As a younger woman and mother in a predominantly male field, facilities management in education, I personally experience challenges on a daily basis. I think that this has made me more sensitive to diversity and its related challenges. These challenges are more than just hiring issues but are built into the fabric of our community -- within the university, within Facilities Operations and Development (FOD), within the units of FOD, within each office and each shop.

Creating a diverse environment is about supporting an inclusive environment and promoting innovation and engagement. Though this sort of community exists within pockets in our department, we are striving as an organization to promote this team ideal: One Team Supporting One University.

At the root of this change is communication and strategy. As a woman in a leadership position, I am aware that what might be seen in a male leader as direct and confident, can be seen as aggressive when coming from a woman. There are also different challenges for women as they care for their homes, children and community, coupled with the beliefs of many that a woman may bring less to the job because of these “distractions.” The reality, however, is that the world has changed significantly and while the perception may still be there, many of these responsibilities are now shared with partners/spouses and the compassion that parents can bring to a work culture should be sought after, valued and cultivated and not seen as a take away from work time.

Changing perceptions is not an easy task. However, changing the workforce to reflect diversity and rewarding staff for the skills and strengths they bring as individuals helps to build a culture of inclusion. When the workforce is diverse and staff can trust that all are being held equally accountable, we can start to see individuals and appreciate them for their unique strengths and talents.

FOD has established several programs to help develop our diverse community. On the forefront is our staff engagement program to help build relationships within the department. FOD currently has 800+ staff members in what we call our five houses -- Administration, Business Management, Planning and Real Estate, Operations, and Design and Construction. Providing opportunities for staff to get together and get to know each other is integral to the success of our department as a whole. It is also important to improve our knowledge of the work we do, to increase collaborations and to simply create a better place to work. When you have this many staff members, there is not always a chance for them to meet each other -- you can’t count on a Space Planner and a Landscape Technician crossing paths.

We have five recognition events each year to engage staff and also several engagement events. This fall we are having a movie on the oval for FOD staff and giving away 180 tickets to the EnduroCross event at the Schottenstein Center. Additionally, FOD Senior Leadership meets with all FOD staff two times a year at FOD Town Hall Meetings.
Since I was hired as the Associate Vice President for FOD at the university over three years ago, I have worked hard to create an inclusive community that recognizes and embraces diversity and promotes a culture of accountability. FOD has one of the most diverse workforces within the university. We work to recruit external diversity candidates from the surrounding city and state and also in partnership with other universities. In addition to this recruitment, we also recognize that promoting from within is one of the most effective ways to encourage both diversity and accountability at all levels. We are continually striving to develop a workforce with diverse backgrounds and a different point of view.

The recruitment of diverse candidates for FOD positions, internally and externally, is one of our department’s key strategic initiatives. In addition, we are continually building our programs to enhance the FOD and university community for retention of these individuals. We support the continuing development of all staff through several programs, including:

-English as a second language (ESL)
-Basic Computer Training
-Reach 1 (an adult education and GED course offered through the university)
-FOD’s Learning Center
-We encourage staff to avail themselves of the many educational benefits that the university offers

I firmly believe that diversity is a requirement to our future success. In order for us to remain competitive and continually improve our services and not just turn out more of the same, we need to bring in diverse skills and innovative ideas. FOD will continue to make every effort to attract and promote a wide range of candidates and encourage an inclusive community supporting both our department and the university in the goal of being the employer of choice.