UMUC's Online Employee Orientation Program: A Case Study in Collaboration

By Pamela Oldham
Special to FYI Online

In 1999, Belinda Adams, training manager for UMUC's Office of Human Resources, heard that Ruth Markulis, director of training for Student Affairs, had begun work on an online orientation program about her department. The concept intrigued Adams. What if, she thought, Markulis' idea could be expanded to serve as the basis for creating a new orientation about the entire University? Adams picked up the phone and called Markulis. The rest, as the saying goes, is history.

UMUC's Online Employee Orientation Program debuted in early 2000, after much painstaking work and a series of demonstration previews to gain feedback from university leadership, supervisors, and interested employees. More than 700 people have gone through the orientation program since its launch, including new employees and those with Student Affairs who also use the program as a tool for student services and a host of other mission-critical purposes.

The online sessions reside on UMUC's Intranet, on a Web Tycho interactive site. Lessons include an overview and history of the University, its mission, and objectives. In addition, the program also offers guidelines and instructions on a variety of practical matters, including scheduling calendars, voice mail systems, and computer applications.

Access to the sessions is password-protected, and each employee works through the material at his or her own pace. Adams and Markulis worked with an outside firm, KC Resources, to obtain graphic design services and to incorporate the orientation content into the online lesson format.

The program enables the University to deliver consistent information to its geographically dispersed workforce in a format that is available 24 hours a day.

"New employees are highly productive within the first few weeks of employment," Adams said. "They become knowledgeable about the University faster than ever before and quickly learn where to locate the resources they need to do their jobs well."

Adams explains the online sessions represent just one component of a multifaceted system that includes an onsite meeting with University leadership and review of a CD, created in collaboration with an in-house multimedia production team led by Carrie Gahagan from the Center for the Virtual University within the Office of Distance Education and Lifelong Learning (ODELL). The CD includes video and interactive segments, and serves dual purposes; it can be used as an introduction to the online program or as a stand-alone orientation for overseas employees not yet able to access the Intranet sessions.

Program modifications are ongoing. Today, for example, employees have online access to benefits policies and forms. This single enhancement has improved service to employees while significantly reducing inbound calls to HR for basic information.

Other University departments have adapted segments of the program for new purposes. A version of the CD is used at job fairs and to support recruitment efforts. Pamela Witcher, director of faculty development programs with the Center for Teaching and Learning, used the CD as the basis for a new worldwide faculty orientation. Since finishing the project in June, Witcher has distributed more than 3,000 copies to "veteran" and new faculty members around the globe.

"People keep finding new ways to use the information," Adams said. "It's exciting to see the ongoing collaboration this project has sparked."

Professionals outside UMUC are also eager to learn about the program. In October 2002, Adams, Markulis, and HR Training Coordinator Bridget Meggett traveled to Toronto, Canada, at the invitation of the College and University Personnel Association–Human Resources (CUPA–HR) to present an overview of the program at the organization's annual conference, which draws attendees from throughout North America.

CUPA–HR provided a grant that enabled the UMUC presentation team to attend the conference. However, what Adams, Markulis, and Meggett received from the 70 people who attended their workshop was something few trainers hear at the conclusion of an employee orientation session: applause.