student employees: from fresh faces to department experts
DESCRIPTION
Student Employees: From Fresh Faces to Department Experts. Mark Zocher Student Technology Services Manager University of San Diego August 13, 2013. A Little about USD. Private Catholic university in San Diego, CA – founded 1949 8,000+ undergrad/grad and law students ~1,500 faculty/staff - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Student Employees: From Fresh Faces to Department
Experts
Mark ZocherStudent Technology Services
ManagerUniversity of San Diego
August 13, 2013
A Little about USD
• Private Catholic university in San Diego, CA – founded 1949
• 8,000+ undergrad/grad and law students
• ~1,500 faculty/staff• Focus on business/arts• Top 10 “beautiful
campuses” in USA• #1 for participation in
Study Abroad
Our ITS Help Desk
• Employs 20-45 student employees• Responsible for student support via
phone, web, and in person• Tradition of “White Glove” style of
supportSTSM (Full time staff)
Lead: Customer
Experience
Cust Experience
Team
Lead: Marketing
Marketing Team
Lead: Technical
Senior Student Techs
Lead: Administrati
ve
Admin Team
Lead: Training
Training Team
HD Manager (Full Time
Staff)
Phone Analysts (x3)
Survey of 200+ IT Alumni
• Alumni from public, private, and community colleges
• Included alumni in careers as IT, education, public health, banking, engineering, hospitality, marketing, and law
• Worked in areas similar those of my students•80% - Computer Repair (Software)•73% - Phone-based Technical Support•64% - Computer Repair (Hardware)•53% - Computer Lab Supervision•44% - Managing Employees
First: Some Clarification
• “Department Experts”? Really Mark?
• Schools picking smarter and smarter students each yr
• All “Digital Natives”• Need for internships and
real life experience• How many times have
managers of graduating seniors thought, “Will we ever have another Jim or Sue?”
Big Differences Between Managing Students & Staff
• Millenial generation• A group of “Eager
Beginners”• Guaranteed Turnover – can
try different things• ~3 year shelf life
Image: Ken Blanchard, Situational Leadership
Why You Want Student Employees
• Affordability*(remember to factor in training)
• Participate in the education of students
• Fresh ideas• Relates to customers• Guaranteed Turnover
– can try different things
Why Student Employees Want You
• Competitive job market = need for experience
• 83% said the skills they learned as a student employee helped them get a full time job
• Mentorship – 74% of those with mentors said their mentorship contributed to them getting a full time job
Hiring
• Make sure it meets your dept needs
• Don’t limit recruiting to certain majors
• Group interviews, multiple chances to prove themselves
• Focus on customer service skills
Onboarding / Day 1
• Make sure the culture and goals of the department are clear
• Don’t gloss over policies thinking they know them already
• Involve others from IT -“It takes a village”
Onboarding Training: What I Did
Wednesday:• BBQ/Scavenger Hunt:
meet new coworkers and ITS team
• Name Game (45 min)• FISH! Customer Service
video/discussionThursday:• How training works• Policies/Procedures• Icebreakers: team juggle
(multitasking) and telephone
• Intro to Networking (w/ tangerines)
• Tech Rotations•Torero ready Setups•Windows Support•Mac OS X Support•Mobile devices/Gaming
Friday:• MORE rotations
•Obstacle Course•Residence Hall Etiquette
sketches•Tech Tools•Art of Tempura
• One Red Paperclip
Ongoing Training/EDP
• Make sure everyone has a base knowledge
• If possible, encourage cross training with other areas
• Decide: Structured assignments (EDP) or semi-directed learning (Achievements)
• Help people play to their strengths!
Evaluations
• Meet 2x / semester
• Clear expectations, no surprises
• Include feedback from leads and peers
• Have leads run evaluations?
Evaluations - Rubric
Keep It Memorable
Ask yourself:• What would I or my
staff appreciate as recognition?
• What are the positive things about work I share with my family/friends at the end of the day?
Keep It Memorable
Shadowing New Techs
• Save you the trouble of retraining every year – have them do it!
• Great use for your leads
• Encourage cross training, require prospective leads clock shadowing hours
Alumni Power
• Share job listings & news – encourage others to do the same!
• Find ways to keep your alumni connected(LinkedIn, Facebook Group, etc)
Where Do You Get Started?
• Identify tasks or projects• Don’t ask “What work
can a student do?” – instead ask “What work needs to be done?”
• Keep from limiting you (or your student’s) imagination
• Keep from losing knowledge when students graduate – make documentation and shadowing a part of the culture (or at least the job requirements)
Remember What Skills Alumni Want
When alumni were polled about what skills they *wished* they had received as student employees, the answers were predominately soft skills
Project Management
Managing Employees
Leading or developing training courses
Computer Repairs (Software)
Computer Repairs (Hardware)
Phone-based Technical Support
Chat/Email-based Technical Support
Other (Please Specify)
Student/Financial Application Management
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60%
Thank you!
Resources and copy of slides(to be posted later today):
http://mark.zocher.us/projects/studenttechs
Reading Material:• Made To Stick• The Power of
Habit