UTHSC HR Reporter Jan-March 2018

THE HR REPORTER

MARCH 2018

INSIDE THIS ISSUE The State of UTHSC HR. . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Performance Review Cycle. . . . . . . . . 2 New Hire Survey. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Your Beneficiaries Matter!. . . . . . . . . . . 2 Opportunities at UTHSC. . . . . . . . . . . 3 Annual Leave Use. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Ask HR. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 HR Adds New Talent!. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Alpha Stock Images

HUMAN RESOURCES Chandra Alston, EdD

Associate Vice Chancellor

Damon Davis

Compensation Manager

Debbie Jackson

Benefits Manager

Kendy Kallaher

Employee Relations Manager

Terrie Starling Employment Manager Brittney Murray

Senior Administrative Services Assistant

Brandi Sewell

Employee Relations Counselor

Alisha Boone

Sr. HR Consultant

Anesha Jones HR Consultant

Debbie Long HR Specialist Gina Curry

Insurance Coordinator

Jenna Fielding Mednikow

Employee Relations Specialist

Demetriss Gilliam

Compensation Specialist

Denise Griffin

Sr. Records Specialist

Chastity Pegues

Admin. Specialist II

Barica Horner

Admin. Secretary

Cierra Richmond

Admin. Support Asst.

THE STATE OF

UTHSC HUMAN RESOURCES Leading Human Resources (HR) for the past four years has been exciting and challenging. It is with enthusiasm and pride that I announce a full staff of seventeen outstanding diverse professionals to meet the needs of our dynamic campus. Spanning three generations, our HR team possesses a wide variety of experience and education. Nine members have attained at least one professional certification (CAP, PHR, SPHR, SHRM-CP, and/or SHRM-SCP) which demonstrates commitment to lifelong learning and development.

Human Resources has worked to partner with departments in hiring, retaining and transitioning employees. In our efforts to serve you better, we have updated campus procedures, digitized all staff employee files, provided a list of who does what in HR online, conducted four (4) workplace engagement surveys, celebrated service milestones for employees, updated our onboarding process and expanded new hire orientation by integrating technology for dissemination to all employees across the state, conducted two salary market surveys and made four major adjustments to compensation including raising the minimum wage from $9.50 to $10.56. In addition, we have provided supervisor training, coordinated the Women’s Resource Group and developed Leadership Forums for employees to have small group discussions with UTHSC administrators.

While HR has made great strides, there is still more that can be done to improve hiring (decrease probationary terminations and general turnover rates); develop and encourage supervisory skills that support a more positive work environment; expand training opportunities for employees; and improve compensation methods and strategies.

We will be working hard in the coming weeks and months to partner with you to meet your goals within your workgroup and departments. Striving to provide more streamlined services, reduce redundancies, and improve your confidence in our ability to assist in you recruiting, retaining and transitioning employees will be our focus. Our team looks forward to partnering with you this year and beyond!

Chandra Alston, EdD, MBA, SPHR, SHRM-SCP Associate Vice Chancellor, Human Resources

THE HR REPORTER

MARCH 2018

PERFORMANCE REVIEW CYCLE

NEW HIRE SURVEY

The 2017 performance review cycle for the University of Tennessee Health Science Center employees will close on Thursday, March 29, 2018.

Beginning January 1, 2018, Human Resources (HR) initiated a 30 day post-hire survey for both faculty and staff. The survey is emailed to new hires around 30 days following their hire date. The survey has quantitative and qualitative portions that are completed online and submitted through our internal HR database called HR Acuity.

The university wishes to ensure that all university employees benefit from effective, appropriate and regular evaluation by their immediate supervisors.

This process should facilitate two-way communication between managers and employees, resulting in employees understanding their roles at the University, what is required, when it is required and how the employee’s contribution measures up.

For your convenience, performance evaluation forms have been placed on the Human Resources website at uthsc.edu/hr/performance_evaluations.php.

The department is only required to provide Human Resources with the Summary Form. All other tools or assessments for employees and managers can be maintained in your department.

If you have specific questions or concerns, contact Damon Davis in the Human Resources Office at 901.448.5600.

The survey asks employees about their general experience with the application process, interview method, their impression of the first week and first 30 days. It asks if their computer/email/ telephone was setup and ready to go and whether or not someone had lunch with them along with a host of other questions. Submitted data is reviewed by the employment team in HR and shared with the appropriate administrator which may be HR leadership, department leadership, specific campus divisions, or campus administration as appropriate. The overall goal of the survey is to improve the experience of the new hire at UTHSC.

YOUR BENEFICIARIES MATTER! For many of us, death is the farthest thing from our minds. We are busy with work, family, life in general and rarely think about what would happen if we were to pass away unexpectedly. Death is a bit unsettling to think about – let alone discuss, but it is a subject that cannot be ignored. For our loved one’s sake, we must have the conversation and ensure all of our finances are in order to ease the burden of those we leave behind.

The Benefits Team is here to help you! There have been two classes offered in February on this very subject: Wills and Estates and Your Beneficiaries Matter! Both classes focused on how to properly prepare your estate and what your UTHSC death benefits consist of and how to make updates. We will offer Your Beneficiaries class in the upcoming months, date TBA. It is highly recommended that you review your beneficiaries every one to two years. If there is a change in relationship, death, marriage, divorce, etc., a beneficiary update may need to be processed on your life insurance, retirement and payroll benefits. A Beneficiary Update page can be found on the HR website. You will find all of your UT beneficiary forms and instructions on how to process your updates. If you would like to personal review of your beneficiary designations, please contact Benefits at 901.448.5601 to make an appointment.

THE HR REPORTER

MARCH 2018

OPPORTUNITIES AT UTHSC At UTHSC, our employment philosophy is simple. We work every day to attract, hire and retain the best workforce. We don’t look for good, we’re not impressed by great ... we’re in search of excellence!

We hire, both internally and externally, those who are exceptional in their profession, well read, enthusiastic about their work and demonstrate a spirit of teamwork. We believe that innovation is born in an environment that promotes inclusiveness, provides for open communication and acceptance of different ideas.

We believe that as our employees become smarter, we are changed for the better. So, we strive to create opportunities for success through continuous education, superior training and funding the educational endeavors of both full-time and part-time employees.

Training opportunities for employees may be found at hr.tennessee. edu/training/online-training/.

We encourage internal employees to apply for available opportunities for which they qualify at uthsc.edu/hr/employment. We fill approximately 400 positions annually. New employees must complete their 6 month probationary period to apply for internal opportunities.

Do you have a general HR question? Ask HR! Simply submit your question by fax to 901.448.7497 or send via campus mail to 910 Madison Ave Ste. 753, Attn: HR Reporter Staff. Look out for your question and answer in an upcoming Newsletter!

Question: HOW LONG IS THE PROBATIONARY PERIOD FOR A NEWLY HIRED EMPLOYEE?

ANNUAL LEAVE USE

Answer: All newly hired regular staff employees, including those converting from either term or student to regular appointments, shall serve one probationary period of six calendar months in an active pay status with the University beginning with the first day of regular employment. Each regular staff employee shall have her/his work performance evaluated during this period.

Annual Leave is a benefit afforded to all regular employees at UTHSC. In general, requests for annual leave should be made as much in advance as possible to ensure that you get the time off that you want.

Supervisors should make every effort to allow time off as requested; however, supervisors must also balance workload requirements and ensure that staffing is at a sufficient level to accommodate the request.

Question:

Although the Annual Leave policy does not define a time frame, many departments have specific requirements for requesting leave in advance, e.g., at least 24 hours prior to time off. The department may also have its own annual leave request form.

Answer: Under the Family Medical Leave Act, an employer must notify an employee of his or her right to Family Medical Leave (FML) when it learns that the employee or a covered family member (spouse, child, or parent) has a serious health condition. According to UTHSC policy, supervisors should contact HR when an employee is missing work because of a serious health condition (of the employee or family member). Once the supervisor notifies HR, HR will then send FML paperwork to the employee.

Employees should never pay deposits or other nonrefundable travel expenses prior to receiving supervisory approval for time off.

While employees should always provide as much advance notice as possible when requesting leave, we recognize that there will be emergency situations for which advance planning is impossible. An emergency is an infrequent event that you could not have planned for, e.g., car trouble or home maintenance emergencies. Supervisors should exercise flexibility in allowing time off for exigent circumstances.

WHY DID HR SEND ME FAMILY MEDICAL LEAVE PAPERWORK WHEN I DIDN’T APPLY FOR IT?

THE HR REPORTER

MARCH 2018

HR ADDS

NEW TALENT TO THE TEAM!

DEBBIE LONG

TERRIE STARLING,

BRANDI SEWELL,

HR SPECIALIST

EMPLOYMENT MANAGER

EMPLOYEE RELATIONS COUNSELOR

Debbie Long is coming to us with previous HR experience in the Industrial Scale industry.

She is a UT Martin graduate who has always enjoyed working in Human Resources. She enjoys working with people and helping out however she can.

If you ask her how she feels here at UTHSC, she will tell you how much she loves her job and what a blessing it is to be here. She also loves dogs, Latin music, and Pilates.

Terrie joins UTHSC with over 25 years of Human Resources and Recruitment experience. She has HR experience in multiple industries including the medical and education industries. Terrie possesses certifications as a Senior Professional in Human Resources, Certified Internet Recruiter, and Certified Social Sourcing Recruiter. She earned a Bachelor’s degree from Union University in Management/ Marketing, and a Master’s degree from Nova Southeastern University in Human Resources Management.

Brandi Sewell is a Human Resources Professional with over 12 years’ experience in the health care and property management industry.

She has a strong passion to strive for HR solutions. Her experience includes talent management, training & development, leadership/ management coaching and all aspects of employee relations.

Brandi is certified as a Professional in Human Resources (PHR) by the Human Resources Certification Institute, as well as a Certified Professional (SHRM-CP) by the Society of Human Resources Management. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Tennessee State University and is also a current member of the Society of Human Resources Management (SHRM).

The University of Tennessee is an EEO/AA/Title VI/Title IX/Section 504/ADA/ADEA/V institution in the provision of its education and employment programs and services.

For more information, please contact: Human Resources | 910 Madison Avenue | Suite WP012, 1st Floor phone 901.448.5600 | fax 901.448.5170

uthsc.edu/hr