Get Your Students Hired
Good points. Yes, what are the tasks and resonsibilities? Who does the employee interface with and what is the culture of teamwork, sharing, and brainstorming? We believe that the job description can be so clear that anyone can take over when someone is absent. Also when writing job descriptions and comparing them with the rest of the staff, it is easy to see where there is duplication of work or where some tasks are not getting done. Thanks, Susan
It is mostly regarded as individualized tasks when we speak of an employee job description. Although I do think this is necessary for responsibilities and expectations to be completed, there should be an incorporation of teamwork also. As long as each person knows their role in the team, tasks will be met much more efficiently.
Hi German, Interesting situation. Hard to comment without a lot of information. First it is important to understand what is going well with employee hiring, management, and evaluation at your school. Are they happy and satisfied? If yes or if no, what is happening and what can be changed. An HR specialist is great for a school if they first talk with everyone and get an idea of the level of satisfaction and productivity. Only with information and communication can change be made. We suggest that the focus of HR is happy, satisfied employees who are imbued with a sense of providing great customer/student service. Best wishes, Susan
Human resource management has been one of our toughest points to deal with. Finally we gave up and we hired a human resource specialist to deal with this subject. Although things have improved, we notice that managing people in the IT department is still hard to regulate. How do you suggest we could help our HR person in this matter?
Hi Melanie, Thanks for your comments. This also points to continually assessing the job description. Does it line up with the level of the position, the needs of the department and school, and any regulatory requirements. Are there duplications in efforts? Lots to learn from staff and their self assessments too. Susan
Dr. Schultz,
I like what you said about having the job description match the evaluation form. I've been in management just over 4 years now. We have our employees do self evaluations based on how well they've met their key performance objectives for the year. The KPOs for our department could align better with the job descriptions that we have in place.
Very good observation, Margaret. It is true that in a small school one person might hold two positions. Also each person might have to perform all tasks. So you might start by listing all the jobs and what the person has to do regardless of who holds the position. In that way your policies and procedures and form manual will be complete and everyone will be able to be cross trained. Thanks, Susan
In a small organization, job descriptions usually falls on the person who does the hiring/personnel, the problems lies that because employees perform muti-task functions,sometime you have to assigned several job description. On the positive job description can be used to set goals and expectations.
In a small organization, job descriptions usually falls on the person who does the hiring/personnel, the problems lies that because employees perform multi-task functions,sometime you have to assigned several job description. On the positive job description can be used to set goals and expectations.
Hi Nadine, Yes. It's very important that the new employee understand where they fit into the structure of the organization. They need to know who they report to and if they supervise anyone. New employees have a lot to focus on. So it may not be possible for them to understand where any more than their basic roles and responsibilities. But reminding them helps as they get oriented to the new job. Thanks, Susan
Essential components are clearly defined roles and responsibility. Accountability can also be defined and how that individuals job supports the overall mission of the organization. The direct supervisor should also be mentioned so that the employee knows the reporting structure for their position.
Sounds great, Brian. You have regular meetings in place. So everyone knows there is a forum for learning what's new at the school and hopefully it is a place to present ideas and solve problems. Do you discuss issues such as customer care and how to distinguish your school from your competition? How everyone is responsible for student success and satisfaction? And do departments report to each other so, for example, admissions knows what is going on in placement? Most schools and businesses as well fail to have regular meetings. You are on a great track. Thanks, Susan
Our "culture" is conveyed by management of each group of staff and filtered from the top down. In my position, as V.P. for instance, I have quarterly meetings with all of the staff at each of the campuses I run. In those meetings I convey the overall progress and goals of our organization. I also take the opportunity to personally thank the staff for all their hard work that got us to the point we're at...
Each group level of staff or managers meets weekly/monthly to discuss new procedures and review progress of ongoing projects they are responsible for as a group or in their individual depts. These meetings are facilitated by the "groups" immediate supervisors.
Hi Brian, Very comprehensive job description approach. Sounds like you really spell out the expectations and the performance timeframes and measurements. The clearer you are the more likely that expectations are met. How do you convey the corporate culture and how people are to creatively work and problem solve together? How do you convey how each person is to relate to other departments and what information the other departments need to know and what the new employee needs to know about the other facets of the school operation? Thanks, Susan
I have always used a multi-part Job Description to ensure responsibilities and exceptions are met and that the chain of command is always followed. First an overall outline of what responsibilities gives an employee a "feel" for what is expected in the position. This can be effectively used in an interview prior to employment and in the initial employee training for talking points and to give the employee an opportunity to ask questions. Secondly I like to create a chronological outline of what an employee needs to do Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Quarterly, Bi-Annually, Annually and as needed. Lastly, I think its important for an employee to see where they fit in the overall operation. So I review the whole organizational chart with them. This helps to drive to point that if they don't tell the person the report to about a problem they are having that it probably won't get fixed. I also us this opportunity to tell employees that if they have problem with the person they report too, that they have a right to address that persons supervisor or HR.
Hi Judith, It is amazing how easy it is to get out into the community. Just takes a bit of planning and organzation. Your employees are probably members of a lot of civic, business, and social groups. So they can easily bring the message about your school to their members. Ideally there is at least one person on staff to coordinate efforts and provide information materials to hand out. thanks, Susan
Hi Susan,
We have many community activities that we support or simply attend. For the ones we support that are college and non-profit collaborations, each staff member volunteers to drive a specific part of the event. If we attend an event, we offer to pay for a certain number of staff to participate and those who are interested, step up. As you mention, it's really a win/win, they get to do something special and fun and bring back great ideas for the classroom or the operations side of the college.
Many of the directors are members of different organizations in the community that support fashion or business - the meetings lead to great opportunities for us to make employer contacts and get requests for internships.
Hi Judith, Great idea to include community involvement as a requirement for your staff. Career schools are an important part of the community and it's essential to put your staff out there to formally and informally learn about needs and changes. Are your employees assigned a community contact or task or do they decide if they will participate in an organization, contact employers or ? The goal is that everyone can look to the school as a resource. And that the school is attuned to the changing needs of the community. Thanks, Susan
As President of a small college, the writing of job descriptions has been part of my job description. I always include: job title, classification (ie: administration, faculty, etc), who the position is accountable to and payroll status. After this listing, I summarize the scope of responsibility for the position and then list specific duties and responsibilities. I also include community involvement expected of the position, since this is part of how we support student activities and lastly required skills, experience and education for the position. I too, always add: "Performs other functions deemed necessary by the college or delegated by the supervisor."
After our annual vision meeting tasks often get shifted, other responsibilities added or deleted and it can be confusing. To eliminate confusion, I create a list of tasks/responsibilites in random order and at a staff meeting we call out who is responsible. This becomes a "lively" meeting and one that clears up assumptions and misconceptions.
Hi Johanna, Very good and to the point. Job descriptions don't have to be lengthy. They do have to be complete enough so that a similarly competent person can take over if that person is absent. It's called cross training. We find that bullets and work flow descriptions really work. Also forms that are used should be included. Also IT interaction. Thanks, Susan