Phase III of Our Engagement Journey: Complete!

As we know, employee engagement is critical to the wellbeing of our campus community and the success of the college. Over the past two years, we have dedicated much time and resources to capture and examine employee feedback. We appreciate your continued desire and commitment to enhance the Bates experience, and hope that you join us as we move into the next phase of our work beginning this fall! 

Below is a summary of recommendations from the four engagement subcommittees that we believe are achievable over the next three years. These recommendations are the result of five months of collaborative work among roughly 70 Bates colleagues, both staff and faculty. The process was inclusive of many points of view and experiences, concrete survey metrics, and the continued desire to create a Better Bates Together. We have been impressed by the level of reflection and resolve these groups have demonstrated through this process and thank them profusely for their efforts. (click here for list)

Over the coming months, the Human Resources team will be evaluating each recommendation, assessing capacity to support these endeavors, including HR workload, determining the number of volunteers needed, developing a reasonable activities budget, and creating project plans to prioritize and structure the work. We are so excited to finally be in this space and hope to make significant progress over the coming year, recognizing that some more complicated proposals may require additional time and consideration to take shape.

*As you review the recommendations, it is important to also keep in mind what initiatives are already in progress, denoted by an asterisk. 

Career Advancement:

• Share the processes for career advancement in a clear and transparent way
• Ensure that updated job descriptions are available*
• Improve the way career opportunities are communicated
• Enhance the performance evaluation process so that job responsibilities and related competencies are defined and measured and annual goals are established*
• Develop a session on goal-setting and career progression 
• Create opportunities for networking, peer learning and the sharing of best practices
• Institute a feedback mechanism, i.e. “stay interviews,” for new employees*

Supervisor Professional Development:

• Establish Human Resources “open hours” across different venues on campus*
• Create a five-module supervisor professional development program to include:

• Supervisor Basics (operational responsibilities)
• Emotional Intelligence 101
• Conflict Management
• Performance Management
• Building an Effective Team Culture
• Ensure that a culture of well-being and belonging are woven throughout the program

Staff/Faculty Relationships:

An important note:

There are subcommittee recommendations in this category that require the review and input of our new vice president for academic affairs/dean of the faculty before communicating to the broader campus. We anticipate additional recommendations will be shared with our community in the fall.

• Increase the number of community-building opportunities between staff and faculty
• Develop a robust formal recognition program that celebrates employee achievements
• Establish a communication strategy that acknowledges staff contributions to the campus, complementing current faculty messaging
• Revive the former “staff council” model or equivalent committee structure

Employee Well-being

• Align senior leadership to champion well-being across the institution*
• Launch a Wellness Ambassador Program, empowering employees to serve as wellness champions across departments*
• Embed wellbeing into all supervisor training
• Improve wellness communications and enhance offerings
• Develop a strategic mental health and well-being plan for the campus

Please reach out to Human Resources at hrdept@bates.edu for more information or to learn how to participate in this important work.