Working@Duke August/September, 2011 Issue

WORKING@DUKE n NEWS YOU CAN USE n Volume 6, Issue 6 n August-September 2011

INSIDE

Free Public Bus Pass Putting The “A” In Athletics Choosing Health Care

Tech Etiquette Rising number of Internet-connected mobile devices lead to poor mobile manners

Editor’s Note

Contents

LEANORA MINAI Leanora.Minai@duke.edu

Cover: Tech Etiquette

I

f you’ve wanted to test-drive a new commute to work, Duke’s offering a convenient opportunity.

GoPass.

Duke is providing the free public bus pass to all students and eligible staff and faculty. GoPass allows for unlimited rides on DATA, Triangle Transit, Capital Area Transit and C-Tran (the town of Cary’s transit service) at no charge to the rider.

That’s right. No charge. Think of the savings by not paying for fuel and parking.

To be eligible for GoPass, employees must work on East, West, Central or the Medical Campuses; on the American Tobacco Campus; or within one-half mile of East, West, Central or Medical campuses.

“Duke created this partnership with Triangle Transit to help alleviate traffic and parking congestion around Duke’s main campus and medical center,” said Brian Williams, Duke’s transportation demand management coordinator.

Learn more about GoPass and Duke employee Kristina Troost, who plans to get a GoPass, on Page 7. ** ** ** In other transit news this month, Duke’s new car-sharing provider is WeCar, which is operated

by Enterprise Rent-A-Car. The change to WeCar comes after customers asked for more options as part of a campus car–sharing program. WeCar options include more cars on campus (16 instead of 10), including several new Chevy Volt vehicles that operate two ways: EV mode (battery powered) and extendedrange (gasoline powered).

In addition, WeCar offers a longer reservation limit (seven days instead of four) and a higher daily mileage limit (200 instead of 180).

“WeCar is one more convenient alternative transportation option Duke students and employees have at their disposal that allows them to leave their car at home,” Williams said.

Learn more about WeCar at parking.duke.edu/wecar.

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Working@Duke

Are you paying more attention to email than colleagues during meetings? An estimated 75 percent of U.S. adults say “mobile manners” are worse now than a year ago.

GoPass Employees whose offices are on East, West, Central and the Medical Center campuses; on the American Tobacco Campus; or in offices within one-half mile of the East, West, Central or Medical campuses are eligible for a free public bus pass.

Putting The ‘A’ In Athletics Academic coordinators within Duke Athletics help facilitate tutoring, study sessions and time management for about 650 athletes across 26 varsity teams.

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Check your personal information, win a prize Choosing health care Save on parking when traveling from RDU Bull City Connector marks one year in service

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Zipcar out, WeCar in as new campus car-sharing provider Duke’s new car-sharing provider is WeCar, which is operated by Enterprise Rent-A-Car. The switch will take effect in August.

“This change comes after feedback from customers over the years about the desire for additional options as part of a campus car-sharing program,” said Brian Williams, Duke’s transportation demand management coordinator.

WeCar options include more cars on campus (16 instead of 10); longer reservation limit (seven days instead of four); higher daily mileage limit (200 instead of 180); and $30 overnight rate, seven days a week.

WeCar works like other car-sharing programs: members join, reserve a vehicle online, access the car using a membership card and return the car to the same location where they picked it up. Fuel and insurance are covered.

To learn more about WeCar, visit parking.duke.edu/wecar. If you have questions, or need assistance transitioning from Zipcar membership to WeCar, contact Brian Williams at bpw3@duke.edu or call (919) 684-3640.

Duke among best workplaces in higher education Duke Football Employee Kick-Off Celebration is Sept. 3 Staff, faculty and their families are invited to the Duke Football Employee Kick-Off Celebration for the 2011 season home opener against the University of Richmond on Sept. 3.

The fun begins at 4 p.m. on the K-Ville Quad, where employees and their guests can enjoy entertainment and a catered meal at no charge. They can be a part of the “Blue Devil Walk” football team march to the stadium at 4:30 p.m., before the 7 p.m. kick-off. Duke Athletics and Human Resources are sponsoring the event.

“Part of the outstanding culture of Duke is our collective sense of community,” said Kyle Cavanaugh, Duke’s vice president of Administration. “This is one of those opportunities to share our community and cheer on Duke with family and friends.”

Faculty and staff can reserve up to four tickets by visiting hr.duke.edu/kickoff or calling (919) 681-8738. A valid DukeCard will be required at the event to pick up tickets and enter the buffet area.

For the fourth consecutive year, Duke has been named as one of the best colleges in the country to work for by The Chronicle of Higher Education.

After an independent survey of employees for the 2011 “Great Colleges to Work For” program, Duke earned high marks for its commitment in five workplace categories. Duke was among 10 colleges highlighted for programs and achievements in: Professional/career development programs (Employees given opportunity to develop skills and understand requirements to advance in careers).

Facilities, workspaces and security (Facilities adequately meet needs, appearance of campus is pleasing and the institution takes steps to provide a secure environment).

Job satisfaction (Provides insight into satisfaction with job fit, autonomy, resources).

Work/life balance (Policies give employees flexibility to manage personal lives).

Supervisor/department chair relationship (Supervisor makes expectations clear, solicits ideas).

“As a community, Duke is committed to a set of core principles that allow us to pursue a positive work culture,” said Kyle Cavanaugh, vice president of Administration.

“Being named among the best workplaces in higher education by the Chronicle is a wonderful recognition and validation that we are focusing on the right areas.”

Registration underway for Duke Run/Walk Club When Cathy Lewis arrived for the first day of the Duke Run/Walk Club last spring, she was afraid she wouldn’t be able to keep up with other participants. “I had fallen off the exercise bandwagon several years ago,” she said.

Run/Walk helped her raise her level of fitness by alternating running and walking.

“After 12 weeks, I was running or walking for over 40 minutes without stopping,” said Lewis, staff assistant to the dean of Academic Affairs in Trinity College. “It was a fantastic way to get back into shape.”

Registration is now underway for the fall Duke Run/Walk Club, which is Aug. 22 through Nov. 9. The club is organized by LIVE FOR LIFE, Duke’s employee wellness program, and is free and open to all faculty and staff. Beginners meet from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. on Mondays and Wednesdays at the East Campus wall on Broad Street across from Whole Foods Market. Advanced runners meet at the same time at Wallace Wade Stadium. To learn more or to register, visit hr.duke.edu/runwalk. today.duke.edu/working

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Cover Story

To help boost productivity, Richard Outten, center, runs a staff meeting without laptops and smartphones in the Office of Information Technology.

Tech Etiquette INTERNET-CONNECTED DEVICES LEAD TO POOR MOBILE MANNERS

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ichard Outten runs a different kind of staff meeting.

No one sits. And laptops and smartphones are not allowed.

Outten, a senior manager in the Office of Information Technology, understands better than most how technology can boost productivity and make life easier. He also understands how it can get in the way of workplace efficiency.

“We’ve tried different approaches to minimize waste and improve the flow of information and work,” Outten said.

“We’re always looking at how we can better fit the technology with human interaction, because sometimes that human interaction side gets lost.”

With the proliferation of laptops, smartphones and tablets, constant connectivity can make it tough for workers to focus on what’s really important, experts say.

Whether it’s paying more attention to email than colleagues during meetings or answering a smartphone during a conversation, an estimated 75 percent of U.S. adults say “mobile manners” are worse now than a year ago, according to a recent Intel survey.

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“There’s a fundamental mismatch between the 20th century workplace we’ve inherited and the technologies of our lives.

There are no rules yet, no shared etiquette,” said Cathy Davidson, a Duke professor of English and interdisciplinary studies and author of the new book, “Now You See It: How the Brain Science of Attention Will Transform the Way We Live, Work, and Learn.” “We’re right on time to be seriously rethinking how we work in the 21st century workplace.”

While technology has facilitated the fusion of home life and work life, it also has created a 24-hour workday, where constant connectivity is expected. The result? Anxiety.

“We’re all stressed out, and we should be. We have a lot more different kinds of information to deal with, and we’re working in two systems – one old, one new – at the same time,” Davidson said.

The rising number of Internet-connected mobile devices has led to an “always-on” culture with few agreed-upon rules. According to a survey conducted by Intel in February, nine out of 10 U.S. adults say they’ve seen people misuse mobile technology. Among the

top gripes: emailing while walking and texting or typing while driving.

“We combine technologies in ways that are potentially harmful,” said Dan Ariely, a Duke professor of psychology and behavioral economics. “When traffic slows down or the meeting gets redundant or somebody asks a stupid question, we think, ‘I can dedicate 50 percent of my attention to this and have the capacity to do other things.’ Then we don’t notice when something changes, and when the time comes to focus, we don’t.”

Sleek, powerful mobile devices increase the “illusion of competence,” high-tech jugglers’ belief that they can multitask effectively, Ariely said. But research shows that multitasking degrades performance: Multitaskers perform much worse on cognitive and memory tasks that involve distraction compared to people who focus on single tasks.

“That’s the huge curse of trying to multitask while working and in meetings.

Eventually nobody’s doing anything useful,” Ariely said. “The feeling that we need to be productive every moment actually makes us less productive.”

To minimize distraction in the classroom, some faculty ask students to put away laptops – but that’s not always the best approach, said Lynne O’Brien, director of academic technology and instructional services for Perkins Library.

Instructors are better off asking students to work together in pairs, calling on individuals and using other strategies to engage participants, so “you’re at risk if you’re not paying attention,” O’Brien said.

That same strategy can be effective in managing workplace meetings, said Isabel Taylor, an OIT project manager trained in meeting facilitation.

“If your head is buried in your computer, you’re sending out the message that you’re really not available,” Taylor said. “As a facilitator, I’ll try to engage those who aren’t participating, by saying things like, ‘Would you share your thoughts on this?’”

Meeting organizers can even request that participants put away their technology. “Once the devices are away, you can really connect with the people around the table,” Taylor said.

New technology requires that individuals be more mindful of their own preferences about communication and to explicitly set expectations with colleagues.

“There’s a sense that every message coming in must be responded to immediately, though no one told us that. Everybody has different rules,” Taylor said. “It’s important to discuss your preferred method of communication and respect others’ preferences.”

Work groups can take steps to avoid ratcheting up the pressure of an “always on” workplace.

“All of us spend far too much time responding to work email,” O’Brien said. “People can access you 24 hours a day, and we don’t have good mechanisms for screening what we have to pay attention to.”

Her office, for example, developed new norms around managing email, including: n Use reply-all sparingly. n Share interesting tidbits using the group’s internal blog (not email). n Indicate in the email header whether a message requires action or is just for information. n Don’t spam the entire work group with in/out-of-office emails.

She also set colleagues’ expectations around instant messaging: “Some people say they can be more productive using IM to take care of a lot of small details quickly, but my staff knows that if it’s that urgent, they should call on my cell.”

While technology can exacerbate information overload, it also could prove part of the solution. In her book, Davidson, the professor of English and interdisciplinary studies, interviewed the head of user interface at Mozilla, who takes a unique approach: he separates his work onto three different computers. The first holds the code or work project he is focused on. On the second, located far enough away that he must physically move to another chair, is email.

“Ergonomically, he knows it is important to move, but, more important, it means that his main work screen never changes,” Davidson said. “The email screen is in constant motion from the outside world, but the work screen stays focused, and he returns to it without distraction.” >> continued on page 6

More mobile devices in the workplace Nationally:

85%

of U.S. adults own a cell phone

52%

own a laptop computer

4%

9%

own a tablet

do not own any of these or other devices

(Source: 2011 report from the Pew Internet & American Life Project

Users At Duke:

20% BlackBerry 16% iPhone 13% Android

33% Internet cell phone without capability 6% iPad 9% adomobile not have device

(Source: Duke Communication Survey, March 2011, 1,203 respondents)

Information overload: Email and beyond Percentage of people who say email communication at work and home in the next five years will…

INCREASE

45 36

STAY THE SAME

51 55

DECREASE

4 6 (Source: MarketTools)

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TIPS FOR MANAGING MOBILE DEVICES Be present. Make a better impression and give your full attention to those you are with, such as when in a meeting. Resist the temptation to check email or surf the web during conference calls or meetings.

Go with face-to-face contact.

Limit emails or instant messages to people in your immediate vicinity at the office. Don’t email/text/IM what should be spoken in person.

Close the laptop when you can. If it needs to remain open

Set clear expectations. Talk with colleagues explicitly about mobile device usage and potentially sticky issues such as preferred methods of communication and appropriate response time to emails.

for reference or note-taking, place it at an angle so the screen isn’t a barrier between you and others.

Create boundaries for your technology. Establish an e-day, which means determining when you start and stop your immersion in the digital realm.

Obviously, there are times when it’s necessary to be available, but otherwise, live your life.

Do unto others. Before making a call, texting or emailing in the presence of others, consider if your actions will affect them. If so, reconsider, wait or move away.

Practice what you preach.

If you don’t like others’ bad behavior, don’t engage in it.

For more tips, visit emilypost.com/technology

His third computer, down the hall, is his “fun” computer, with Facebook and other diversions. A to-do list is programmed to pop up on the screen after five minutes, then 10

“I’m constantly shepherding six to 10 things through various processes, and I have to have them all at a stage where if somebody said, ‘I need that now,’ I know how I would finish it in 24 to 48 hours,” Roberts said. “Having the digital and communication tools There’s a we have now makes that much more feasible than it fundamental was.” mismatch between the 20th As technology changes century workplace we’ve the workplace, it also provides an ongoing inherited and the technologies opportunity to reassess how of our lives. There are no rules new tools fit with our human values and needs. yet, no shared etiquette.”

For Outten, that — Cathy Davidson, author and Duke professor means encouraging his staff of English and interdisciplinary studies to call customers rather than send email, because minutes (in larger type). The computer also is talking through an issue can resolve it faster programmed to slow down each time the to-do than a back-and-forth exchange of emails. list appears.

For Taylor, it’s making a point of not “We are users of tools. What makes us checking work email at home. good at using these tools is what drives us crazy, For Laura Miller, a clinical research because it also distracts us,” Davidson said. associate in the Duke Clinical Research “Now we’re evolving new ways of working, but Institute, it’s leaving her BlackBerry at her desk we need new tools to help us prioritize.” every so often so she can walk up to visit a In the meantime, workers can focus on colleague who works on another floor. using technology for what it does best, said “We’ve become so connected as a mobile Jim Roberts, Duke’s executive vice provost for society,” Miller said. “Now we need to finance and administration and self-described reconnect with ourselves and remember the “multitasker on multiple devices.” He uses those common courtesies. We need to take time to devices to boost productivity in limited ways. think of others before we plug in.”

“

BY CARA BONNETT

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Working@Duke

By The Numbers 37 percent U.S. adults who spend half the day reading or replying to work email

88 percent U.S. adults who agree that people rarely take others into consideration when using mobile devices in public

1 in 5 Ratio of U.S. adults who admit poor mobile behavior but continue to do so because everyone else is doing it

Source: Recent surveys by MarketTools and Intel/Ipsos.

Ride local, regional buses for free Duke launches “GoPass” to relieve parking congestion

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t 5:02 p.m., Kristina Troost boarded a Triangle Transit bus on Chapel Drive, opened her laptop and settled in for her favorite 52 minutes of the day.

While the bus driver navigated traffic on I-40 toward Raleigh, Troost read email and scholarly journals and selected books for the Japanese Studies collection at Perkins Library.

“It’s my time,” said Troost, head of Duke University Libraries’ International and Area Studies department. “Having this undisturbed time every day means I can catch up on projects and get my life back.”

Troost pays $33.25 a month to ride a Triangle Transit Express bus between a Park & Ride lot in Raleigh and Duke’s campus each day. Starting in August, she’ll make that round trip for free.

Duke is offering GoPass, a local and regional bus pass, to Duke staff and faculty on East, West, Central and Medical Center campuses; the American Tobacco Campus or within one-half mile of the East, West, Central or Medical campuses. All undergraduate, graduate and professional school students are eligible.

GoPass allows for unlimited rides on DATA, Triangle Transit, Capital Area Transit and C-Tran, the town of Cary’s transit service, at no charge.

“I’m thrilled that now I can say that Duke is encouraging public transport in this way,” said Troost, who plans to use GoPass to commute by bus four to five days per week.

Brian Williams, Duke’s transportation demand management coordinator, said GoPass can help reduce parking congestion on Duke’s main campuses. He said that if 5 percent of eligible students and employees use GoPass as a daily alternative to a single occupancy vehicle, there could be 1,000 to 2,000 fewer cars on campus each day. This change could reduce Duke’s carbon footprint and help alleviate the need to build additional parking lots.

“We want to offer students and employees as many options as possible to help them save money and get to Duke in a more sustainable manner than driving alone in a car,” Williams said. “We’re committed to helping Duke become climate neutral, and this program is just one more step toward that goal.”

BY MARSHA A. GREEN

go online

For more information, visit parking.duke.edu/gopass

Get A GoPass GoPass allows for unlimited rides on DATA, Triangle Transit, Capital Area Transit and C-Tran, the town of Cary’s transit service, at no charge to the rider. To obtain a GoPass, staff and faculty must apply in person with a valid DukeCard at one of the following Parking and Transportation offices: 2010 Campus Drive (near the corner of Campus Drive and Anderson Street). Open Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

4290 Duke Clinic (near the Medical Center Bookstore, on the same level as the Duke Clinic Food Court).

Open Monday through Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. today.duke.edu/working

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Putting the ‘A’ in Athletics Khary McGhee, right, discusses classwork with Angelo LaBruna, a sophomore infielder with the Duke baseball team. McGhee works with more than 100 student-athletes across five teams.

A

faculty and staff, Duke has a network of hundreds of academic n 8-inch thick binder with daily schedules and syllabi advisors, coordinators, mentors and tutors who make Duke one of for 27 members of Duke's baseball team sits on Khary the best universities at putting the “student” into student-athlete.

McGhee's desk. As he flips through it, pairs of players For decades, Duke students and employees have created an stop by his office and sign in or out of study hall sessions atmosphere where hundreds of student-athletes are regularly in the Michael W. Krzyzewski Center for Athletic Excellence. recognized on honor rolls and “Make sure you bring with national awards for your homework with you this success in the classroom. In weekend at Clemson,” 2010, for example, Duke led McGhee told three freshmen all Atlantic Coast Conference on the baseball team. “You schools with 424 selections know coach will be mad if to the ACC Academic Honor you don’t.”

Roll, the 22nd time in 23 “Yeah, we know,” years Duke student-athletes they reply in near unison. topped the conference list.

Over the course of the Also, 15 Duke teams placed academic year, McGhee, among the top 10 percent in academic coordinator for their sports in the NCAA’s the wrestling, rowing, Academic Progress Rate men’s lacrosse, baseball and report, which measures swimming and diving teams, academic success based works with more than 100 In 2010, Duke placed 424 athletes on the ACC Academic Honor Roll, the 22nd time in on eligibility and retention. student-athletes. He and seven 23 years Duke student-athletes topped the conference list. other academic coordinators “This is all part of within Duke Athletics help creating the culture that facilitate tutoring, study sessions and time management for about excellence in academics is just as big a part of excellence on the 650 athletes across 26 varsity teams. With help from students, field,” said McGhee, who joined Duke a year ago.

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go online

See scores, news and more academic success at goduke.com

Finding Balance One of the biggest challenges in maintaining academic excellence is that student-athletes spend time away from campus for road games or matches. That means academic coordinators and coaches work together to ensure athletes stay on track of studies.

On the baseball team, head coach Sean McNally makes every Monday an off-day from practice. Players must use the day to complete work in team study hall sessions and on their own time. Players are also expected to bring classwork with them on all road trips and log daily study hours with their academic coordinator.

“We’re at one of the country’s best academic institutions, and we’ve got some of the most talented students – not just student-athletes,” said McNally, who’s been head coach since 2005. “As a team, we need to divide up our time and energy to keep things in perspective and make sure we’re taking care of things in the classroom and not just on the field.”

Marcus Stroman, one of the top Duke baseball McNally has a pitchers in the country, is also a two-time member special reason for being of the ACC Academic Honor Roll. stringent with academics.

In addition to being a former Duke baseball player, he also worked as an academic coordinator at Duke in 2002 and 2003.

That commitment has led to results. In 2010, the Duke baseball team posted a combined grade point average over 3.0 and has annually led in selections to the All-ACC Academic Baseball Team. About 60 of McNally’s players have also appeared on the ACC Academic Honor Roll over the past five seasons for holding grade point averages over 3.0 for the entire academic year. The baseball team’s graduation success rate – a combination of players who graduate or leave Duke for professional opportunities in good academic standing – was 96 percent last year, 26 points higher than the national average.

“My experience would be much different if I didn’t have Coach McNally and the Academic Services staff to be such a huge help,” said junior Marcus Stroman, a top pitcher in the country and two-time member of the ACC Academic Honor Roll. “Because we travel so much and work on a tight schedule, having these resources means I’m not stressed, and I can just focus on taking class and playing baseball.”

“

All these kids essentially have two jobs – a full-time student and a full-time athlete – and they’re expected to excel in both areas.”

— Heather Ryan, executive director of academic support services in Duke Athletics

Resources and Support For Heather Ryan, executive director of academic support services in Duke Athletics, helping students score high outside of games and matches means working beyond 40 hours a week and meeting with upward of 80 student-athletes a week to ensure balance between demands of athletics and academics.

“We’ll do whatever we can to help, whether it’s helping them set up their schedule, scheduling tutor sessions or making sure they’re on top of a class’ syllabus,” Ryan said. “All these kids essentially have two jobs – a full-time student and a full-time athlete – and they’re expected to excel in both areas.”

She said making sure student-athletes succeed in the classroom comes down to a simple rule: let them know people across campus care about them beyond what is accomplished on a field, track or court.

“It’s important to remember that all these athletes aren’t just here at Duke to compete in sports. They’re here to learn and expose themselves to opportunities that will shape their life,” she said. “In the position we’re in, we just have to help guide them to make sure they get the most out of their entire collegiate experience.”

BY BRYAN ROTH

By The Numbers 24 of 26 teams had a 3.0 GPA or higher, Fall 2010 24 of 26 had a GPA of 3.0 or higher, Spring 2011 97 percent total graduation success rate with 15 of 26 teams at 100 percent, 2011 Duke football’s graduation success rate – 95 percent – was second highest among 120 schools in the Football Bowl Subdivision, 2010 130 academic All-ACC team members, 2010 Six ACC Scholar Athletes of the Year, 2009-2010 academic year

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Check Yourself…

You Might Find A “Golden Ticket”

Campaign encourages staff and faculty to review, update personal data

A

re you who you think you are?

Beginning Aug. 29 as part of a new “Check Yourself” campaign, all Duke staff and faculty are asked to go to the “My Profile” section of the Duke@Work self-service website to review and update personal data and information.

Those who check their personal information – including work and home addresses, phone numbers, race/ethnicity, county of residence and dependent information – may learn they’re one of five lucky “golden ticket” winners. Winners can redeem golden tickets for prizes, including a pair of tickets to a Duke men’s basketball game.

“Faculty and staff who haven’t looked at their personal information in the Duke@Work self-service website may be surprised to find that some of their information may be inaccurate or incomplete,” said Kyle Cavanaugh, vice president for administration.

“Over time, home and work addresses or phone numbers change and are not always updated in our system. For example, last year, about 10 percent of all open enrollment packets were returned because of bad addresses.”

As part of the campaign, which runs through Sept. 20, a golden ticket has been added to the personal information for five

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Working@Duke

randomly selected individuals. The prizes are the men’s basketball tickets, a $200 gift certificate to a show at the Durham Performing Arts Center, a 50-minute deeptissue massage at Duke Integrative Medicine, a night’s stay for two and breakfast at the Washington Duke Inn & Golf Club and a piece of basketball floor from the 2010 NCAA Championship.

Individuals must check all of their personal data fields to learn if they have one of the five golden tickets. Those who find a golden ticket should call the Human Resources Information Center at (919) 684-5600 to redeem the ticket for one of the available prizes. Golden ticket holders are offered prizes on a first-come, first-served basis.

As faculty and staff review their information, they’re also encouraged to review and include information for two new fields for “work cell phone” and “other cell phone” to receive a text message in the event of an emergency. Numbers for all Duke-purchased cell phones and those previously registered for emergency text messaging have been transferred to Duke@Work. Cell phone numbers will not appear in the online directory, unless staff or faculty members list that as a primary work number.

Find a Golden Ticket Visit the Duke@Work self-service website at work.duke.edu between Aug. 29 and Sept. 20.

Review all personal information listed under the “MyProfile” section.

If you find a golden ticket, call (919) 684-5600 to redeem it for one of the prizes.

Available prizes will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis.

BY PAUL S. GRANTHAM

go online

Check your data at work.duke.edu

One-stop shop for lab supplies saves time, money Erik Lykken, a graduate student working in Dr. Qi-Jing Li’s laboratory, uses Buy@Duke to order research supplies.

Duke launches new web-based purchasing program

J

ose Sevilla, a Duke research technician, placed his laptop among tubes and machinery on the research bench, logged onto a new web-based e-procurement tool and began checking off his shopping list.

Choosing pipette tips from one vendor and cell culture filter bottles from another, he loaded his virtual shopping cart with supplies for experiments on microRNA. Then, with the click of a mouse, he sent the cart to Dr. Qi-Jing Li, the lab’s principal investigator, for purchase approval.

Dr. Li’s lab in the Department of Immunology is among the first to pilot Buy@Duke, the new procurement tool that saves money by leveraging Duke’s purchasing power, while at the same time enhancing financial administration.

Buy@Duke conveniently collects the contents of catalogs from 25 scientific supply vendors with guaranteed Duke pricing. In the future, the tool will expand to host catalogs for additional vendors. The initial focus is on research supplies because they represent one of the largest areas of spending at $70 million annually, said Jane Pleasants, assistant vice president for Procurement and Supply Chain Management.

“Buy@Duke will direct the buying power of Duke toward preferred vendors and allow us to get even more economies of scale,” she said.

go online

The program is supported by Duke’s Research Administration Continuous Improvement Integration Initiative, which will be offering project teams to help units integrate and implement a host of related new technologies and financial assessment and management policies.

Buy@Duke, the first technology of the Integration Initiative, began its pilot phase in February 2011 with the departments of Immunology and Biology and the Neonatology Division of the Department of Pediatrics. As these departments provide feedback, the program will expand to other departments.

“It will take a while to ramp up,” said Edward Sharpe, associate director of Procurement Services. “But we want the implementation to be collaborative and high touch and create as little burden on a unit as possible.”

Users of Buy@Duke – whether faculty, graduate students or staff – assign cost object codes to each item in their virtual cart. The customized system then routes the cart for approval: Some labs may push everything to faculty, while others have staff approve some purchases. The automated approval workflow ensures costs are correctly allocated before purchases.

This reduces paperwork for financial reconciliations, and in most cases, eliminates extra departmental recordkeeping to track grant expenses.

Todd Leovic, business manager for Immunology, said the process is saving time and money already.

“You can go online and watch a cart go through all of the steps of approval, even if the faculty member approving it is in China,” he said. “We’re actually ordering less paper because everything is online.”

BY MARSHA A. GREEN

Using A department or unit must be part of the Buy@Duke pilot to participate. Once implemented in an area, faculty and staff can access the program by logging onto the Duke@Work website [work.duke.edu] and clicking the “Buy@Duke” tab.

Visit finance.duke.edu/procurement and select “Procurement Programs.”

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Choosing health care Cost, location, coverage influence health plan choices

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very year in October, Duke employees enroll in, drop or change a health care insurance plan for themselves and their dependents from an array of options. The task involves balancing cost, coverage, location and other personal preferences.

Duke currently offers four medical plan options: Duke Select HMO, Duke Basic HMO, Blue Care HMO and Duke Options PPO. “Our plans offer a wealth of choices designed to meet the needs of an incredibly diverse community at Duke,” said Kyle Cavanaugh, vice president for administration at Duke.

To help faculty and staff prepare for open enrollment in October, Working@Duke interviewed employees about the factors that influenced their decisions about medical plan coverage.

“

It’s the easiest plan for what I need. I know exactly how much I’ll have to pay for each doctor’s visit.”

D uke Se l ec t: Ease of use

Phyllis Holt, health system analyst with Duke Health Technology Services, chose the Duke Select health plan because of its simplicity.

Duke Select is — Phyllis Holt the most popular of Duke’s four plans, covering more than 17,000 faculty and staff.

“It’s the easiest plan for what I need,” she said. “I know exactly how much I’ll have to pay for each doctor’s visit.”

Holt realizes that if any of her two teenage children attend college outside the Triangle area, she may need to switch plans during open enrollment. Duke Select only covers out-of-network providers for emergency care.

“I dread the thought of having to switch plans,” she said, “because with Duke Select there is no guesswork. It’s just so simple.”

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Working@Duke

Duke Basic: Cost-effec tive plan Taylor Hemphill investigates health plan costs for his family every year, but each time, the Duke Basic plan is the top choice as the most cost effective plan for his family of five.

Duke Basic has slightly higher out-of-pocket expenses for co-pays and deductibles but lower monthly We premiums than mostly other Duke plans.

“We are a just use primary pretty healthy care and save bunch,” said Hemphill, a over $100 a performance month in analyst for premiums DUMAC, Duke’s investment compared to other plans.” manager. “We — Taylor Hemphill mostly just use primary care and save over $100 a month in premiums compared to other plans.”

What makes Duke Basic another draw for Hemphill is the health care reimbursement account. To help offset higher co-pays and

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deductibles, Duke makes an annual contribution to the health care reimbursement account of each employee covered by Duke Basic.

“It’s a wonderful extra perk,” Hemphill said.

D uke Opti ons: Worl dwide network In 2002, while travelling in Hong Kong with the Fuqua Global MBA program, Christy Michels was rushed to a hospital for emergency surgery. Her bills for the four-day hospital stay totaled more than $4,000, but Duke Options covered the cost.

Duke Options is the only Duke plan that offers a I national network of physicians and have hospitals and a my work visa network of international for China and hospitals for expect to be individuals who travel frequently travelling or live outside of there in the North Carolina. coming year. The international This includes coverage for coverage is definitely worth it children of faculty for me.” and staff who — Christy Michels attend school out of state. While the plan has higher deductibles and out-of-pocket costs, it is the only plan that offers out-of-network coverage for non-emergency care.

“I have my work visa for China and expect to be travelling there in the coming year,” said Michels, a senior manager in the Office of Global Strategy and Programs. “The international coverage is definitely worth it for me.”

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COMING SOON: OPEN ENROLLMENT During the open enrollment period in October, Duke faculty and staff may drop, change, or enroll themselves or their eligible dependents in Duke medical, dental, or vision coverage, and/or reimbursement accounts for the year 2012.

The medical, dental, vision, and reimbursement account options selected during the open enrollment period will be in effect in the next calendar year (January 1, 2012 – December 31, 2012).

Check Working@Duke in October for more information on this year’s open enrollment and what it means for you.

go online

Learn more at hr.duke.edu/benefits

Blue Care: Flexible o ptio ns Sonya D. Johnson, assistant information technology manager for Duke University Press, chose Blue Care because she had a preexisting condition when she joined Duke three years ago and wanted to continue seeing her dermatologist.

Blue Care, which has the highest I had monthly a prepremium of the four plans, does existing condition, not require an and I wanted to annual stay with the deductible and features a doctors who had network of been treating me. physicians throughout The premiums most of North were reasonable, and I liked the Carolina, including flexibility.” several Johnson — Sonya D. Johnson had been seeing in Raleigh.

“I had a pre-existing condition, and I wanted to stay with the doctors who been treating me,” Johnson said. “The premiums were reasonable, and I liked the flexibility.”

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BY MARSHA A. GREEN

Tax Savings With A Health Care Reimbursement Account Duke faculty and staff can protect part of their salary from taxes and keep more money in their pockets by enrolling in a Health Care Reimbursement Account during open enrollment. By setting aside pre-tax money for the reimbursement account, employees may later repay themselves for eligible expenses incurred in the calendar year that are not covered by insurance.

Participants receive a Health Care Card, administered through WageWorks, to pay for many eligible health care expenses at the point of sale using funds from the reimbursement account. The reimbursement account can save an individual about $30 to $40 on every $100 spent on eligible expenses. Employees must re-enroll in the account each year. Learn more at hr.duke.edu/reimbursementaccount

today.duke.edu/working

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Save on parking at Raleigh-Durham International Airport Save on parking through FastPark & Relax when traveling out of Raleigh-Durham International Airport.

PERQS employee discounts

FastPark & Relax 8820 Fast Park Dr. Raleigh (919) 791-0910

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Working@Duke

A

s Margaret Riley pulled her car into a parking spot at FastPark & Relax, a bright green shuttle b pulled up behind her.

“Need any help with your bags?” the bus driver asked.

“Thanks,” replied Riley, as the driver lifted a small suitcase onto the shuttle. He handed her a green ticket with the location of her car and The News & Observer. Content, she settled in for a five-minute ride to the RaleighDurham International Airport (RDU).

Riley, director and associate dean of the global education office for undergraduates, uses FastPark & Relax when she flies out of RDU about once a month. Recently, she learned that FastPark offers Duke employees a discount, so she took advantage of that savings opportunity: four days of parking for $13.60 instead of $20.

“It was a good deal before,” she said, “but the extra discount makes it fantastic.”

FastPark & Relax, located less than a mile north of the airport, participates in PERQS, the Duke discount program for faculty and staff. By enrolling in FastPark’s Relax for Rewards program through the PERQS website

go online

[hr.duke.edu/discounts], faculty and staff can receive a “Relax for Awards” card to park for $3.40 per day (including tax), instead of $5.

The company runs up to 11 vans, depending on the time of day, making the average wait time from the terminal to the parking lot less than five minutes, said Peter Guggenheim, marketing director at FastPark, who contacted Duke Human Resources to be part of the discount program.

“I knew it was something we wanted to be part of, since so many Duke employees are such loyal customers of ours,” he said.

Riley finds the friendly drivers, luggage assistance and parking-toterminal service through FastPark as convenient as parking at the airport, which costs $10 per day.

“When I used to park in the main RDU ramp, I’d often drive around for 20 minutes just looking for a parking space. Then when I found one, it always seemed to be at the far end of the building from the terminal entrance I wanted,” she said. “FastPark is so much easier, and it costs a whole lot less.”

BY MARSHA A. GREEN

Get the FastPark & Relax discount at hr.duke.edu/discounts; select “Travel.”

Sustainable uke YOUR SOURCE FOR

GREEN

N E W S AT D U K E

Connecting the Bull City Fare-free bus marks one year in service

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sually once a week, Kevin Davis walks a couple blocks from his downtown Durham home to the corner of West Main and Gregson streets, where he catches a short, free ride to his office at the American Tobacco Campus.

As one of the hundreds of passengers who hops a hybrid Bull City Connector each day, Davis likes to get a start on work or catch up on The Bull City Connector runs between Duke and downtown Durham. reading while someone else drives.

“I’ve never been a fan of being He said the service has been a “successful and stuck behind the wheel,” said Davis, assistant tangible representation of the partnership director of service management and between Duke and our hometown.” operational integration in the Office of “We’re happy to see how many Duke Information Technology. “With a couple students and employees have discovered the thousand Duke employees now downtown, Bull City Connector as a cost-effective, having the Bull City Connector really makes environmentally friendly and convenient way it more feasible to be car-free at Duke.” to commute and travel between campus and Since its launch on Aug. 16, 2010, the downtown Durham for entertainment and Bull City Connector has provided more than business,” Wynn said. “I look forward to 252,000 passenger trips in its first nine seeing more and more employees make that months. This spring, the number of daily discovery as we continue to offer and passenger trips serviced reached averages of improve the service.” about 1,300.

Under an agreement with the city of Since its start last August, interest in the Durham, Duke provided $375,000 in Bull City Connector prompted an matching funds so Durham could receive a enhancement of operating hours. The service $3 million federal grant and $375,000 state now begins at 6:22 a.m. from the Golden grant to buy new hybrid diesel-electric buses, Belt, which allows commuters to get to the which will debut on the route in 2012. In Duke Medical Center before 7 a.m. the meantime, the City is using four existing Phail Wynn, Jr., vice president of 2010 model hybrid buses. Duke also Durham and Regional Affairs at Duke, said contributes toward the annual operating the fare-free bus service is a benefit for costs, while the city and Triangle Transit Durham and the entire Duke community. manage the service.

go online

For the schedule and stops, visit bullcityconnector.org

Erin Gasch, director of alumni relations for the Fuqua School of Business, rides the Bull City Connector each month. She first started riding because it was fun for her son, Winston, and daughter, Tate. Now, they all occasionally hop on the bus near their home in the Cleveland-Holloway neighborhood to run errands on Ninth Street or to attend Duke football and basketball games on West Campus.

“I appreciate the investment Duke has made in supporting the Bull City Connector because it’s another contribution to Durham that is valuable to me as a resident and a Duke employee,” Gasch said. “It does a great job at bringing the university closer to downtown, which helps to build a stronger community.”

BY BRYAN ROTH

Bull City Connector Schedule Monday-Friday Service every 15 minutes from 6:22 a.m. to 6 p.m.; every 20 minutes from 6 p.m. to midnight.

Saturday and holidays Service every 20 minutes from 6:27 a.m. to midnight.

No service Sunday.

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WORKING@DUKE HOW TO REACH US Editor: Leanora Minai (919) 681-4533 leanora.minai@duke.edu Assistant Vice President: Paul S. Grantham (919) 681-4534 paul.grantham@duke.edu Graphic Design & Layout: Paul Figuerado (919) 684-2107 paul.figuerado@duke.edu Senior Writer: Marsha A. Green (919) 684-4639 marsha.green@duke.edu Writer/Videographer: Bryan Roth (919) 681-9965 bryan.roth@duke.edu Photography: Duke University Photography, Office of Communication Services

Working@Duke is published every other month by Duke’s Office of Communication Services. We invite your feedback and story ideas.

Send email to working@duke.edu or call (919) 684-4345.

Don’t forget to visit the “Working@Duke” section daily on Duke Today: today.duke.edu/working

dialogue@Duke “What is your pet peeve for etiquette with new technology?”

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I don’t like the lack of personal communication with others. It seems like there’s no more real face-to-face interaction because you can just talk on the phone or send an e-mail instead. People are often just doing things electronically.

I don’t think you can get a good feel for someone unless you get to see them eye-to-eye.”

Anthony Artis Officer, Duke University Police Department 2 years at Duke

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I think that people are less likely to completely read emails and just skim them instead. Maybe we all get so many we don’t want to read the whole thing anymore. My office gets lots of calls about PERQS discount codes that are often at the bottom of an email, but people stopped reading and don’t realize the information is already there.”

Elizabeth Fiorentino Staff assistant, Staff & Labor Relations 8 years at Duke

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I think people have gotten really bad about reading directions, especially with the advanced technology we now have. Every time we get new devices, they come with instructions to show how to set things up, but usually people just skip over that part and come to me. It’s because I studied computer science, and I’m a techie, so people expect me to know everything.”

Aron Anderson Staff assistant, Mary Lou Williams Center for Black Culture 4 months at Duke

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