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Conversations with Staff, Tuesday, November 17, 2020 from 12:00 pm to 1:30 pm, live streamed here and on MS Teams

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Virtual Etiquette
TODAY

Virtual Etiquette: Elevating Your Online Presence

Tuesday, November 17, 2020
12:00 pm to 1:30 pm

Featuring Natalie Weakly, Image and Brand Consultant, Signature Style  

In recent months, our virtual presence has become more relevant at work and in our day-to-day lives. Join Staff Council as we hear from special guest Natalie Weakly the various tools and tips she uses to read a virtual room and to improve our online presence.

Following the speaker’s presentation, participants had the opportunity to join breakout rooms and learn to maximize their use of key features in Microsoft Teams and Zoom.  

 

About Natalie Weakly

Natalie Weakly is an image consultant who has spent over a decade building a highly cultivated toolkit to help her clients feel confident, empowered, and exceptionally well-dressed for any lifestyle or occasion. Through her business, Signature Style, she works with professionals at all levels of the organization to be the best version of themselves through style, personal presentation, body language, and the myriad of factors that go into being a person of influence.

A frequent guest on Houston Life, Great Day Houston, and an oft-requested speaker for Fortune 500 companies, Natalie is driven by the philosophy that clothes should not be stressful, are a wonderful catalyst, and that our personal image impacts influence and reflects our intention. She and her husband are based in Houston with her two tiny interns.     

Staff Morale Surveys

  • 2012 Staff Morale

    Staff Council has released the findings from the UH Staff Morale Survey conducted in Fall 2012. Complete information can be found in the following documents.

  • 2011 Staff Morale

    Staff Council has released the findings from the UH Staff Morale Survey conducted in November-December 2011. Complete information can be found in the following documents.

Past Events

  • 2019 Panel Discussion: Developing Momentum to Advance Your Career

    2019 Conversations with Staff
    Panel Discussion: Developing Momentum to Advance Your Career
    Date: Thursday, November 14, 2019
    Time: 1:00 pm to 2:30 pm
    Location: Bayou City Room, Student Center South

    The University of Houston continues to build momentum to transform itself and the people at the core of this institution, the staff. 

    This year's Conversations with Staff event featured a panel discussion by five University of Houston staff leaders who grew professionally and progressed in their careers here on campus.

    • Kim Howard, Sr. Director of Advancement, CLASS 
    • Teeba Rose, Marketing Manager, Student Housing and Residential Life
    • Natalie Sumrow, Director of Undergraduate Programs, NSM 
    • Esmeralda Valez, Executive Director, University Services

    Staff also had the opportunity to win one of two UH Catalyst Professional Development course prizes and other goodies! 

    This event was organized by the Staff Affairs Committee and Co-Chairs Seth Evans & Whitney Johnson.

  • 2018 Developing a Healthy You!

    2018 Conversations with Staff
    Developing a Healthy You!
    Date: Wednesday, November 14, 2018
    Time: 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm

    This event was organized by the Staff Affairs Committee and Co-Chairs Diane L. Burkett & Jennifer Ebert.

  • 2017 Conversations with Staff

    2017 Conversations with Staff
    Date: Monday, October 16, 2017
    Time: 1:00 pm to 2:30 pm
    Location: Elizabeth D. Rockwell Pavilion, M.D. Anderson Library

    As a staff member at the University, you are critical to all conversations about current and future staff initiatives and contributing to the development of future university-wide initiatives.

    This year's event created awareness for UH Main Campus initiatives and created an open dialog regarding these activities and other concerns for staff and faculty.

    Hear from:

    • Reuben Parrish (Staff Council): Staff Council accomplishments
    • Breion Rollins (HR): Changes to health benefits and vision care insurance
    • Neil Hart (Auxiliary Services): Changes to UH Dining Services
    • Courtney Stein (HR): New Campus Farmers Market
    • Jaime Gonzalez (LGBTQ Resource Center): LGBTQ Resource Center Services

    This event was organized by the Staff Affairs Committee.

  • 2016 Conversations with Staff

    2016 Conversations with Staff

    This event was organized by the Staff Affairs Committee.

  • 2013 Fall Conversations with Staff

    2013 Conversations with Staff
    Date: October 24, 2013

    At this year's fall Conversations with Staff Council event, suggestions included improvements to the new hire onboarding process, establishment of a staff mentor program, and tours to campus personnel.  Attendees proposed training for managers on the ePerformance and staff promotion process, improving the communication infrastructure, and training on conflict management. 

    Distribution of red shirts and a staff mentor program were the most common suggestions, and employees advocated a work culture change to promote mutual customer service, empowerment, and respect.  Staff also recommended several opportunities for fellowship such as increased social events, and attendance at campus sporting events, and initiating a staff spotlight program to highlight staff accomplishments across campus.

     This event was organized by the Staff Affairs Committee.

  • 2013 Spring Conversations with Staff

    2013 Conversations with Staff
    Date: May 7, 2013

    At this year's spring Conversations with Staff Council event, suggestions on recognizing and supporting staff contributions included more recognition events and events for staff to do as a whole; recognizing staff more frequently with low cost and non-monetary thank yous; appreciating staff suggestions; appreciating staff initiatives to obtain training; allowing such perks as flex time and work from home; and training supervisors to be more supportive of staff. 

    Ideas about how to develop, maintain and empower a Tier One staff included defining what is expected of a Tier One staff member; empowering staff to do their jobs (remove roadblocks); encouraging staff to be creative and come up with new ideas in an environment that is safe for them to make suggestions; clarifying the path(s) to career development and promotion; taking into account the employee’s professional goals and staff development on e-performance; and doing a better job at Orientation of showing new employees the campus and making them aware of campus resources available to them.

    Ideas on valuing staff committee service and volunteering included adding service to the university to e-performance; emphasizing the importance of service to the university as career development; and creating a volunteer day when all UH staff/community members participated in one or more community volunteer projects.

    This event was organized by the Staff Affairs Committee.

  • 2012 Conversations with Staff

    2012 Conversations with Staff
    Date: August 7, 2012

    At this year's Conversations with Staff Council event, suggestions on career development included providing detailed career path mapping for individuals, providing a resource list of internal and external available trainings and provided targeted training courses for specific groups of employees.  Participants put forward different takes on mentoring programs, including cross-training.  Suggestions were also provided on improving communications, such as implementing tracking systems for support areas like Office of Contracts & Grants, purchasing, HR, etc. 

    Staff suggested better ways to communicate between different colleges and divisions as well as between departments within the same college or division.  Participants proposed cross-unit networking and quick dissemination of information down the chain of command to encourage inclusivity of information.

    This event was organized by the Staff Affairs Committee.

  • 2011 Conversations with Staff

    2011 Conversations with Staff
    Date: August 2, 2011

    At this year's Conversations with Staff Council event, suggestions included developing a culture of encouragement, an infrastructure for staff recognition, and a sense of community through informal events designed to bring employees together. Attendees proposed improving the communication infrastructure to allow for greater transparency and to defuse the rumor mill. Opportunities and support for professional development were requested and attendees were interested in mentoring programs.

    Flextime was among the most common suggestions, and employees advocated a work culture change to promote mutual customer service, empowerment, and respect. Attendees also made several cost-saving recommendations, which included selling equipment and furniture and advertising to increase property rental income. Resource conservation tips were provided, such as reducing campus phones, revamping business processes, and developing interdepartmental mechanisms to share shortcuts and best practices. 

    This event was organized by the Staff Affairs Committee.

About Staff Affairs Committee

  • Leadership

    Staff Council’s Staff Affairs Committee Co-Chairs

    Seth Evans
    713-743-3453
    shevans@uh.edu

    Whitney Johnson
    713-743-4913
    wnjohnson6@uh.edu

     

  • Mission

    As an advisory body to the President of the University and the University administration, and to involve the UH staff in decisions affecting their activities, Staff Council regularly solicits staff feedback about their work and campus experience through surveys, Conversations events, and constituent communications. This page serves as a repository of feedback received from staff to provide guidance for ongoing and future programming and policy advocacy.

  • How to Join the Committee

    Interested in joining the Staff Council’s Staff Affairs Committee?


    Please contact this year's Co-Chairs. 

    You do not have to be a Staff Council member to participate in the Staff Affairs Committee. All UH staff are welcome.