Organizational and Human Resource (OHR)

Below I have outlined my work toward achieving advanced proficiency in this area. To read more about this competency and my current proficiency level, you can read the narrative in this page.

Competency Overview

The competency of Organizational and Human Resources (OHR) focuses on the knowledge and skillset necessary for student affairs professionals to manage institutional resources in the form of human capital, financial resources, physical space, and technological resources (ACPA & NASPA, 2015). In essence, this competency challenges professionals not only to assess the overall resources available to the unit, department, or institution, but to determine how to use those resources in the most efficient way to meet departmental or institutional goals.

At the foundational level, this means understanding how the department or institution may currently use resources and ways to enhance efficiency. At the intermediate level, these professionals implement improvement measures with respect to budgeting, hiring and supervising, communicating with others, and using institutional facilities. Operating at the advanced level, these professionals are concerned with resource management at the macro-level, described as "broadening sustainability efforts" across the organization, "anticipating future needs of students," and "lead[ing] cross-divisional teams" (ACPA & NASPA, 2015, p. 26). At the advanced level, this leader is actively involved in data-informed decision making for the institution that supports their students and staff in the most efficient way given the resources they have and develops ways to gain more resources to promote their mission and goals.

My Competency Level & Applied Knowledge

I would describe my level of development in this competency area as intermediate. While I believe I have a foundational knowledge of how to allocate resources within my unit, I believe my experiences have challenged me to implement these strategies for more efficient use of resources. As the hiring manager the Spring 2022 semester, I was tasked with heading up the applicant and interview process.

The outreach for this position included emailing all students above a 2.5 GPA and contacting professional staff within the institution to encourage those in leadership positions from athletics, EOP, Honors, and Residence Life to apply. To ensure I was practicing ethical and equitable hiring procedures, I knew I needed to engage with Social Justice and Inclusion (SJI) competency to ensure I did not project my whiteness on the expectations of those in the role. I had to remember that Buffalo State's population is 55% students of color, meaning that I had an obligation to hire students who accurately represented the population of the student body.

The problem I have in the supervisor role is that I have a demanding workload outside of the supervisory role (reviewing files, travelling for recruitment events, and communicating with prospective students, for example). While I love to connect with the ambassadors, develop skills, and determine ways I can foster their growth in this role, I find that I take up too much time talking with ambassadors that I am unable to catch up on my other responsibilities. To resolve this issue, I have decided to institute a "social hour" after the Admissions Office closes where I can sit with students in the library or dining hall and talk with them about their lives, majors, and their future plans. This informal setting and structure is done in effort to supplement the time I am unable to meet with them during the week. With 30 ambassadors, it is difficult to make time to meet with each one. I am reminded, however, of a simple yet powerful phrase when it comes to meeting with those that you supervise -- "make time."

While this may seem overly simplistic to those that are overworked with multiple competing demands, it is especially important in this role to recognize that the undergraduates I supervise are in this role to develop professionally. Furthermore, in my coursework for Management Systems and Leadership in Higher Education (HEA 619), I learned the importance of how to have efficient meetings and make others feel valued in their roles. It is my responsibility to recognize their strengths and work with them on ways they can improve in this role and in others. I believe in this way, I will foster a team that feels supported, valued, and motivated to put their energy into this position.

I also worked with my colleague to challenge the current on-boarding procedures in place for the ambassadors. The challenge we had was that we hired ambassadors based on a virtual application and virtual or in-person interview. This, however, limited both our understanding of the student's abilities to perform the job well and the student's understanding of their expectations in this role. Not to mention distributing ambassador attire (beanies, jackets, polos, and t-shirts) to all new hires, which are resources that are lost if the student decides the position is not a good fit for them. We developed a new procedure for onboarding that gives prospective applicants explicit expectations of the role and tells us more about their interest and motivation to do the job well. We also considered interest meetings for those who would like to join the team of ambassadors, a probationary period prior to final evaluation that will ensure students are committed to the position, and follow-up meetings in the subsequent weeks to make sure the student is having a positive experience in the role.

Advancement in OHR

To enhance my proficiency in this area, I would like to focus on budgeting. While I often have cost-saving ideas and have learned a bit in my Strategic Planning and Finance course (HEA 620), I am rarely challenged to manage a budget or have developed the skills needed to assess how to improve a unit's budget. I will be looking for opportunities to develop these skills in my current or next role to develop proficiency in this area.

References

American College Personnel Association & National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (2015). Professional Competency Areas for Student Affairs Educators. https://buffalostate.open.suny.edu/bbcswebdav/pid-1819821-dt-content-rid-17029589_1/courses/202030-HEA624-1665/ACPA_NASPA_Professional_Competencies.pdf.