.
“There is a playground of things you can do that meet your needs in different periods of life,” said another staff member. “You can be intellectually curious at different points in life, and there is a different puzzle from the university every day.”
This is what UHR means when we talk about engaging talent and improving the employee experience. We want all our employees to feel welcomed and supported. We want to connect people with what will help them advance and improve. If we do this, the university will continue to benefit and we will attract others who believe in our mission.
UHR continuously works to achieve this goal. Making UHR a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive organization, for example, has been a primary focus woven into all our programs. We are glad to support the Excellence through Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Action Plan and we recognize the importance of our partnership in fulfilling its objectives.
To help colleges and service units understand the experience of their employees, we ask everyone on campus to assess their work cultures in the Working@Iowa survey. We recently added new questions and analysis about engagement that is helping leadership zero in on areas for improvement.
Feedback from these survey’s has contributed to the creation of Supervisor Training@Iowa, an initiative we are preparing to launch in 2020. Supervisors shape the daily experience for thousands of employees across campus. They are in a position to encourage, develop, and inspire the individuals they lead. Over the next year, supervisors will receive training to strengthen their skills, change the experiences of employees, and work to improve departmental cultures. Supervisors will gain knowledge about best practices in four key areas: equitable and inclusive team cultures, engaging employees, performance coaching, and consistent hiring, onboarding, and compensation practices.
UHR believes this investment in our faculty and staff will result in employees who are more engaged in their work, supervisors who can better tackle challenges, and a campus culture that draws more people to our community. It’s important to remember that being a part of the UI community is about more than compensation and benefits. It’s about helping sustain and grow the things that make this place special.
Thirty years after starting at the UI, I still find daily opportunities to grow and follow my dreams. Those opportunities led me from supporting student success to enabling faculty research and discovery to working for the success of all employees. Not only have I built a life in Iowa City, I know that every day I get to come to work and support the great talent that makes up our community. The UI isn’t just a great place to work—I know that what I do makes a difference in people’s lives.