Staff Initiatives

Improving the Staff Experience at IUB

In February 2023, IU Provost and Executive Vice President Rahul Shrivastav and Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer Todd Richardson announced a new staff initiative to bolster the staff experience on the IUB campus.

This ongoing, iterative initiative is designed to effectively recruit, retain, and engage a talented and vibrant staff. It reflects our commitment to remaining an outstanding place to work, learn, and grow.

Perk Spotlight

The Center of Excellence for Women & Technology

  • Frequent, free technology skill-building workshops
  • Empowerment series luncheons with dynamic speakers
  • Mentorship through the eMentor program
  • Free admission to the Summit conference

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Additional staff perks

  • Special membership rates for faculty/staff:
  • Membership includes group exercise sessions, equipment checkout, pools, courts, and more:

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  • Community-building and resource connection

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  • Giveaways
  • Wellness programs
  • Workshops on topics like nutrition, smoking cessation, flu shots, and more

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  • Courtesy escorts
  • Safety education
  • 24/7 police services

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  • Free consulting services during regular consulting hours

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  • Union membership for non-exempt administrative staff
  • Access to millions of books
  • Makerspace equipment: Button makers, cameras, microphones, sewing machines, etc.
  • 3D printer access
  • Media collection: Films, TV series, CDs, etc.
  • Online streaming platforms
  • Access to newspapers, Rosetta Stone, and Ancestry.com
  • Library tours available

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  • Frequent, free technology skill-building workshops
  • Empowerment series luncheons with dynamic speakers
  • Mentorship through the eMentor program
  • Free admission to the Summit conference

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  • Innovation Fund: Grants for sustainability projects
  • Catalyst Awards: Recognition of sustainability champions
  • Campus sustainability data and reports: Available on request
  • Event partnerships: Tree plantings, cleanups, farm visits
  • Lending of zero waste materials: Energy meters, signage, etc.

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  • Brochures, magazines, tote bags, rain ponchos
  • Campus tour facilitation for new staff

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  • Early care and learning centers for children ages 6 weeks–5 years
  • Family resources for affiliates with young children

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  • Art-based wellness experiences
  • Special events and gallery access

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  • Public screenings open to everyone
  • Accessible-priced events
  • Programming collaboration opportunities

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  • Affordable printing services for individual staff and departments

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  • Events and workshops on Asian American and Pacific Islander history and culture
  • Language learning programs
  • Mental health and wellness counseling
  • Volunteer opportunities

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  • Event and meeting spaces
  • Overnight lodging accommodations for family weekends, retreats
  • Team-building programs for staff and departments

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  • Arts and humanities events and connections
  • Engagement in campus festivals: First Thursdays Festival, Cook Center for Public Arts and Humanities
  • Collaborations with units across campus

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New Staff Resource Fair

On April 7th, 2025, IUB welcomed its new staff members with a collaborative event at Alumni Hall in the IMU. Hosted by the Provost's Office, the day began with a welcome presentation, setting the stage for a dynamic resource fair where various IU departments showcased a wealth of opportunities and invaluable resources tailored to support and empower our newest team members.

IUB's Commitment to Staff

Broadly, in alignment with the initiative, IUB is committed to: 

  • Increasing the sense of belonging and well-being among staff, including strengthening resources dedicated to overall health and access to medical care. 
  • Ensuring more equitable compensation, workloads, and working environments across campus. 
  • Providing staff with robust professional growth and development opportunities, including clarified career pathways. 
  • Leveraging clear and actionable data about the staff experience to empower supervisors to be increasingly responsive to employee ideas and opportunities. 

The initiative focuses on pursuing several tangible improvements, with updates outlined: 

  • Jamie Gayer transitioned into the role of IUB Senior HR Director in July 2023 and is actively collaborating with HR partners across campus to enhance the staff experience. 

  • IU HR has begun implementing market-based compensation ranges for Student Services; Educational Resources and Technology; Research; and Legal, Safety, and Protection job families. 
  • IU HR is committed to expanding the benchmarking process across all job families and reviewing data on a planned schedule. 

  • In 2023, the Staff Merit Award program doubled the award value and increased the total number of recipients selected. For 2024, the nomination process is being simplified, to make the program more accessible. 
  • Based on feedback from the campus community, the Long Service Recognition program’s reception date will be held within the same calendar year employees reach their service milestone. The next reception will be held in November 2024, to celebrate all who reach milestones this year.  
  • In place of a campus-wide reception, retirement celebrations will be held at the departmental level to emphasize the depth and quality of departmental connections. 

  • In March 2024, IUB launched Marathon Health Employee Health Center, which offers IUB employees comprehensive primary, acute (sick), and mental/behavioral health care in a convenient, affordable setting. 
  • IU Human Resources and Healthy IU are committed to supporting Hoosiers’ mental health and well-being. They have created a designated Workplace Mental Health website to ensure employees’ needs are met.  

  • This iterative and evolving process’s foundation rests on onboarding materials collected from HR leaders across campus. It will continue to be a focal point for the campus over the next year, as campus HR leaders work in alignment with a university-wide onboarding development project. 

  • Over the past year, the Office of the Provost has strengthened its relationship with the Bloomington Staff Council to increase understanding of staff perspectives on topics of importance to the campus community. A regular meeting cadence is in place to ensure consistent communication.   
  • In summer 2024, the Office of the Provost redefined a current employee’s position to focus directly on the staff experience at IU Bloomington. Raluca Glunk, project management specialist, will begin developing deeper relationships with the staff council, union leadership, and HR partners to increase awareness of staff development opportunities, gather knowledge of the employee experience, and ensure communications to staff meet employee needs. 

  • By spring 2024, Performance at IU was running full speed, with conversations happening at every level across campus. These conversations are now echoing in each department, as the feedback gathered sprouts new ideas and pathways for success.  
  • The Bloomington campus had an overall success rate of 95% for eligible employees having expectations conversations with their supervisors. This equates to more than 3,800 employees. 

  • IU HR is continuing to expand upon its leadership development program, Leading at IU, with in-person and online learning experiences that will provide learning and growth opportunities to emerging, experienced, and executive-level leaders. 
  • IU is committed to strengthening its leaders and, in turn, building stronger, more successful teams. Leading at IU offers self-guided e-learning, real-time, and peer-to-peer learning, mentoring, and one-on-one coaching by the IUHR Talent & Organization Development team. 
  • The firstLeading at IU serieslaunched in Fall 2024. 

  • My Voice at IU is a continuous process to increase employee engagement and ensure IU remains a workplace of choice. 2024 is a survey year, with deployment in fall 2024.