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Mindy
Kornberg,
assistant vice president for Human Resources/Work Environment, served
on the
Women’s Initiative Steering Committee. |
Q: What was your
most interesting discovery when you talked with employees about the
status of women at Duke?
| A:
The thing that was interesting was the consistency in the issues
raised by women from all different backgrounds. The experiences
people described were different, but the issues were consistent.
For example, the issue of respect was raised by women in entry-level
positions as well as women at the upper levels of the organization.
Most of the issues also tended to cross demographic backgrounds. |
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Overall, I would
group the issues that were consistently raised into four areas: work/life
balance, pay equity, professional
development
and work environment, which includes issues of safety and respect.
Q: Were there any
unifying themes among the various issues that were raised?
A: One underlying theme that seemed to surface is how critical
the relationship is between staff and those who supervise them.
So much
of a person’s experience and perception of the work environment
is based on this fundamental relationship.
Managing or supervising
people requires a fairly developed skill set to be successful. That’s
why programs such as “Managing
at Duke” are so important. This type of program helps supervisors
understand their roles in helping to shape the desired work environment
at Duke. The program offers managers support and resources to
help them in their jobs, but it also creates a forum for dialogue
about
the challenges managers face and how they can deal with them.
Q: The report recommends
improvements in professional development opportunities for employees.
What types of programs did employees
say they want?
A: People perceive professional development very differently.
Some think of professional development in terms of courses
or workshops,
some think of it as continuing education, some see it as mentoring
and others think of it in the context of taking on new responsibilities
or cross-functional training. Professional development is really
all of these things, and there are a wide range of professional
development opportunities available at Duke today. What came
out loud and clear
is that people want and value professional development.
Q: Work-life
balance was a prominent issue raised in your discussions with women
across
job categories. How do these issues affect
employees’ work?
A: I think Karol Rose, one of the leading experts in this
field, said it best when she said, “When work is effective, life benefits.
When life is working, work benefits.”
While we as an
employer have little control over the home life, we do have control
over work environment. Given that
employees
represent
the single largest annual investment at Duke, it is up
to us as an employer to create an environment for individuals
to
lead as
much
of a balanced work/life as possible. This is achieved through
programs like flexible work options, on-site day care,
access
to childcare
and
eldercare, and enhanced communication between employees
and supervisors.
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