The Employee Advisory Council met November 3, 2014. Items that were included in the discussion included:
Notes from the meeting are available below.
Information from previous meetings has also been posted on the blog.
The Employee Advisory Council met August 6, 2014. Items that were included in the discussion included:
Notes from the meeting are available below.
Information from previous meetings has also been posted on the blog.
The Employee Advisory Council met April 10, 2014. Items that were included in the discussion included:
Notes from the meeting are available below.
Information from previous meetings has also been posted on the blog.
The Employee Advisory Committee met January 16, 2014. Items that were included in the discussion included:
Notes from the meeting are available below.
Information from previous meetings has also been posted on the blog.
First Meeting of the UDOT Employee Advisory Council
In August, I announced a number of changes the leadership team would be implementing to better recognize our employees and their concerns. Based on feedback from surveys and focus groups earlier this year, we understood that our employees felt we could improve on providing dialogue between employees and leadership.
As a result of what we heard, we have created an Employee Advisory Council (EAC), which includes representatives from every group and region who will meet with Shane Marshall and me each quarter. The EAC will provide a direct avenue for employees to share concerns, ideas and feedback with the leadership team.
The EAC met for the first time on Oct. 3, and based on the number of topics we discussed, we decided to increase the length of our meetings from one and a half hours to two. I am excited to hear so many ideas and topics from our employees that can help make our organization even better.
During our discussion, the EAC decided to make all our meeting minutes available here on the blog, so all employees can be aware of the issues and questions we address. Also available is the full roster of EAC members, so if you have a question or concern you can pass it along for discussion at our next meeting.
Some of the topics we discussed were:
These are just highlights, but more detailed notes are available in the minutes. I encourage you to download and read the more detailed version for this meeting and those that follow. The next meeting has been scheduled for January, and all employees will receive an email from me as soon as those minutes are available.
We hope that all employees will engage the EAC and take part in our continual effort to improve as an organization. I look forward to hearing from you!
Carlos and Shane took time to speak to all of the Annual Conference attendees during the general session on Wednesday. The director and deputy director speeches have always been one of the most important parts of the conference. This is a chance for them to set a direction and energize us for the coming year and to let us know how we’ve been doing.
Carlos was first up and took us through the process he went through applying for the job as executive director. It was a multi-step process that led to a great life lesson we can all learn from. The process, or journey, itself was the important part. This gave him time to reflect and plan for UDOT’s future. Without that time, he admitted, things would be very different. The end result was the vision document we wrote about back in August. He also explained that his job is not to be the one with all the ideas but instead to provide an environment for employees to come up with, and implement, innovations that will improve how we do business. And, he’ll be right there in front, cheering us on and doing what he can to help.
Shane was up next and gave us a brief introduction of himself, shared some of the results from the annual survey and employee interviews and explained a few areas we need to improve in. Coincidentally several of the concern areas the survey and employees brought up are also part of Carlos’ vision. The big one though was transparency. The public felt this was an area we needed to improve and employee interviews echoed.
Another concern that was brought up was a need to improve communication between senior leaders and employees. To help with this an advisory committee has been formed and the first meeting has taken place. The Employee Advisory Council (EAC) will meet quarterly and Shane asked that any concerns be taken to one of the members for discussion at their next meeting.
Shane also took a minute during his presentation to clear up a rumor that has been floating around. He reassured employees that their jobs are not in jeopardy due to privatization and asked station supervisors to take that message back to their sheds.
Shane wrapped up the general session by thanking everyone and expressing his excitement and optimism for the upcoming year.
Over the past several months, our leadership team has been looking into ways to better recognize our great employees here at UDOT and listen to your ideas and concerns. Many of you have provided feedback through an online survey and in-person discussion groups. Thank you for your participation. Because of your input, we will be implementing several new programs in the coming months. Here are some of the areas we will be focusing on:
Management Training – We have some excellent managers and supervisors here at UDOT. I want to make sure they receive proper training on how to provide feedback and positive recognition to all employees. We will be implementing a new training program for all managers that will emphasize good communication and positive verbal recognition.
Award/Incentive Program – I would like to give direct supervisors a way to reward their employees for a job well done. It is a tricky balance between rewarding our employees and being fair with taxpayer dollars. However, I believe we have come up with a program that will accomplish both. Every year, each region/group will be given a number of vouchers to distribute to employees as a “pat on the back.” The vouchers can be traded in for a UDOT logoed shirt. It became apparent through the feedback we received that you are proud of the work you do at UDOT and many of you would like to have a way to display it.
Employee Advisory Council – This committee will give employees a chance to provide new ideas and voice concerns. Too often, I don’t have the chance to hear your ideas or the issues you are dealing with. Through the responses we received, some of you suggested bringing back a committee that could provide feedback to the Executive Director and Deputy Director. My hope is that the new EAC will be a direct and productive channel of communication for both sides. It will be made up of two employees from each region/group who will serve on a rotating basis.
Employee of the Year/Leader of the Year – I would like to continue to award the Employee of the Year and Leader of the Year. It’s a chance for us as a department to recognize the outstanding individuals among us. We will try to make the nomination process as simple as possible so all employees have an equal chance to be recognized. There will also be help available to each region/group in writing the application in order to make the awards process fair. One additional change, we will present the EOY and LOY awards, along with the Career Service award, at the Annual Conference banquet in November.
New Employee Orientation – We will be reintroducing a new employee orientation meeting with several changes. The goal of this session will be to give new employees a good overview of all the different areas in UDOT and an opportunity to meet and interact with the leadership team. Each group leader will be asked to present at the orientation, which will be held on a quarterly basis.
Performance Awards/ASIs – Many of you will be happy to learn that we are beginning to give Performance Awards and ASIs again on a limited basis. Where funding is available, each group and region may give performance awards to up to 6% of their employees for exceptional performance. While I recognize it is a small number, it’s a step in the right direction.
We are still working out the details on all of the new programs so please stay tuned for more information. In addition to the changes I’ve listed above, we will also continue our successful recognition programs such as the Silver Barrel awards and the annual region/complex picnics. Shane and I, along with the leadership team, will also try to be more available to all employees through formal and informal visits to each region and group.
I would like to personally thank each of you for a job well done. My hope is that we can do a better job of recognizing you for the important work you are doing for this department and the state with these new programs.
