Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 38

Form Design Team
Clarify Vision Learn Method Set Time Line



Envision Ideal Organization
“What could be”



Review Current Organization
Role Analysis Barriers Issues



available positions to determining what positions should be there at all. During the process of evaluating staff structures, it is important to keep one idea in the foreground: People – not programs or equipment or technology – are what count the most. As D. Stanley Carpenter explains in “Staffing Student Affairs Divisions,” a chapter from The Professional Student Affairs Administrator by Roger Winston and Theodor Miller, “Nothing is more important to effective practice in student affairs administration than the people who serve the students. . . . it is fitting that significant attention be paid to the principal issues of staffing . . .” This holds true for any department, so it’s no surprise that an overwhelming part of any institution’s budget will be dedicated to personnel costs. One of the first steps in the process of changing staff structure is to perform staff assessment, which can help determine how to most effectively cut costs or expenditures; more importantly, this kind of evaluation may also reveal that savings can be made without having to let people go.

Assessment and Evaluation
In some cases, the information needed to assess the present staff structure can come from surveys. Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, for example, uses tools such as quality-of-life surveys and bi-monthly reports to evaluate how well the structure is working. Instead of simply asking about levels of satisfaction, questions are more narrowly focused on purpose and outcomes. For example, the survey asks, “What kinds of interactions do you have with X staff member?” and respondents will select from choices	that	reflect	specific	interactions:	as	a	resource,	for	clarification,	 for social interaction, or for disciplinary reasons. Catherine Bickel, associate director of housing and residence life at Ball State, learned from this kind of information how success is often measured not in terms of visibility (an employee being there and available) but more in terms of accessibility and expediency (an employee being easily available and helpful, able to provide a prompt and helpful response). Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut, also uses evaluation feedback to shape its staffing structure. Within their system, the campus has implemented a new self-assessment tool based on departmental learning outcomes, which provide a framework for describing and assessing the knowledge and skills of personnel. Such an evaluation helps to identify strengths and weaknesses so
38
TALKING STICK



Talking Stick - March/April 2011

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Talking Stick - March/April 2011

Talking Stick - March/April 2011
Table of Contents
Online Now
Vision
Just In
Your ACUHO-I
Transitions
Res Life
Business Operations
Special Focus
Calendar
An Open House
Getting Your Ducks in a Row
Conversations
First Takes
Reporting Out
Welcome
Snapshot
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - Intro
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - Talking Stick - March/April 2011
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - Cover2
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 1
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 2
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - Table of Contents
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - Online Now
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 5
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - Vision
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 7
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - Just In
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 9
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 10
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 11
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 12
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - Your ACUHO-I
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - Transitions
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 15
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - Res Life
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 17
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 18
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 19
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - Business Operations
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 21
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 22
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 23
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - Special Focus
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 25
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 26
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - Calendar
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - An Open House
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 29
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 30
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 31
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 32
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 33
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 34
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 35
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - Getting Your Ducks in a Row
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 37
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 38
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 39
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 40
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 41
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 42
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 43
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - Conversations
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 45
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 46
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - First Takes
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - Reporting Out
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 49
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 50
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 51
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 52
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 53
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - Welcome
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - 55
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - Snapshot
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - Cover3
Talking Stick - March/April 2011 - Cover4
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