Two weeks in - Time to check-in with myself

"The beginning of a new venture is a very important time." - Plato

This concept is simple to understand but can be very difficult to act on successfully. I'm now two weeks into my new role of Director of Housing at uWaterloo and the mantra I created for myself for the first 90 days is to "Meet, Read and Observe."

Over the first two weeks I would say the bulk of my time has been spent meeting people. I have had some great conversations where I have learned a great deal. My colleagues inside the department and across campus have been very supportive and welcoming. Given that uWaterloo houses over 5,000 students, has over 100 full-time staff and around 250 part-time staff in housing and a total enrollment over more than 31,000 students relationship building will be a key component of my role.
 
If I was to critique myself I would say I need to dedicate more time to reading and observing. Staff have pulled together a number of documents for me which I have yet to review or review in any great depth. As for observing the housing marketing staff had set up a series of video shoots, inspired by Undercover Boss, which has given me a chance to introduce myself and interact with a variety of staff as they were going about their work. This approach has helped me make some early connections and reminded me of the many tasks we undertake in campus housing.

To help me organize my approach for the coming week or two I am focused on getting through an extended weekly review - which is a key concept in the GTD model. It had been weeks since I have gone through a weekly review so I was feeling a little unorganized.

If you have started a new job recently what actions, in hindsight, do you feel you would have spent more time on in your first 90 days? 


Image Source: http://nabolister.com/title/34759/cast/add

Campus housing now delivered in many ways

Up to 20 years ago campus housing was provided using one model: institution-owned-and-managed. The past two decades has seen new models being used and we can expect campus housing models to continue to diversify in the coming years.

In my my Our great-grandchildren's view of our work blog post I highlighted some of the macro factors that are now greatly influencing higher education and campus housing. The list included government debt, politics, more scrutiny of and interest in the campus housing model and emerging changes in enrollment patterns. Technology such as mobile computers and social networking are dramatically changing our society, not just higher education, so it should be included in the list of macro factors as well.

The macro factors formed the basis of a presentation I made at the OACUHO conference last month where I shared some of the themes that are emerging in the campus housing models that are available to institutions:  

• Public-private-partnerships are a viable option
• New models focus more on undergrad housing
• Models are becoming more complex – design to agreements
• Mix of models at more institutions
• On or near campus remains important
• Management of student life remains important
• Emerging model is partnering with properties that have been around for years

Would you add, subtract anything from the list or stress any particular theme as being especially important in all models? 

Here is the full presentation:

The changing student housing ...

More PowerPoint presentations from Glen

Finding the proper balance in campus food service

"Sports teams are increasingly turning to sponsorship deals with big-name food brands, rather than lower-profile offerings from standard catering companies."

Its not hard to imagine this quote reading "[Universities and colleges] are increasingly turning to sponsorship deals with big-name food brands, rather than lower-profile offerings from standard catering companies." This Toronto Star article was highlighting a new deal reached by the Toronto Blue Jays and Tim Hortons last year and being a sports fan the article caught my attention.

For years Canadian post-secondary institutions have been integrating brands like Tim Hortons into campus operations, but usually under the management of one of the big three catering companies - Sodexo, Aramark and Compass Group (Chartwells).  With food being one of the most commonly used techniques to bring students together at events student affairs staff have a stake in how an institution manages food service.

Anyone who has been at a conference knows that food can make or break a participant's experience. We also know that staff and students are not shy voicing their opinions about campus food outlets especially if they are displeased.Working directly with a brand like Tim Hortons could allow food choices to be tailored more specifically to the needs of students, staff and faculty on a campus.

This past week I had an opportunity to sit down with the director of food service at uWaterloo for first time and earlier in the week I sat in on my first food service advisory committee meeting. I learned that food service is run by the university rather than through a contractor and purchases are done largely through the WatCard which can be used in a number of places off-campus using "flex dollars." Nutrition and choice were two of the prominent topics raised by students along with learning to work with food by those who live in residence but do not have a meal plan. Food plays a large role in a  student's residence experience so I'm keen to hear how food is managed at other institutions.


How is the food operation set up on your campus, what are some of the prominent issues raised and what are some of the innovations food service staff have introduced to enhance the service? 


Image source: http://www.wlu.ca/page.php?grp_id=12019&p=1290

Our great-grandchildren's view of our work

In 100 years when our grandchildren and great-grandchildren describe the early 21st century what major factors will they identify as having the greatest influence on our professional world? Looking at our world through that lens will help us strip away many minor factors and day to day influences so we can focus on the big picture which can help with long-term planning.

At the OACUHO conference earlier this summer at McMaster I shared the macro factors I see having the greatest influence on higher education in the coming years and how these factors are influencing the model we have used to deliver housing to students for the past half century. My list of macro factors included the following:

• Government finances & politics, specifically debt and how it is being managed
• Greater influence of groups such as student unions and developers
• Enrollment pattern changes which broadly indicates a leveling off of enrollment nationally

In short, student affairs and higher education can expect to see less money, less students (generally) and more scrutiny. The result will no doubt be that our work will be accomplished in different ways in the future. At the ACUHO-I International Symposium pre-conference workshop earlier this summer one of our colleagues from the University of Edinburgh in Scotland shared with us that one of his residence buildings was initially built in 1680! I'm pretty confident that student affairs as a field had not yet developed 350 years ago.

What macro factors do you think our great-grandchildren will talk about when describing our work?


Image source: http://skillsfor21stcentury.wordpress.com/

Get your inbox to zero

On more than one occasion I've said "The size of my email inbox can dictate my mood." Fortunately for the past year my mood has not been dictated by my email inbox very often (other things have but that is for a different blog post ;-). A few colleagues recently mentioned to me that they had a few thousand emails sitting in their inbox. Not surprisingly it was affecting their approach to work so I thought I'd share my email management experience here.



Much of the credit for the progress I've made goes to the Getting Things Done approach developed by David Allen. (Audiobook) Given the complexities that come with working with people, which is what we do in student affairs, it is crucial that professionals improve their personal productivity skills, such as managing email. Failure to improve in this area will lead to frustration, such as having the size of your email inbox dictate your mood, and will decrease your chances of gaining more responsibilities in the future.

A key aspect of the GTD approach is "Get in to zero" which means emptying your inbox's regularly. Inbox is plural because GTD encourages you to have a number of places to capture material, paper in your office or home, a mobile inbox to capture your thoughts and ideas on the go etc. For this blog I'll focus on your email inbox. Allen says that keeping material in your inbox will feel like a psychological weight on your brain. For instance in the moments when you have gotten your inbox completely cleared out you've probably felt much better in that moment. With some commitment on your part GTD can help you to sustain that feeling every day.  

I won't describe how to get your email under control the first time as David Allen's company has done that here through a free download. You will need to set aside some time up front to clear out the few hundred (or few thousand!) emails and dedicate time each day on an ongoing basis to keep it working. It is worth it though. Some of the headings from the free download, which will give you a glimpse into the approach, include:

• Use the delete key
• File!
• Complete the less than 2-minute actions
• Organize emails that require action and follow-up

In the book Allen explains that he can get any email inbox down to zero in no more than five hours!

A few lessons learned from me over the past year include:

• Minimize the number of folders you move emails too - I have three
• Open emails once 
• Once you've read and acted on a message where needed IMMEDIATELY delete or move emails to a folder - Do NOT leave the email in your inbox

What are your email management success or horror stories?


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The Value of Campus Housing

The most popular topic to discuss further, by far, at both the Canadian Chief Housing Officer summit this past Novermber and the CAUBO student housing workshop in April was the value campus housing adds to post-secondary education.

At the CAUBO workshop Mike Porritt, McGill's ExecutiveDirector of Residences and Student Housing, did an excellent job of setting the stage to discuss the value added by campus housing by highlighting research as well as McGill data related to the residence life. With his permission here are the slides he used to kick start an hour long discussion:

More PowerPoint presentations from Glen

In broad terms Mike highlighted, on slide four, the biggest influence on retention rate shown by research comes from:

• Engagement with faculty
• Engagement with peers / residence life staff

More specifically, Mike highlighted, on slide five, that the retention rate for students at McGill is higher when they live in residence which his consistent with the broad research findings. At the most recent OACUHO conference Western University shared similar retention rate results and during my time at Ryerson we found similar retention rate results. With retention rate being one of the key performance indicators used to measure an institutions performance campus housing professionals have a prime opportunity to point these types of findings out to colleagues and decision makers.

What have you done to tell others about the value student housing adds to your institution?





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Tweet students or not?

 

"Stop marketing. Start engaging" is the tag line for Scott Stratten's Unmarketing book, blog, presentations and general philosophy. My first exposure to Scott came at the May 2011 PSEWeb conference where he as a keynote speaker. He has left quite an impression on me. Not only have I bought his book and audiobook but I track his blog through Google Reader and I have bought his audiobook for others.

While explaining his philosophy in his keynote he shared a number of tweets that people, typically students, shared about their university or college. He blocked any obvious content which would identify a particular school. One of his examples happened to be of a highly engaged student at my school where she posted a tweet about a major accomplishment. Scott was not shy in making the point that "this school" did not respond and, thus, missed an opportunity to engage this student by sending a simple congratulatory tweet.

From that moment on I have wrestled with whether I should use Twitter to only engage with my professional colleagues or to engage with students or both. Over the past few weeks I have made a concerted effort to increase my time on Twitter largely by making better use of how I use Hootsuite. In one of my feeds I track #uWaterloo tweets. Not surprisingly students will post comments and some relate specifically to residence or housing in general. On a few occasions I have decided to respond. 

In one case I surprised, and perhaps creeped out, a couple of students by sending them a tweet because I had never engaged with them before. Despite this challenge I have decided to persevere through the awkwardness that comes from "breaking the ice" so that I can continue to engage with students. One of the costs of gaining responsibilities that comes with moving up the staff hierarchy is less contact with students. I see Twitter as one way I can counteract this trade-off. 

When observing other higher education professionals on Twitter it seems that the social networking tool is largely used to engage with peers. While perfectly acceptable I am wondering how my peers feel about engaging students through Twitter.  

Do you deliberately choose to engage with your students on Twitter? If so, any tips on how to engage with students effectively?   


Image Source: http://johnhawks.net/weblog/topics/teaching/resources/twitter-best-practices-2012.html

Wepps' Weekly Wreads - week of July 16, 2012

First time I tried Wepps' Weekly Wreads I failed miserably. Thought I'd try again and this time I will focus the content on articles I found or shared on Twitter over the past week.

New student housing (at York University) moves one step closer

North Island College (on Vancouver Island, BC) looking into student housing

UofT signs on to startup offering online courses
"The University of Toronto is the first Canadian school to tap into the exploding interest in open online courses, signing on with a startup led by heavyweight U.S. schools such as Stanford and Princeton." 

A university degree's value is incontestable  Wepps' Fav of the Week
"So whether you measure by the rate of employment or income earned, going to university and graduating improves income and everything that accompanies higher income. Students and their parents understand this truism, which is why entrance demand for universities (and colleges) remains strong."

Study shows marketers still struggling with social media
"There’s no question marketers like Facebook and are all atwitter about other social media channels, but even as these media channels mature, measuring their ROI remains elusive for many."

Saskatchewan labour shortage 'worst in history'
"More than 80 per cent of Saskatchewan's non-union contractors believe the current labour shortage is the worst in the province's history, with nearly three out of four unable to hire a journeyperson within three months and four out of 10 unable to hire at all."

Meet, Read & Observe: 3 Primary New Job Actions

What to do when starting a job anew? Week one of my new job at uWaterloo is now complete. I have continued to ground my initial actions around three basic concepts that I first used in the interviews: Meet, Read and Observe. When describing this a little further in my conversations I've simply stated that I want to "meet as many people as I can inside and outside the department, read whatever material I can to give me a better understanding of what is happening and observe as many actions as possible so I know how things happen."

Actions related to meeting and reading are self-explanatory whereas observing could be interpreted in different ways. The most frequent example I've used to explain observing is: I would like to apply to residence. The marketing staff have also engaged me in an "Undercover boss" type video where I have been able to directly observe a variety of tasks across the department such as cleaning a washroom, working at a desk, inspecting a vacated unit, responding to email, live-chat and phone queries and updating the website. 

Onboarding is one of the major projects currently underway in the department given the turnover that happens in a large housing department, especially in the residence life roles. As one of the early staff through the program I have benefited from some of planning that happened prior to my arrival. The major benefit has been the number of meetings that were already scheduled when I started. Day one involved most of the day with my supervisor. Day two included one-on-one meeting with my direct reports. Other actions in my first week included meeting staff around campus, getting set up to be paid, getting my WatCard. I also had time to get my digital brain set up which included setting up my voicemail, Outlook, Evernote and my computer in general.

GTD will continue to serve as the foundation for organizing my work. To enhance my approach I have recently subscribed to Harvard Business Review as well as Manager-Tools. I also found this great resource (from my previous employer) at Ryerson University: A Leader's Guide to Onboarding

What have you learned about onboarding in a new job or helping others onboard into a job on your team?


Image source: http://www.icims.com/blog/post/2009/09/17/Onboarding-at-Full-Throttle.aspx

Universal Traits of a Student Affairs Professional

Image Source: http://masterfulthoughts.com/self-love-and-helping-others/

A few years ago a colleague of mine, Tanya Lewis, commented that for someone to survive in student affairs he or she must have a deep desire to care for and help people. Someone who requires too much structure in their day-to-day work environment, is not patient or leaps to solutions without fully listening could harm one's ability to help and care for others. This is not to say that these are negative traits. In the right context structure, a willingness to move forward and an ability to rapidly assess a situation are crucial to being effective. However, traits such as these can pose a problem when caring and helping are high priority responsibilities.

As my first week at uWaterloo has progressed it is apparent to me that the housing staff care a great deal and have a strong desire to help. While one could argue that as a new director the staff are making a special effort when I am around I believe the care and helping is present even in my absence. I say this because of how I see staff interact, or the systems that have been put in place, or the questions I'm being asked or the innovations staff are excited to tell me about.

In my last post I highlighted that ACUHO-I has created the foundation which outlines what campus housing professionals "need to know, need to do and need to consider to be effective in our work."  In this post I am contemplating the types of characteristics or traits that a student affairs professional should posses to be effective in our work. I agree with Tanya that a deep desire to care for and help people are needed.

What traits do you feel a student affairs professional must posses to be effective in our work?  

Strengthening the Foundation of the Campus Housing Profession

It is well known among student affairs professionals that it is difficult to describe what we do day to day in our jobs to those outside of our field. We often rely on the powerful stories students share about the impact our work has had on their experience and development. With an increasing focus on accountability and dwindling resources we need more than stories to demonstrate the importance of our work and value we add to higher education.

ACUHO-I is creating a great foundation for campus housing professionals around the world to gain a deeper understanding of our work which gives us the tools to tell others what we do and the contributions we make. Consider these developments:

• More than 25 years ago the ACUHO-I Professional Standards and Ethical Principles were launched which have been updated six times and are about to go through another review in the coming year.
• Last month the ACUHO-I Core Competencies, or body of knowledge for campus housing professionals, was published. 
• At last week's ACUHO-I annual conference and exposition it was announced that in the coming year a six volume book set titled Campus Housing Management will be completed which contains more than 50 chapters on topics that campus housing professionals manage. In excess of 80 campus housing professionals contributed content.

Together these three foundational documents outline what campus housing professionals need to know, need to do and need to consider to be effective in our work. When the information contained in these documents is combined with our students' stories it would seem that we will be in a much better position to articulate what we do and the value we add to the student's experience and development.

I Challenge Myself

Source: http://www.gabrielweinberg.com/blog/2011/08/why-i-blog.html

For a while I have been thinking about blogging more often. Chris Brogan, one of the top influencers in social media according to Forbes, gave me a bit of a kick from behind with this recent post: A Primer for Blogging. Given that I can check off the first two points in his list I really don't have much of an excuse for not moving on point three which is: Get writing.

My partner is providing a little inspiration as well as she has recently challenged herself to write a blog post every day for a year. Check out her Green Bits blog here. The challenge I'm giving myself is to write a blog post every day for the next month. I have saved up well over a hundred ideas I can blog about and with yesterday being my first day in a new job as Director of Housing at the University of Waterloo I have a fair amount of material to work with. I encourage you to read along and share your questions and comments on my ideas. Perhaps I'll inspire someone to blog too.