Workplace
Success Stories - Best Practices 2002
Recognition
Strategies for a Diverse Workforce
| Practice Name: Department
Safety Coordinators |
Workplace
Issues Addressed: Communication & Info Sharing, Continuous
Improvement |
Description
of the practice
Representatives
from 20 California Hall departments convene and exchange/share ideas/information
about safety & health issues. This forum allows staff from diverse
backgrounds, experiences, titles and departments to share their perspectives,
and receive acknowledgements of individual contributions. A committee
member writes: "After September 11th, I could hardly wait until the
emergency Department Safety Coordinators (DSC) meeting started. I
kept looking at the clock waiting & hoping that time would pass
quickly so that I could be at the meeting. I felt that coming together
as a group to discuss our feelings surrounding 9/11 with a guest speaker
from CARE Services was therapeutic at a time I really needed to feel
connected with my workplace community."
Benefits
of adopting the practice
Coming
from twenty California Hall departments, the DSC group convenes quarterly
to share their ideas and thoughts on issues around the health and
safety of California Hall occupants. This forum allows staff from
diverse backgrounds/experiences/titles and departments to convene
and exchange/share information. An improved meeting format has assisted
in increasing the attendance at these meetings. Participants now consider
them fun because each meeting has a theme associated with it. There
are token gifts given away at the end of each meeting. This practice
meets the needs of a diverse workforce in the following ways: There
is employee input from California Hall representatives and campus.
It is inclusive. There is diverse representation from all California
Hall units.
How
this practice works
The
meeting format can be easily replicated because other Building Coordinators
can incorporate the three simple criteria: 1) the meeting be fun,
2) the meeting incorporate an educational component, and 3) the meeting
provide community building for staff within and outside of the building.
It is a proven format that has facilitated innovation, creativity
and results. One committee member writes: "Our meetings are fun
because they have themes associated with them. For example, last year
we scheduled meetings on Valentine's Day, May Day, during Hot August
Nights week, and on Halloween. We passed out Valentines and candy
on February 14th, celebrated May 1st with spring flowers, quenched
our thirst with Coca Colas on August 18th and had a costume contest
on October 31st. In addition we have a prize drawing for a token gift
at the end of each meeting. Our meetings are educational because we
invite guest speakers to each meeting to talk about their areas of
expertise. Our meetings provide community-building opportunities for
staff by including a representative and an alternate from every department
or office housed within California Hall. In addition, we invite a
different Building Coordinator from other campus buildings to share
their perspective and feedback. This practice allows the DSC committee
to stay current on external issues that impact California Hall, and
disseminate information to other buildings."
What
you need in place to replicate this practice
Management
support. Use the three criteria noted above. Broad and diverse committee
representation.
Tangible
improvements to the department as a result of adopting this practice
A
committee member writes: "Since we changed our meeting format
one year ago, attendance consistently has been between 17-20 attendees,
whereas before, attendance would attract less than five staff members
to each meeting. The workplace climate was quite different before
this practice was initiated. There was low attendance at the DSC quarterly
meetings and indifference about health and safety in the workplace.
There was definitely a lack of community and the "fun and learning"
elements in the DSC meetings were non-existent. We have observed the
DSCs become more engaged with their roles and responsibilities primarily
because of the learning experiences from the meetings and because
every member is recognized and appreciated publicly for their contributions.
The community that has grown over the past year has made a real improvement
to the work environment within California Hall."
Why
this practice was so successful and is worth replicating
This
practice is successful because the meeting format (see Replicating)
incorporates three simple criteria to maximize attendance, foster
creativity and innovation, and produce results. The guiding principle
is if you want to influence best practices, engage staff by enabling
fun and creativity at workplace meetings coupled with learning and
building community.