What is a Tar Heel Team? That’s what several dozen Finance and Administration staff members wanted to know when they were invited to the “Tar Heel Team Kick-Off” on July 25.
A Tar Heel Team is a small, focused group of Service Center of Excellence (SCE) staff members who collaborate on high priority tasks necessary to the successful Oct. 3 launch of the SCE. When planning for the launch of the service center, the SCE implementation team recognized that they would need staff input and support to achieve success in the areas they identified as the highest priorities. At the July kick-off, Tar Heel Team members learned more about expectations of the team sponsors, who are the SCE executive directors for each service area, and provided input on the team mission and assignments.
Six Tar Heel Teams were established in the following areas:
Communications and Branding
Responsible for developing and implementing a communication strategy for the launch of the SCE.
- Team members include Allison Reid (sponsor), Janet Kelly-Scholle (team lead), Stephanie Berrier, Cathy Hatley and Donna Stelzenmuller.
- The primary project for the Communications Team is to develop a content calendar of news stories to share with the SCE staff.
Forms & Resources
Responsible for developing necessary SCE forms for launch and for establishing the process to design and approve forms post launch.
- Team members include Carly Perin (sponsor), Toni Horton (team lead), Doni Posey, Bea Muganda, Gary Wilhelm, Laurie Burroughs and Lisa Hierman.
- One of the key priorities for Forms & Resources team is to identify forms needed for the SCE, categorized by units, services within the units, and by the level of importance/need within those units.
On-Boarding
Responsible for developing an efficient and consistent onboarding program for employees of the SCE.
- Team members include Bill Stockard (sponsor), Tracy Agnew (team lead), Alison Kidd, Jena Kiser and Lisa Daley.
- A couple of the products that the On-Boarding Team is working on include an employee handbook for F&A Service Center employees and a supervisor’s checklist for new employees.
Technology
Responsible for developing and implementing a technology support plan for the move and initial launch of the SCE.
- Team members include Ray Reitz (sponsor), Dan Barker (team lead), Kyle McKay, Norma Newton, Trish Batchelor, Frank Tarantino, Frankford Johnson and John “JC” Petersen.
- One of the major goals of the Technology Team is to develop a project plan which identifies the technology needs of the new location.
Training
Responsible for developing a training program for the launch of the SCE.
- Team members include Bill Stockard (sponsor), Jackie Overton (team lead), Michele Bowen, Kathy Umphlett, Laurie Farrar
- A couple of the training programs the team is developing include training to learn the new “Remedy” customer support system and an Excel training program.
Transportation
Responsible for developing and implementing SCE plans for campus parking, modes of transportation between Roberson Building and campus, including assistance for personal transportation and mail and courier route.
- Team members include Carly Perin (sponsor), Laura Corin (team leader), James Balfour, Barry Crossett and Lynn Farrar
- The Transportation Team is creating a list of anticipated transportation needs at the new SCE location and are developing a matching list of transportation options for new staff.
Since the kick-off, teams have been meeting weekly and working on group tasks between meetings to make sure they meet the deadlines they have set for themselves.
“The great thing about our Tar Heel Teams is that they are composed of staff who will be in the SCE,” said Carly Perin, executive director of the SCE Finance group. “We are relying on the very people who will be working in the SCE to help create the processes and materials that they will be using from day one. It creates a sense of ownership and ensures that our solutions are workable.”
We will highlight the work of each Tar Heel Team in future issues of the SCE Newsletter.