UMSI New Staff Buddy Program

UMSI New Staff Buddy Program Overview

In 2025 UMSI launched a refreshed approach to peer to peer support for incoming UMSI staff members. The UMSI New Staff Buddy Program involves a team of staff members who are serving on the UMSI Staff Buddy Team each year. As new staff members join UMSI, a member of the UMSI Staff Buddy Team is assigned as their staff buddy. The goals and activities involved in the UMSI New Staff Buddy Program are as follows (this information will be added to the UMSI Staff Handbook soon as well). 

The UMSI Buddy Program - is evidence-based in that it:

• Builds on current practice - and includes ideas and input from our HR team, UMSI management team, supervisors and past peer guides

• Continues alignment with best practices for employee engagement along with benchmarking from other campus units 

• Includes an assessment plan to evaluate the program and make improvements based on what we learn from feedback and ideas

What are the goals of the UMSI Staff Buddy Program?

• Provide new UMSI Staff Members with support and guidance (in addition to their supervisor, work team and human resources team)

• Foster a sense of connection and belonging at UMSI in the first 6 months of employment

• Provide information and insights on “unwritten rules” and norms, ways to engage etc.

• Help new staff members connect with one another and with others across UMSI

• Contribute to providing an exceptional experience for each new UMSI staff member

Who can serve on the UMSI Staff Buddy Team?

Staff buddy team volunteers need to have:

• Has worked at UMSI for 1 year or more in a regular (non-temporary) position

• Approval from their supervisor including agreement to modify workload to fulfill  this service assignment of 1-2 hours/week for a 1 year period (September - September)

• A positive and encouraging approach to guiding and supporting new staff members

• Interest in helping further develop and improve the program through ideas and input
  
  

What does serving on the UMSI Staff Buddy Team involve?

• An average commitment of 1 hours per week as a UMSI service assignment

• Attending a 30 minute UMSI Staff Buddy Team orientation meeting

• Participating on the Buddy Team for a year (September - September)

• Supporting 3-4 new UMSI employees as staff buddies during the year (no more than 2 at a time)

• A few Buddy Team members may renew for a second year so that we can stagger membership with new and returning team members

What does a staff buddy team member do?

1. The staff buddy team member begins meeting with the staff buddy soon after their start date in the first month of employment and continues meeting monthly for the next 5 months of employment. The cadence of meetings is flexible and can be determined between each buddy pair.

   1. Takes the staff buddy out to lunch at UMSI’s expense twice, once in the first month of employment and again in months 3-4.

   2. Covers a set of information items and activities with their buddy including (and flexible based on needs):

      1. Get to know you meeting and check in on onboarding meeting plans

      2. Tour of UMSI spaces with informal meet & greet along the way

      3. UMSI and UM (if new to UM) acronyms (acronym guide will be provided)

      4. UMSI events, traditions, norms, etc (initial list will be provided)

      5. Walk through UMSI handbook together

      6. Walk through Jira request system, how to seek help otherwise

      7. Communication channels and norms: Email / email groups, Gchat, Slack, Staff meetings, in person, phone etc.

2. Responds to questions via email (or Gchat or Slack) that arise between meetings

3. Attends two group gatherings for buddy pairs during the year (one fall, one winter term)

4. Does something fun with their buddy/buddies on campus during the workday such as visit a campus museum, attend a campus event, take a walk through the Diag, etc.

How much time will it require?

• Each buddy assignment is expected to involve an average of 1 hour per week (some weeks will not require any time, other weeks could involve 2 hours if we have a group gathering the same week you are meeting with a buddy)

• Each buddy team member will have no more than 2 buddy assignments at a time

• There may be periods when buddy team members do not have a buddy assignment 

• Buddy Team Members’ assignments will consider peak work times or other constraints

The goal is to contribute to creating an exceptional onboarding experience for each new staff member. Research indicates that effective onboarding increases productivity and retention while contributing to a positive work culture.