MTAS Mustard for week ended 10-16-20

 

Good Monday afternoon MTAS,
 
I hope that you had a pleasant weekend. If you watched the UT vs. KY ballgame, then pleasant may not be the word you’d use, unless you’re a Kentucky fan. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the couple of days away from work and are revitalized for the upcoming week ahead.
 
Last week the IPS leadership team met. As usual, we received a report from the strategic planning committees. I’d like you to recall what the goals and projects are; and I’d like to thank our particular staff members for representing the agency so well on these various committees. I did not include the entire committee membership – just our representatives. So, a huge THANKS go to Rick, Cyndy, Lisa, Justin, Johanna, Yolanda, Chris, Abb, Elisha, John G., Angie, and Steve W.!
 

Goal: IPS funding will meet expanding customer needs 6/1/2022

 

Micro-goal	Leader	Team Members/Recommendations	Status
Ensure long term financial viability by 7/1/2020	Gail White	Rick Whitehead	Complete 7-13-17
Prepare development plan by 6/30/17	Steve Thompson		Complete 8-1-17
Implement an Institute wide development strategy by 7/1/2022	Steve Thompson	Leadership Team	Complete 8-1-17
Phase 2:  Increase non appropriation revenue by at least 5% annually by 7/1/2022	Chuck Shoopman Don Green (Phase 1)	Rick Whitehead	Complete 12-13-18

 
 

Goal: Deliver best-in-class customer focused education and technical assistance

 

Micro-goal	Leader	Team Members/ Recommendations	Status
Utilize a learning management system that meets customer needs by 2017	Scott Gordy	Cyndy Edmonds, Lisa Shipley	Complete 8-31-17
Each grand division will have state of the art education facilities by 2020	Abb Oglesby	Cyndy Edmonds, Justin O’Hara (Knox only)	Active
Deliver the highest quality training and technical assistance.	Emily Miller	Johanna Owenby	Active
Subject matter experts are highly effective instructors and consultants based on annual performance evaluations	Jeff Lindsey	Operational:  Yolanda Dillard,	Complete 4-19-18 Operational
IPS agencies effectively collaborate to solve state wide problems	TBD	Leadership Team	Dec 2019 but stumbling

 
 
 
 

Goal: Develop a diverse and highly skilled workforce who embody the values of integrity, accountability and professionalism

 

Micro-goal	Leader	Team Members/ Recommendations	Status
Establish professional development guidelines for the institute by June 2017	Macel Ely	Abb Oglesby, Elisha Hodge	Complete 7-13-17
Evaluate the APR process and report recommendations by 2020	Chris Shults	N/A	January 2020
Develop a succession plan for all key positions by 2020	Tomi Rogers	John Grubbs	Complete 7-16-19
By 2022, Increase the number of diverse hires to better reflect the demographics of Tennessee and create and sustain a climate within IPS where employees know that equity and inclusivity are valued	Elisha Hodge	Angie Carrier, Steve Wyatt	Complete 3-12-19 Operational
Develop a career path for IPS job positions by 2019	TBD	Include Julie from UTHR, Tomi	Fall 2020

 

Goal: Communicate the impact, value and story of IPS

 

Micro-goal	Leader	Team Members/ Recommendations	Status
Consistent website look and feel across agencies (June 2017)	Susan Robertson	Francis Adams-O’Brien, Lisa Shipley	Complete 7-13-17
Establish an overall external and system-wide marketing strategy	Susan Robertson	Frances Adams-O’Brien	Complete 10-18-18 Operational
*Getting the right message to the    right people” through effective storytelling	Folded into overall strategy goal	Susan Robertson	Active
Influence customer perception of IPS value	Folded into overall strategy goal	Communications Team	Active
Grow customer engagement via digital platforms (website, social media, email marketing, digital remarketing) (2020)	Hannah Holder	Frances Adams-O’Brien	Active

 
As always, I’ve been paying close attention to the COVID numbers. I am aware that the trend is headed in the wrong direction right now. Please keep your guard up. Wear your masks, maintain your physical distance from others, wash your hands often for a duration of 20 seconds each time, and if you don’t feel well – stay home. This is a good time to remind you also that UT is requiring employees to get a flu shot and record such (or record your exemption) here. The Catch Up this morning also reminded you to complete the required employee self-check daily. If you need that link again, click here.
 
Another reminder I want to share with you is the UT policy compliance training available through K@te. Login to K@te using the faculty and staff button, and the training should appear as “Your Training in Progress” in a box on the right side of the screen. It’s all bundled for you to make this as easy as possible. A bonus this year on the cybersecurity training is the ability to “test out” of the training if you successfully answer the questions for each module.
 
One more reminder is that the Campus Chest campaign is ongoing. I’d really love to be able to say that MTAS had 100% participation – will you please help me with this? To get to the pledge portal, click here. If you have questions, Armintha is our coordinator extraordinaire.
 
Onto celebrations… last Friday was National Boss’ Day. I hope you took a moment to express your thanks to your supervisor. If not, hey, it’s never too late! Your leadership team works hard for you and grapples with difficult issues on a daily basis. If they make it look easy, then it’s a testament to their skills.
 
Finally, thank you to all of you who are testing the new Concur travel system. You are making suggestions and asking questions that will positively impact the travel accounting system for the entire UT system, and by the way, will make the job easier for us too. It’s a hassle to work through the kinks, and I appreciate you for taking on the frustrations you encounter. This is one of those times that some short term pains should provide for some long term smooth sailing.
 
Be well MTAS,
Margaret