TM Newsletter

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This fall we are particularly excited to announce the launch of two new University-wide Employee Resource Groups as well as two new leadership development programs. Keep reading to learn more about these, and other, development opportunities.

Kind regards, 
Christy Helms, Senior Director for Talent Management 

Employee Resource Groups

University-wide Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) are being launched at Penn State. These voluntary, employee-led groups are created by employees who share common identities, backgrounds, or interests, and help foster inclusion and belonging. ERGs define their own mission and vision in alignment with Penn State’s values and objectives. They support the personal needs and professional growth of employees, while also shaping organizational culture, contributing to success in recruitment, retention, and supporting Penn State’s land-grant mission. 

The two inaugural ERGs being launched this fall are: 

  • Rainbow Roar: for LGBTQ+ Community Members and Allies; 
  • Vet-aLIONce: for Servicemembers, Veterans, Military Spouses, and Allies; 

If you are interested in forming a new University-wide ERG at Penn State, please send an email to [email protected] for additional information. 

Leadership & Management  

We’d like to highlight three leadership development opportunities available as part of our Leadership Foundations program. 

  • Registration for Management Concepts will launch in November with classes beginning in January 2024. Stay tuned for a Penn State Today article announcing this program.
  • Transition to Supervision welcomed its first cohort this fall. This program is intended for emerging and new supervisors. 
  • The Connected Leaders Academy (CLA), is available to Penn State employees again in 2024. McKinsey & Company created this program to increase the number of employees from underrepresented populations in leadership positions by improving talent pipelines and unlocking the full potential of existing employees. Read our recent Penn State Today article to learn more about this exciting program. If you are interested in participating in one of the available cohorts in February, April, or June 2024, please submit an expression of interest as soon as possible.  
Change Management

Managing Change: How to Think About It in a Different Way is a new program available in Spring 2024. This session dives into different aspects of change and how we interpret and manage change. Because change affects everyone differently, there is no “normal”. In many ways, how we adapt to change is impacted by our attitudes and perspective. Thinking about how to manage change differently can help us move forward even in difficult times. We encourage you to sign up now. 

Organizational Development

In addition to our training and development programs, we can support your organizational development needs with customized solutions! Our team has experience administering programs that leverage tools such as CliftonStrengths; DiSC; Change Style Indicator; Social Styles; Emotional Intelligence 2.0; the Thomas-Kilmann Index; and Enneagrams. Additionally, we offer executive and leadership coaching services for managers, as well as Manager 360 Assessment feedback through the LPI platform. To learn more, please submit an inquiry.

Additional Learning
  • Check out this Podcast from Supermanagers: Are You Being the Bottleneck or Building the Bridge? Lessons on Cross-Functional Leadership with Sabrina Leblanc, VP of Customer Success at SurveyMonkey. In this episode, listeners will dive into how to approach friction between two cross-functional departments, why healthy conflict should be encouraged, and how to promote a growth mindset at work.  
  • Want to dig into more conflict resolution skills development? Check out this LRN training
  • Leading With Strengths - Watch interviews with leaders from around the world as they reveal the hidden layers of their own unique strengths and how they have used them to be successful. 
  • Review these 5 strategies for building team trust and boosting collaboration. BONUS – interested in tip #5 – Make feedback a part of team culture? Our team can help you plan a workshop. Submit an inquiry to learn more. 

There is still time to register for our fall Individual Development Programs. Check out these courses: 


 

Short on Time? Then take advantage of our On-Demand Learning Playlist Library where you will find 17 topical playlists that each include courses, videos, articles, and books, on the subject selected, that you can view at your leisure.

 

Now is a great time of the year to have a conversation about performance. With the performance review year flying along and well into the Manage Goals phase, we wanted to encourage folks to take advantage of one of the following opportunities: 

To support those ongoing conversations, we also encourage using one of the following Workday opportunities to capture your notes: 

For more information and resources, please visit the Talent Management webpages or the WorkLion Knowledge Base. For any additional questions, please submit an inquiry.