New Employee Guidebook
Now that you have finished your Employee Checklist, this guide provides additional resources and information for the rest of your first year. Learn about everything from DAR’s organizational makeup to career development, and don’t hesitate to contact any of the members of Talent Management for support along the way!
Get to know DAR
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Directory: Review all DAR and affiliate staff by department. An employee’s team, if applicable, will be listed in their working title.
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About Departments Page: Understand DAR’s organizational makeup with this page that outlines each department, their teams and major functions.
DAR Sites and Systems
| Site/System | Purpose |
|---|---|
| ALEX | Interactive benefits decision-support tool |
| Cardinal | Enroll in benefits and retirement |
| Chrome River | Travel pre-approval site, find the "Chrome River" link on the right hand side of VCU's Travel webpage. |
| Collegiate Travel Planners | Travel service provider for higher education. Find the "Collegiate Travel Planners" link on the right hand side of VCU's Travel webpage. |
| eServices | Hub for employee information: V number, Paystub, leave balance, personal employee information, edit your direct deposit, name or social security number change |
| Equity & Access | VCU's equity and accessibility services and reporting system |
| myVCU | Employee homepage for one-stop access to many helpful VCU links |
| RealTime | Leave requests and timekeeping entries (optional RealTime training available on Talent). |
| Talent | VCU training, performance reviews and SMART goal entry |
Events and Gatherings
New employee-specific events: Newcomer Summit at DAR
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The Newcomer Summit is an in-person gathering required of all employees hired within the past six months. Newcomer Summit is an event for new employees to meet and build community with each other, and provides the context and information you need to thrive in your first year. This summit includes an in-depth history of DAR, networking opportunities, a Q&A panel and team-building exercises.
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When is it? You will receive a Google calendar invite and email notification from the learning and development programs manager.
Annual All DAR Retreat
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The All DAR Retreat is typically an in person annual event in the fall for all DAR employees. The Retreat includes guest speakers, breakout sessions and department wide team building exercises. Look for communication from Talent Management in late summer for details.
Quarterly All Staffs
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DAR comes together every quarter in person (virtual is also an option) so Jay can review major department-wide announcements and events and share any upcoming changes or updates. All staffs also typically include a guest speaker and share outs from various department leaders as needed.
Town Halls
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Town Halls are a community style meeting to address situational topics or events. Jay holds these as needed and provide opportunities for staff to ask questions directly.
Team Retreats
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It is common for teams to have annual retreats or get togethers for team building, strategic planning, and training. Check in with your direct supervisor to see what you can expect from your team.
Get Involved
Learn more about what the Advisory Council does for DAR and how you can get involved.
Each role has an associated career community. Learn more on VCU's Career Communities webpage.
VCU and DAR organize numerous volunteer opportunities. Learn more here!
Performance Management and Career Development
The Performance Management process begins in January for all employees, and includes reviewing goals, completing reviews in Talent and meeting with your manager to discuss previous and future objectives. Learn more on the Performance Management webpage, or by reviewing the Performance Management Guide.
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Your first year at VCU is a little different from the rest in that your performance management process will include a one year probationary period. This period comes with a unique employee review cycle and schedule of meetings with your hiring manager.
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Learn more about the probationary period in the Probationary Period section of the Performance Management webpage (at the bottom) and page 20 of the VCU Performance Management Guide for first year employees.
- SMART goals are a part of the performance management process, its an opportunity for employees to co-create goals for the year with their manager. SMART goals establish objectives and enable your manager to monitor performance and gauge progress towards advancement.
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After creating and reviewing your goals together in January, employees will submit their goals in Talent in February. Your manager will reach out around this time to begin scheduling these performance review meetings and walk you through the process of reviewing and submitting your goals on Talent.
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Examples and resources: SMART goals sometimes require specific keywords, so it’s not a bad idea to review how they can be written and structured. Check out some examples in this video on Talent, or review the SMART Goals Library on Smartsheet, organized by role.
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Keep in mind that although these resources are helpful as examples, SMART goals are ultimately meant to be personalized and specific to the duties within your unique role. Your greatest resource will be meeting with your manager to go over major goals of your role and what you want to accomplish in the upcoming year.
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Questions? Contact Carolyn Lee at clee23@vcu.edu
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It starts with an open conversations. Both VCU and DAR prioritizes career development, we take the acknowledgement, advancement and dreams of our staff seriously. That’s why we have an annual mandatory career development process, a space for employees to safely and openly discuss their professional plans and dreams with their hiring manager.
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New skills, opportunities, transfers, and more: Career development meetings could include goals for advancement in your role, new skill sets you would like to acquire, conferences or trainings you hope to experience, or future goals to transfer to another role in DAR, VCU, or beyond.
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Learn more about what Career Development at VCU entails and the resources to help outline your career goals on the Career Development webpage.
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Questions? Contact Carolyn Lee at clee23@vcu.edu
Further your education at VCU
VCU provides a unique opportunity for full time employees to go back to school, for free. Learn about how to qualify for the Tuition Benefit program for tuition at VCU, or the Tuition Reimbursement program for tuition at other universities on the Tuition Benefit page.
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Perks and Discounts
VCU offers a wide array of perks and discounts, ranging from realty services to free clinics. Check out all the options on the Work/Life webpage.