Working alongside one another and sharing ideas to improve everyday human resources processes for university employees, two portfolios are doing just that through a collaborative effort started in June 2024.
Known as the Collaboration Committee, the group brings together subject matter experts from Human Resources, Health, Safety and Environment (HRHSE) and Shared Services to address human resources process pain points identified by university employees and leaders to improve the overall employee experience.
Many voices
The Collaboration Committee includes directors from HRHSE and Shared Services, as well as a subcommittee of employees who want to participate in the projects. “As a subcommittee, we meet to establish how we want to tackle each project. Topics generate different levels of interest, with those participating stepping up as project leads or reviewers based on their areas of expertise,” says Maureen Daly, senior officer in Employee and Labour Relations.
Subcommittee members can also bring in additional expertise to determine the best solution. “Participating in the subcommittee offers valuable exposure to project leadership and is a great learning opportunity. What makes this project unique is that subcommittee members can bring in additional expertise as needed, and it provides the chance to collaborate with colleagues you might not work with regularly,” says Maureen.
To better understand the inner workings of the Collaboration Committee, and how the team is leveraging shared knowledge and relationships to advance improvements to the human resources process, we spoke to Maureen and Terry Sawchuk, team lead, Time and Labour in Shared Services.
What projects have you worked on as a member of the Collaboration Committee?
“I worked on a process for phased retirements for MAPS employees. There were some redundancies in process, so we took a look at the current process and then looked to see what we could do to eliminate some of the redundancies. The outcome was removing a form to simplify and streamline the overall process. I also worked on improving the vacation reconciliation process for NASA employees. With this project we were able to clarify the process and put into effect a shared understanding with those who are involved in facilitating the process. We also put in an exceptions process so if something occurred and an exception was being sought, we had a mechanism and approval process attached to that.”
— Maureen Daly, senior officer, Employee and Labour Relations
“I participated in two processes identified as requiring review. The first one, now completed, was the NASA vacation process to clarify the process when staff move between different bargaining units or funding sources. I am also working on automating the distribution of probation and performance review forms to supervisors. Currently, the process is manual and rather cumbersome for departments. In collaboration with IST, we are reviewing options to provision an efficient and streamlined solution.”
— Terry Sawchuk, team lead, Time and Labour
Tell me about your experience working on the committee.
“Through my involvement on the committee, people have come to know who I am, and for some, I’ve become a point of contact. When questions or concerns about specific labour relations issues arise, they know they can reach out to me. Developing these relationships has been really beneficial. It helps me understand who people are, what they’re responsible for, and who the subject matter experts are in different areas. When something comes up, it’s much easier and more comfortable to connect with someone you already know. Since some of the group is based at Enterprise Square, I’ve also come to recognize people from the committee and know who they are. The Collaboration Committee has been a great way to build and strengthen relationships, and it’s been extremely helpful in my role.”
— Maureen Daly, senior officer, Employee and Labour Relations
“I have enjoyed working on the committee. It was mainly Maureen Daly and myself working on the vacation process, and fortunately, we were able to put the process together quite quickly.”
— Terry Sawchuk, team lead, Time and Labour
What have you enjoyed most about participating in the committee?
“The relationship piece for me has been the biggest gain for me through this project. I find the shared sense of completion and accomplishment to be rewarding because it's not just me on the team that gets to take something over the finish line. The university tends to have bigger projects with longer timelines, so getting to be a part of the quick wins, that in of itself is also very rewarding.”
— Maureen Daly, senior officer, Employee and Labour Relations
“Just my hope the documentation of these shared processes, which impact so many areas, will continue and create better consistency!”
— Terry Sawchuk, team lead, Time and Labour
The efforts of the collaboration committee has laid the foundation for a shared commitment to clarity, consistency and operational efficiency. Changes include streamlining post-retirement procedures for MAPS employees and standardizing vacation entitlements for staff moving between NASA and other staff groups or funding sources. Additional work has gone into advancing the automation of probation and performance reviews for NASA staff.
These and other changes underway reflect an employee-focused approach to reduce ambiguity, support more seamless transitions, and ensure that HR processes remain transparent and responsive to the needs of the campus community.