University Business - May 2011 - (Page 24)

HUMAN RESOURCES Onboard and Online Personal, fun, and interactive employee orientation programs By Carol Patton R EMEMBER THE FIRST DAY you came to work? For some people, ﬁrst days are overwhelming—with new rules, processes, and software programs to learn, new coworkers to meet, and myriad choices to make, from which health plan to choose to the amount of taxes you want deducted. To help new staﬀ ease into the onboarding process, many higher ed institutions are now oﬀering online orientation. New hires can view these self-paced tutorials even before setting foot on campus. Employees may learn about their new employer’s mission and goals, required training programs they must complete, how to perform routine administrative tasks, and what optional beneﬁts are available. e upside is that many of these orientation programs are fairly robust. e downside? ey’re often bland and can even produce a few yawns. But that may be changing. Some schools are taking advantage of technology to deliver the same information in more creative and interactive formats. Consider an online video of a school’s president or department chair welcoming new staﬀ or faculty. Or how about a GPS-guided campus tour? Schools can now unleash their imagination and implement features that were considered futuristic just a few years ago. During the past year, e Catholic University of America (D.C.) began taking and posting online group photos of new hires as part of the orientation process. Any of the university’s 2,500 faculty or staﬀ can click on the group photo, linked to an online weekly newsletter, to learn the names, positions, and departments of any new hire in the photo. “We’ve gotten a lot of feedback, say- ‘Some people do much better with an online orientation, but others may want that face-to-face.’ —Ujima Donalson, University of Washington ponents, such as a mission statement and videos of a campus tour and president’s message. at would allow HR staﬀ to have more time to focus on sensitive personnel issues—which even the most sophisticated software can’t address. “I believe that is the ultimate balance in an HR practice,” she says, adding that at least half of the employees who responded to a recent survey stated that they noticed and appreciated HR’s ability to deliver more personal services when serious issues were involved. “People become frustrated and aren’t excited about paper-pushing. ey want to be able to truly solve problems and work with people. at’s why they go into HR.” MIX IT UP While a high-tech approach certainly has value, not all employees prefer learning online. at’s why more schools have introduced a blended orientation program. Take the University of Washington, which supports about 70,000 employees who work on campus and in its medical facilities. Although its comprehensive online program is almost 10 years old, the university recently introduced an inperson orientation covering topics like the school’s values and vision. “We’re making a shift for individuals who need that connectivity,” says Ujima Donalson, director of professional organizational development at UW. “We recognize some people do much better with an online orientation, but others may want that face-to-face.” Many HR professionals believe explaining something as complex as Carol Patton is a Las Vegas-based freelance writer who specializes in covering HR issues. ing, ‘It’s cool—this is really nice and it’s helpful when we meet people on campus,’” explains Christine Peterson, associate VP and chief HR oﬃcer. “We [oﬀer] a very community-oriented environment. e photos have raised other types of interest that we’re now considering.” One is a photo gallery of all faculty and staﬀ, which will help build camaraderie among the institution’s workforce and make it easier for employees to actually ﬁnd each other on campus when meeting or working together for the ﬁrst time. CUA’s orientation program also includes a half-day, face-to-face session with various university administrators addressing topics such as beneﬁts, policies, and public safety. But in between speakers, Peterson says the focus shifts back to information oﬀered in the online program so “you don’t sit there for hours listening to talking heads.” In the future, Peterson hopes the online program will also include other com- 24 | May 2011 universitybusiness.com http://www.universitybusiness.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of University Business - May 2011

University Business - May 2011
Contents
Editor's Note
College Index
Ad Index
Behind the News
Viewpoint
Money Matters
Human Resources
Community Colleges
Networks Freshen Up
Collaboration Station
Someone to Watch Over You
What's New
End Note

University Business - May 2011