Talking Stick - July/August 2018 - 34

REGROUP

Collette Jackson, talent management advisor at Berklee College of
Music in Boston, Massachusetts,
explained how she approaches search
processes involving staff of color and
ensuring fit at the institution. "For
staff of color, it has to be honest. Very
often, people of color are the only
one in their office or department, and
departments can be cliquey. The staff
of color don't feel like they are a part
of it, their failure to thrive becomes
an issue, their work starts to fall off,
and [managers] don't ask, and [the
employees] leave." She noted that she
has a strategy for recruiting a diverse
pool, part of which involves preparing
for their arrival on campus. "I have to
set the stage for candidates of color
before they arrive, even giving people
my realtor's contact information. I
have to utilize myself as a part of the
welcome package, hanging out with
people." After hiring, she sometimes
holds a welcome reception for new
hires of color and notes that making them feel welcome can involve
something as simple as having a copy
of Black Enterprise magazine on her
desk. As she noted when a colleague
once questioned her about this, representation matters.
When asked about how search
firms help candidates navigate questions of fit for the interview, Jen Hiatt,
search associate at Spelman Johnson,
noted that it is critical to make sure
that candidates "learn everything they
can about the institution, the job description, living in the particular city,
school districts, etc." She describes
the search as taking the form of
concentric circles. "Can I live there?
It doesn't matter who you are bringing with you, a goldfish or a partner.
If your partner doesn't want to live
there, don't take the job." Issues like
this need to be addressed early in the
process, not at the end. She also notes

THERE IS . . . A NEGATIVE
SIDE OF SEEING FIT IN
TERMS OF SIMILARITY,
WHICH CAN CREATE
PROBLEMS FOR
CANDIDATES WHO
FEEL THAT THEY ARE
PART OF A MINORITY.
that "employers tend to want people
from similar environments and
experiences. Most times, land-grant,
big-school people hire land-grant,
big-school people." Chad Nuttal from
the University of Toronto Mississauga
in Ontario, Canada, noted that hiring institutions can help candidates
learn more about the campus and the
department if they "design recruitment processes that allow potential
candidates to get a feel for your
organization and interface with those
they will work with. You don't want to
hire someone that ends up not enjoying your supervisory style or your
organizational culture. Give them the
appropriate time and opportunity to
get a good feel on their fit."
Some newly hired SHOs reported
learning things they had not thought
about asking during their search
process. Ashley Hartnett, the SHO
at the University of South Dakota in
Vermillion, said that she has enjoyed
her new role but was surprised "by
the level of involvement of the Board
of Regents in the day-to-day decision
making within the residence life parts
of the operation." For Hartman, the
financial resources for the program

were not something he asked about
sufficiently prior to taking on the
position, which has been a challenge compared to previous roles.
Brouillard-Bruce, who was new to
working at a religiously affiliated
institution, was pleasantly surprised
by the focus of a retreat, which gave
him an opportunity for reflection
that was important in becoming the
best director he could be. "In my first
month I was able to participate in a
Jesuit retreat. I thought it was going
to be about learning about the faith,
but it was about networking and connecting, and reflecting on who we are
as people and professionals. To be the
best director I wanted to be, I had to
be in a place where I could reflect."
Pam Schipani, senior housing officer at the University of Connecticut
in Storrs and author of a dissertation
focusing on women in the SHO position, noted the difficulty of feeling
a good fit when moving into such a
position of authority. "Moving into the
role of SHO can be lonely; no direct
peer colleagues on the campus have
the same responsibilities, you have
the final say, and managing the fine
line between running a business and
being focused on student development is hard." All of these challenges
can result in questioning one's fit.
Schipani found that the alignment
of a senior housing officer's values
with those of the institution is a key
factor in an SHO's ability to both be
hired and remain at an institution.
"When leadership changes, that is
when many feel a shift in their fit at
an institution, often for the worse.
This shift also frequently occurs
when a supervisor does something
unethical (mismatch of congruence)."
If one's fit does come into question,
it is important for SHOs to do some
reflection before deciding to leave
an institution. Hiatt recalled that
 CONTINUES  70

34

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