Human Resources Update The DRL Human Resources (HR) team’s portfolio has expanded with the addition of Conferences and Visitor Services (C&VS), adding 100 student staff and 20 professional staff members. Together with Resident Life this brings our roster to around 700 student staff and 110 prostaff - and that’s a big undertaking. I have been so impressed with the HR Team’s ability to shift and integrate C&VS into our operations. By far Sylvia, with Joelle’s assistance, has managed the bulk of this work as she onboarded both the unexpected COVID Testing employees beginning in March 2021, and now she is onboarding their first summer student staff cohort since the pandemic began. Usually we would have a break except at the semester transitions but the load is much more constant and heavier than it used to be in the past. We’ve been really fortunate to have strong processes in place, a team that works great together, and helpful tools in MyDRL and maybe soon StarRez (thank you G and Tom!). Our unit has always had to manage a lot of physical paperwork and checks due to the University’s payroll processes. The addition of C&VS during COVID times has been an additional challenge. Our team does not have the ability for as much of our work to be completed virtually or flexibility in telework scheduling as some other parts of the department might. I am fortunate to work with a team that understands their responsibilities and is taking this in stride as much as possible. We work really hard to support each other so everyone still has telework options and that personal support. One of the things that I’ve most enjoyed is getting to know the staff in C&VS, learning about their operations, and partnering with them in new ways. They are a smaller unit and I think have benefited by having a team of dedicated HR staff to support. Since we operate out of the same residence halls, I really see it as an extension of what we do for Resident Life. Besides the increase of students and prostaff employees added to the roster to maintain, the biggest change has been the constant workflow. Prior to acquiring C&VS the summer would be our slow period. Now with the summer programs that C&VS runs our workflow has not only increased but it is constant, so I think it is going to be a challenge to manage. However C&VS has been very receptive to being integrated into our payroll process which has made the transition easy for all involved.
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Res Life Roundup | Spring 2022 | Vol. 5
