Yukl (2013) notes that "Supportive leadership (or "supporting") includes a wide variety of behaviors that show consideration, acceptance, and concern for the needs and feelings of other people." (p.63). I am cognizant of the fact that my students rely on me to meet their academic needs and personal goals. In my role it is important that I actively listen to their needs and advocate on their behalves. Students will share personal experiences with me regarding their individual circumstances so it is important that I provide support and sympathy whenever necessary. We all have personal problems in our lives and sometimes we just need to be heard and I am appreciative of the fact that I get to help others. I get to help them achieve their personal goals and I am there whenever they might need some encouragement. Recently my team met to discuss how we could build on and improve our relationships with our students. 90% of my communication with students is done via email and I rarely have an opportunity to meet these individuals face to face due to the online learning environment we are in. I do speak with a small a small population of my students over the phone but not as much as I would like. We brainstormed ideas of personalizing our interactions with our students and decided to make subtle changes in our email communications that made them more personalized to the individual. We also came up with per-recorded messages to send all of our students introducing ourselves and offering guidance. These were (if I remember correctly) 45 second sound bites we recorded with the use of an app. The message was then sent to our respective student populations in a phone "blast". We did not receive the type of feedback we had hoped, however we will attempt it again at a later time and re-evaluate student feedback to determine if it is useful in building our student relationships. It is my duty as an advisor to make my students feel that I genuinely care about their educational needs and more importantly, about them as people (and not a number). For me having this type of interpersonal relationship is a key factor to not only effectively performing my job but also maintaining these relationships in a trustful, respective manner.
I currently do not possess the experience in my department to offer development to other staff members. As I continue to learn and grow in my current role it is my goal to develop my skills so some day I can offer mentorship, coaching, and provide others with development opportunities. ERAU provides opportunities for employees to take part in programs designed to mentor and provide career advice. One such program is the Leadership Enhancement Program (LEP). The LEP "is designed for staff and students to learn ideal leadership traits and behaviors they need to lead groups on and off campus and for professional development. Information provided in each session will unlock the participants’ leadership potential to accelerate preferred results and become a magnet for exemplary leadership research and certifications. Topics will cover real-world instances of a variety of leadership actions that effect and influence their environments. Participants will also form leadership teams to analyze and prescribe solutions for a campus or community entity." Retrieved from http://www.erau.edu/administration/diversity.html
Praise and recognition I feel is such an important part of organizations today. Yukl (2013) states "Recognizing involves giving praise and showing appreciation to others for effective performance, significant achievements, and important contributions to the organization." (p. 68). Each July our department has a retreat in Daytona Beach at a resort. This resort is located right on the beach. This retreat serves as an opportunity for the online learning department to prepare for the new academic year. We break out into mini sessions and go over our goals and objectives for the new academic year. More than half of the event is actually an awards ceremony. We are recognized for our contributions and achievements for the previous academic school year. Trophies and awards are presented and it is a nice change from our daily activities. It doesn't hurt to be on the beach overlooking the ocean either. This day has such a positive impact on us. We get to reflect on the previous year and enjoy each others company outside of the office. It is a great team building event (as we play games as well) and really reminds us of the work we do and why we do it. Last year was my first one and I was really impressed at the lengths the organization goes to in order to make us feel like part of a family. The event made me want to be the best employee I could be. Not everyone enjoys what they do. I am lucky to say I enjoy my position and I feel like my organization has my interest at heart. That in turn makes me want to work harder because I appreciate what they do for us. I think we all want to feel appreciated and awards have a way of doing just that. I think this is one of the reasons ERAU is consistently named one of the top 100 companies for working families. http://www.orlandotcs.com/proofing/top100/25998/25998_top100_2013winners.php
Yukl, G. A. (2013). Leadership in organizations (8th ed.). Boston: Pearson.
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