Staff Newsletter | Tuesday, March 8, 2022
“We are one, we are strongest working together in unity.” – 1 Corinthians: 12:14
At this point in my career, I am not surprised when I hear staff express how much they love working at the Y; however, the intensity of the circumstances we find ourselves in seems to illicit an even greater feeling of pride and inspiration when I hear you share why you work at the Y … why you CHOSE the Y. I got teary-eyed listening to you share on Friday. The deep commitment to the work of the Y shines through, as does the clear understanding that the communities we serve are hurting and need us more than ever before. I have always believed a Y employee chooses this work because they have a heart for serving and a deep commitment to making a difference in the lives of those around them. Working through these past two years has challenged us to make abrupt course directions and continuously adapt in the face of tremendous disruption, but throughout the turmoil, never have you lost hope that we will persevere and prevail as a strength for the communities we serve.
In addition to our ability to adapt and persevere, our organization has drawn closer together, leaned on one another, and developed a greater awareness of how interdependence makes us stronger. This past Saturday, I attended a joint Annual Campaign kickoff for the Morgan and Lakewood teams. I remember not too long ago that our centers competed for members who crossed over into programs between centers; today, there is a deeper appreciation that we are One Y, and that we are stronger working together by capitalizing on each other’s strengths. Over the past few months, I have seen some incredible examples of interdepartmental collaborations that have produced phenomenal results, which have greatly benefitted our organization. Recruiting employees has become critical to our overall success, particularly in Child Care. In January, we had to close seven sites because we did not have enough staff to operate them. Human resources, marketing, and operations joined together to develop new pathways for recruitment, drawing from high schools, employee referrals, and using new posting platforms; we have also refreshed our internal posting process and the way we describe our positions. Slowly, the tide is turning and new employees are being added to the team. As these new employees are being added, the onboarding process has been streamlined, removing barriers that previously slowed the timely activation of staff.
Over the past nine months, our association has taken a hard look at itself, recognizing there were some aspects of our culture that needed to change. Prior to COVID, we had declared staff experience as being our number one priority. Looking back, I recognize I did not elevate that commitment nearly enough. As was pointed out to me recently, the message of encouraging staff to use their allotted PTO did not ring true, but rather, staff feel they are expected to always be working. If there is one thing we have learned through the pandemic, it is that taking care of yourself is paramount and using your vacation time is necessary, and encouraged. We have also recognized that our previous performance measurement matrix was flawed. It was painful to try to use one tool to measure all employees’ performance. This year, we will shift to a tool that assesses performance through continuous conversations with your supervisor, focusing on your contributions and areas for your professional development. This method of performance evaluation introduces the importance of mentorship and encourages coaching and guidance as vital to the process.
Last July, we instituted a 3% wage adjustment for everyone on the team. This January, we repeated that process for our entire team with a 2.75% adjustment across the board. We also contracted with a third party to assess our salary structure, recognizing there has been a lot of change with respect to the labor market and competitive wages. We have recently received the results of that assessment, and a team led by Michelle Rose has begun working on an implementation plan for the association. In the meantime, we have determined that another wage adjustment will be made within the next few weeks to address some important roles in key areas. Unfortunately, not everyone will receive an adjustment at this time. Michelle and Brian Flattum, with input from executive directors and vice presidents, put in a great deal of time using a matrix that considers years of service, adjustments received over the past nine months, positions that were clearly behind the market rate, and hire date – alongside recognizing high performance. Wages are a critical piece to investing in staff culture, and we are committed to following through on our promise. I do feel it is important for me to say that we have stretched a great deal thus far. We know there is more work to do, but the compensation adjustments over the past nine months, the expansion of our retirement fund, absorption of the 2022 medical plan benefits increase, and the year-end gift card are all part of our investments in you.
Staff culture is our number one priority; having a strong culture is vital to our success. Culture means a lot of different things to each of you. Having an opportunity to share what is important to you will be a crucial element to ensuring that we build the best culture possible for all of us. The exercise we went through on Friday was a step toward that objective, creating a platform for each of us to feel comfortable expressing ourselves, sharing how it feels to work for our Y. It may not be easy for you to share in that format, but I hope that listening to your peers sent a strong message that you, too, are encouraged to share and that your input matters. Your voice does matter, and your contribution makes us stronger. As we navigate the challenges put in front of us, it becomes acutely clearer to me: we are better working together, and we need to continue to discover how to rely on one another. I believe the power of our Y lies in the One Y concept. Thank you for your contribution; you make a profound difference to our Y and to the people we serve, and to each other.
#OneY #StayStrong #StayWithUs