Talent Acquisition and Development

Create a comprehensive university strategy to attract, acquire, develop, and retain diverse talent necessary for long-term university success.

Carlos DaSilva, Manager of Technology & Houston Center Operations; Corin Walker, Sr. Learning Technologist, and Dennis Hoebee, Director of Client Services

Technology Staff Honored

In spring 2018, two of the department's most dedicated, long-term employees were recognized by the University for their service to the institution. The criteria considered by the selection committee include:

Exhibits job performance and proficiency above and beyond the normal requirements of the job.
Demonstrates ability to relate well to all members of the University community.
Displays outstanding traits such as loyalty, dedication, enthusiasm, initiative, and reliability.
Supports the University’s activities and mission.
An outstanding achievement that is above and beyond the requirements of the job makes this nominee especially deserving of the award.

Da Silva was recognized for his above and beyond management during the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey.

Walker was recognized for her commitment to training others and as the "voice of TWU."

Faculty Performance Review System - Promotion and Tenure

The Office of Technology worked in partnership with the Faculty Performance Review Committee co-chaired by Dr. Jennifer Martin, Executive Vice Provost, and Mr. Ron Hovis, Interim Chair of Family Sciences and Special Assistant to Executive Vice Provost, to create an online system for faculty performance reviews. With expertise from Senior Integration Analyst, Svetlana Galuzinschii, and Technology Infrastructure Director, Clay Till, plus the oversight of Tiffany Peart, IT Project Coordinator, the committee established a custom solution that launched in Fall 2017.

The Faculty Performance Review System improved upon the previous procedure that required faculty to print their reviews. Since reviews are now transmitted electronically, the system helps reduce environmental impact—a progressive step in Texas Woman’s commitment to sustainable practices—and enhances efficiency since sharing reviews no longer requires mailing physical documents to reviewers both on and off campus.

The application was also designed with transparency and faculty in mind. The entire faculty review process, from review creation to final recommendations, is contained in a single web application. Faculty even have the ability to track their periodic performance, promotion, and tenure reviews at each step of the review process using the system’s built-in My Review Status tool.

Features of the System

accessible on any web browser
mobile responsive design
single sign-on with TWU credentials
flexible document upload areas allowing faculty to attach appendices to their review

Within the application, faculty can save their progress and complete each required section in any order. Convenient check marks are used to signify when a section’s requirements have been met. Quantitative data from TWU’s Student Course Evaluation System are automatically attached to a review. The option to include qualitative comments is available, as well.

Other features include new workflows for each Academic Component. Faculty and their administrators can view a consolidated list of tasks and complete pending action items using the My Worklist feature. Once a task is complete, the system moves the review to the next review stage.

Finally, when a review has completed all review steps, faculty can download the review through the system’s Completed Reviews section. Faculty now have an all-inclusive system that will archive and provide easy access to past reviews.

"The annual review of faculty performance is designed to assess the faculty member's contributions to and competencies in teaching, service, and research. Its purposes are to 1) provide a basis for professional growth and development, 2) recognize past professional performance and provide feedback to faculty who demonstrate a need for improvement, and 3) provide a structure for measuring progress systematically that will serve as basis for tenure and promotion decisions." (source)

Photo of staff who participated in the event

More than thirty staff from all three campuses attended an Administrative Professionals Workshop in Denton on April 25, 2018

Administrative Professionals Workshop

On April 25, 2018, the Office of Technology sponsored a workshop for administrative support staff on all three campuses. The facilitator, Lorinda Lewis, shared her 30+ years of experience in business communication, management and leadership skills to attendees in the full day workshop, themed UNDERSTANDING.

Topics included understanding different generations, understanding your personal style, and understanding conflict resolution. Breakfast and lunch were provided.

Over thirty staff attended the workshop and were recognized for their commitment to professional development by Texas Woman's Human Resources.

Lacey Monarch, Dennis Hoebee, and Julie Muller coordinated and hosted the workshop

Jacque Folsom, Geneva Quincy, and Shannon Sharon take a break and enjoy their gift bags

Danita Cantu, Judy Pentecost, and others enjoy a breakfast buffet

Onboarding New Hires

In fall 2017, Technology responded to a frequent request by introducing a monthly overview of technology services for new employees, Tech 101. New hires navigate the Service Catalog and Knowledge Base to become familiar with Pioneer Portal, SQL reports, installed and cloud productivity software, best practices in technology management, discounts, and more.

Assisting new employees get acquainted with new technology helps with employee retention.

New Leadership in Technology

Raechelle “Rae” Clemmons began her position as the Chief Information Officer (CIO) for Texas Woman's University Monday, August 27. Rae began her technology career in startups during the dot-com era. She later transitioned to higher education at California State University, East Bay—an institution that at the time had a student body very similar to ours. From there she has served as CIO at Menlo College in California, St. Norbert College in Wisconsin, and most recently at Davidson College in North Carolina. Rae says she transitioned to higher education because of its ability to transform lives. That calling is what particularly attracted her to Texas Woman’s.

Rae looks forward to meeting many students, faculty, and staff over the coming months. In the meantime, find Rae on Twitter @rclemmons.

Technology on the Move

Building walkthroughs allow the Technology department to find out the "pulse" on campus to address questions and discover issues. Technology staff are able to stop and help, making that call to the Service Desk or providing support on the spot. These interactions also provide the department an opportunity to promote services and events and to raise awareness of changes.

This spring, the department promoted installation and use of Google Drive File Stream and Team Drives: both solutions support other technology changes, namely the transition to Canvas and end-of-service for Sharepoint 2007. Further, these discussions guided and shaped the School of Tech offerings. Information obtained on walkthroughs also helps in creation of and edits to knowledgebase articles. This spring, the pace of walkthroughs was slowed, allowing Technology staff to take time with individuals, as needed, while working on other projects.

Interactions with employees at their workspaces creates opportunities for more effective use of technology services and provides the Office of Technology with feedback on how to improve its service to the University.

502 building walkthrough visits in Fall 2017

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484 building walkthrough visits in Spring 2018

School of Tech

For seven weeks in May and June, TWU Technology training offered 58 sessions through its School of Tech, open to all clerical and administrative staff and academic leadership at Texas Woman's. May sessions were broadcast between the three campuses. Offered in computer classrooms, the sessions followed a tell-show-do model to maximize learning and knowledge retention. By allowing for collaboration with peers and introduction to new software, tips, and techniques, these offerings support the professional development of staff at Texas Woman’s.

Expanding upon the Fishing School offered in 2016 and 2017, Technology staff added new topics, including Accessible PDFs, Advanced Pivot Tables, Classroom and Videoconference Technologies, Google Suite Interest, and Project Management Tools. Further, they took into account feedback from participants and made changes to the structure and content of the sessions.

Additionally, the Technology training team created a course catalog to assist staff in deciding which sessions to attend. The team also created handouts for each session, a practice recommended by researchers of adult learning. The slides, practice files, and handouts were made available through a Google Team Drive, allowing participants to access the material at any time. After the classes ended and through August 31, 2018, 84 users viewed 319 files in the Team Drive.

836 certificates of attendance issued to 193 individuals who participated in School of Tech

89% of participants rated the sessions as excellent or very good

"I appreciated the technical knowledge she acquired through the course of the trainings. The fact that she took advantage of the multiple training sessions indicated to me she’s a go-getter and eager to learn – attributes I very much appreciate in a team member."

-Dr. Carolyn Kapinus, Dean of the Graduate School, of an internal hire who attended School of Tech sessions

"Thank you for bringing this training to TWU faculty and staff. Thank you for making your excellent notes and slides available to everyone. Thank you for providing certificates for staff to use during performance evaluations. Thank you for the beverages and snacks at the trainings. Thank you for making the training sessions fun. But most importantly, thank you for training us so that we become better able to use the tools we have been given, which in turn makes us more valuable to our departments, and to the University. Thank you for your guidance, patience, and positive energy during the trainings. It has been a pleasure, and I am so grateful."

-Lilia Bynum, Program Coordinator, Reading Recovery

Industry-Recognized Service Desk

Technology's Service Desk has been recognized since 2012 with the prestigious HDI (Help Desk Institute) Certified Support Center award. This award signifies the team's commitment to excellence, efficiency, and service quality based on the HDI Support Center Standard.

78% Technology Service Desk first-call resolution rate

According to MetricNet’s benchmarking database, the average net FCR for service desks worldwide is about 74 percent.