Over the past few months, we’ve been focused on one of the most important parts of the Employee Experience Survey—turning your feedback into action. Across the University, leaders and managers have been sharing results, talking with their teams, and identifying priorities together. Now, we’re moving into the next phase: putting those plans into motion, tracking our progress, and making adjustments along the way. This is a shared effort, and everyone has a role in helping to improve the workplace environment.
Action planning progress across the University
We checked in with some of our managers to hear how action planning is taking shape in their areas—and what they’re learning along the way. Here is what they told us.
“In sharing the results with my team, I found that the heatmap and analytics pages offered a more robust review of the data and provided additional opportunities for feedback. As a manager, I asked questions, took questions, and provided my team with space to provide open and honest input.” —Shelley Zoeke, manager of academic finance and operations in Computer Science at Hajim
“When we reviewed the survey results together—first as a full team, then in smaller groups—what stood out was how engaged the team was in the conversation. We heard confirmation that work already underway is on the right track. It also surfaced thoughtful ideas for where we can do more. Now, team members have stepped up to help turn those ideas into action through a pilot program.” —Maren Powell, business operations manager, University Marketing and Communications
“Our team shared a lot of ideas for improving how we recognize people on the unit—and making sure that recognition actually feels meaningful. I’m not sure we would have gotten this level of input without the survey. The great thing is, many of the suggestions are pretty straightforward and feel very doable for our leadership team.” —Alexa Consul, nurse manager
“People worry about change when they feel like it’s going to leave them behind or compromise their values. That’s why it was important for us to survey our staff—to understand what they value and what’s important to them. You’ve got to have the people in it. They have to be in it.” —John Blackshear, vice president for student life
“A lot of what we heard on 6 South wasn’t surprising—it lined up with what we’ve been hearing in regular staff check-ins. But the survey really helped reinforce and sharpen our focus. It confirmed that some of the work already underway should continue, while also pointing us to a few areas where we need to do more.” —Jessica Milnikiewicz, nurse manager, Golisano Children’s Hospital
“Facilities & Services shared its survey results in stages. Supervisors and above reviewed a presentation of the findings first; the same content was then shared with all staff. Smaller group sessions are planned for September, using a prepared list of questions, to gather more detailed feedback across a workforce of over 800 people.” —Alan McNiff, senior AVP Facilities and Services
“The survey gives us a chance to pause and reflect on the past year. It’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day and miss how much has changed—or the impact of those changes. It’s also a great opportunity to recognize and appreciate the team.” —Amy Keller, senior nurse manager
“I think it was really nice to see the survey results and be able to break it down by different groups. We really started to dissect that and then work with our group within the department to pick out the things that we think we can make a difference in. And then we’ve messaged that back out to the staff, because the one thing I wanted everybody to realize was that you did this survey, and now we’re actually looking at the results and taking it seriously.” —Ryan Fields, MD, FACS, Seymour I. Schwartz Professor of Surgery and chair
If you would like to share your team’s action planning story and progress, please email HRConnect@rochester.edu and our editor will reach out to learn more.
Employee Experience: Next Conversation with Leaders
The next Employee Experience Conversation with Leaders will take place this fall and focus on one of our strategic priority areas, safety. Leaders will share the initiatives planned and underway to drive improvement. More information will be available soon.
