TRANSFORMATION TIMES A quarterly newsletter for Vinfen Employees Volume 18: Winter 2023
In this issue: Aspiring Managers Program Graduates, P1 A Return to In-Person HR Training for Managers, P2 Grow to Lead Management Leadership Program Returns, P2 Introducing Vinfen’s New HCM – UKG!, P3 Vinfen Halloween Fun, P3 Vinfen Behavioral Health Expansion News, P4 Did You Hear the Great News?, P4 New in Professional Development, P5 Implementing New Loan Relief Benefits, P6 Increasing the Tuition Reimbursement, P6 Providing Paid Internships, P7 Establishing a Diverse, Equitable and Inclusive Workplace, P8 Upcoming Winter Events, P8 Congratulations to Our Aspiring Managers Program Graduates The Aspiring Managers Program was designed to target and assist direct support professionals to move into their first supervisory jobs by providing a foundational introduction to important topics needed for a successful start in the manager role. These 90-minute virtual meetings gave participants the chance to maximize learning and engagement, while minimizing disruption to regular work responsibilities over 3 months. On December 1, 2022, the 14 direct support professionals, chosen from over 40 interested, outstanding applicants graduated. Everyone successfully completed all aspects of the program and will now work with HR and Recruiting to apply for supervisory positions as they become available. Congratulations, Graduates! Idiatou Balde, ACCS GLE SIE Lead Residential Counselor MA PRD
Kellie Beliveau, ACCS Family Connector MA PRD Lindsey Busch, Residential Counselor MA DSD
Ebony Clarke, Lead Residential Counselor PR CT PRD Marise Desrosiers, Lead Residential Counselor MA DSD Christopher Karas, ACCS IGLE Residential Counselor MA PRD Judith Mbisah, Developmental Specialist Day Habilitation MA DSD Julius Mbowa, Awake Overnight Certified Nursing Assistant MA DSD Marsha Millard, ACCS GLE SIE Lead Residential Counselor MA PRD Marcia Ricketts, ACCS GLE SIE Lead Residential Counselor MA PRD Elizabeth Spaeth, ACCS GLE SIE Lead Residential Counselor MA PRD Walter Takem, ACCS GLE SIE Residential Counselor MA PRD Primah Thermil, Residential Counselor MA DSD Corey Tuplin, ACCS GLE SIE Lead Residential Counselor MA PRD
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A Return to In-Person HR Training for Managers By Michelle Fraser, Director of Employee Relations HR is excited to add more in-person classes for managers this winter. During the COVID-19 crisis, the Human Resources classes designed for managers were put on hold. After a long hiatus, we returned to in-person manager training this past spring and summer with Interview Skills and Selection, Coaching, and Positive Corrective Counseling. We are excited that we will be adding Employment Law and Leave Management to the roster of in-person manager classes we will offer in January.
In Interview Skills and Selection, we review the process of sourcing, interview and hiring quality candidates. As we all know, a good hire translates to higher quality care for the people we serve.
After a candidate becomes an employee, the manager is responsible for coaching and helping the employee to develop the skills needed to successfully complete their responsibilities. Additionally, managers are responsible for managing employee performance concerns through corrective action. In Coaching and Positive Corrective Counseling, we review the value and importance of providing coaching, supervision, and timely feedback, as well as the practical steps to follow when addressing and managing performance concerns.
"As we all know, a good hire translates to higher quality care for the people we serve."
By resuming these classes, HR is confident that we will provide managers with a foundational understanding of their role and responsibilities for working and supervising staff. Your HR manager is always available to provide additional information and support. The Leave Management portion of the class provides an overview of leave laws like the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) or Massachusetts Paid Family Leave (PFML) that govern Vinfen and our employees. The class also provides an overview of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Employment Law and Leave Management provides managers with an understanding of the employment and leave laws that govern Vinfen’s workplace. The Employment Law portion of the class also provides instruction and guidance designed to ensure that managers understand their responsibility regarding laws such as anti- discrimination ,and retaliation protection as well as the types of discrimination that can occur in the workplace, including but not limited to sexual harassment, hostile workplace, and racial discrimination. "Grow to Lead" Management Leadership Program Returns Grow to Lead is an online, 6-month leadership development initiative for mid-level managers who are competent in their roles and eager to uplevel their skills and commitment to Vinfen. This program is designed to attract participants
from multiple industries so that participants can learn from one another, while gaining new knowledge and practicing skills to think proactively and strategically. Sessions include both virtual meetings and self-paced initiatives on the following critical skills: Effective Goal Setting for Success The Power of a Growth Mindset The Science of Positivity Motivational Accountability Leading on Purpose The Inner Work of Leadership Systems Thinking: An Approach for Thinking Critically and Strategically Having Awkward Conversations with Ease Last year’s participants highly recommended that this initiative continue emphasizing how they utilize the program’s tools and content in their current roles for more effective management and with more confidence. Vinfen is sponsoring 6 Managers again this year who have been nominated by Directors of Service.
CONGRATULATIONS to this year’s participants: MA Development Services Division Casey Macgilvary, Senior Program Director Sethany Griffin, Family Support Director Jess Almeida, Senior Program Director MA Psychiatric Rehabilitation Division Kyley Bernardini, ACCS Residential Director Kathy Anzola Densmore, ACCS Team Leader
CT Development Services Division Alzira Pitts, Senior Program Director
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Introducing Vinfen’s New HCM – UKG! By Patricia Medeiros, Director HRIS and Data
What’s an HCM anyway?
HCM stands for Human Capital Management, in other words, a large database for keeping all information related to team members in a company. After a few mere years of planning (!) in September 2022, Vinfen went live with our new system, generally called UKG (Ultimate Kronos Group). We now have all our HR, Payroll, Timekeeping and Benefits information in one place in this new system. It replaced a few outdated systems including ADP, Kronos, BSwift, Wufoo, and internal processes like PAFs and VIS. We are excited to continue learning about this system and sharing it with all of you! UKG is our primary source of all employee data including personal information, credentials, benefits, payroll, timekeeping. It also houses information about Programs, such as Jobs that are connected to them, address details and allocations for some employees. All employee changes, including new hires, job changes, transfers, termination will be going through UKG. Having all of our information in one place makes tracking, sending and managing our data much more efficient and accurate. Manager Tip : Did you know you can view your Team Members’ information at a glance? From the home menu, go to Team Members > Employee Information to view job details on active and inactive employees such as dates of employment, job changes, and manager names. Manager Tip: Did you know you can view your Team Members’ information at a glance? From the home menu, go to Team Members > Employee Information to view job details on active and inactive employees such as dates of employment, job changes, and manager names. Individual Contributor Tip: Did you know you can view your planned time off in an easy-to-read Calendar? From the home menu, go to My Information > My Calendar. You can see any In Progress Requests for Time Off, Approved Requests for Time Off, In Progress Time Off Cancellations, Shifts. We should all feel proud and appreciative to work for an organization that believes in the investment of technology to better team members’ lives at work and beyond. Stay tuned for UKG updates, enhancements, and new functionality as we grow with the system.
Vinfen Halloween Fun 2022
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Vinfen Behavioral Health Expansion News Danita LeTourneau, Assistant Director of Employee Relations
Earlier this year, Vinfen was awarded the Northeast Community Behavioral Health Contract (CBHC) for the Lowell region and will begin providing services on January 3, 2023. Vinfen Behavioral Health (VBH), along with our partners, Advocates, and Wayside, will provide Adult Mobile Crisis (AMCI), Adult Community Crisis Stabilization (CCS), Youth Mobile Crisis Intervention (YMCI) and Youth Community Crisis Stabilization (YCCS). This is an exciting opportunity to expand upon the services VBH currently provides to the Greater Lowell Community. Vinfen’s CBHC will offer a single point of entry for timely, high-quality, evidence-based mental health and addiction services. This new model of care aims to reduce the use of emergency rooms for behavioral health crises, increase the flexibility of service delivery, provide access to outpatient services, and urgent and crisis interventions, as well as provide increased social supports and access to community-based staff. Jen Maloney, VBH’s Clinic Director, describes it as “two locations on either side of town to serve the community.” Maloney is very excited about the upcoming changes and how the division is poised to grow in the future. By providing multiple services in one location, clients will have greater access to needed services and greater collaboration amongst providers. In 2020, the Lowell Behavioral Health clinic moved from its former home in the annex of the Baptist Church, where it had been located for over 30 years, to 40 Church St Lowell. With the addition of the new services, a new location will open in the spring of 2023. The new Varnum St. location is adjacent to the Lowell General Hospital campus and will feature a new Urgent Outpatient Care Center.
CBHC not only brings expanded services to the clients, but also creates several new positions, including prescribers, peer support, engagement and referral services, and clinical roles that focus on urgent care, just to name a few. VBH staff are already having a positive impact on the community by providing high-quality care. With the addition of the new services and changes, the impact will be expanded, and as Jen Maloney described it, the team could not be more excited to be a part of the changes and to bring much-needed services to the area.
Did You Hear the Great News? Service Anniversary Awards Doubled! Employees celebrating a service anniversary that is a multiple of 5 will now receive a gift card in that is 10 times their anniversary number. For example, those celebrating 5 years of service will receive a $50 card. Those celebrating 10 years with Vinfen will get a $100. Those celebrating should expect to receive their cards at their home address on file in UKG.
You can always find this month's service anniversaries on the Recognition Sharepoint page. Contact your HR Manager if you have questions.
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Developing or changing your career can be tough. It often means making significant investments in money and time to get the skills, experience , New in Professional Development By Christina Broughton Internship and Career Development Programs Manager The Career Advisory Program
and education you need to advance. Deciding to invest in your career growth can feel daunting, and in a world with so many options, it can be confusing to figure out what makes the best sense for you personally. This past November, Vinfen launched a new program to help staff feel more secure and supported as they make important career decisions. The new Career Advisory Program connects employees with experienced colleagues in positions they may be interested in advancing into themselves. These volunteer career advisors can discuss staff’s career-related concerns, answer questions, and share their personal experiences. The Career Advisory Network is meant to provide a quick and easy way to get the advice and guidance staff need to move their careers forward. Volunteers are available to connect and discuss different jobs available in their career field, what a ‘day in the life’ of that career would be like, the credentials needed to move into different types of jobs and to share similar experiences in developing their own careers.
Any Vinfen employee needing advice can email into one of the inboxes listed above to learn more about careers in clinical social work, mental health counseling, brain injury support services, or disability support services; nursing or home healthcare; peer support services; program management; or nonprofit administration. Learn more about the Career Advisory Network on SharePoint. If you or a colleague want to grow your career and need some advice or support – we encourage you to reach out!
Increasing Vinfen's Investment in Workforce Development It is well known that there is a shrinking supply of licensed mental health and human service professionals in our field. This is not only evident in the low staffing of many of our clinical teams, but also in our personal lives when we find it difficult to find a practitioner when we need one. This growing crisis affects everyone and cannot be curbed without a committed investment in developing this professional workforce.
Last year, Vinfen implemented important initiatives aimed at reducing barriers to education for critical human service professionals and to attract new clinicians and medical professionals to our field. This significant investment in workforce development is a key step in Vinfen's ability to provide the best services and support s to the communities we care for. It is also a significant investment in you, our staff, who we believe already have the skills and passion needed to advance into these much-needed roles. These new programs and initiatives are both to bring new professionals to Vinfen and to reduce barriers for our staff to enter these careers.
Vinfen understands that obtaining a professional license is expensive, in terms of money and time. Not only do you have to pay high fees for classes, but you may need to take an unpaid internship or prerequisite classes that make education even more costly. These costs can add up so quickly for the adult learner that specific careers feel unobtainable. Vinfen is determined to make education more accessible and affordable for the next generation of human service professionals by increasing tuition reimbursement benefits, implementing new student loan relief benefits, and providing paid opportunities for traditionally unpaid student internships. (continued on page 6 & 7)
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Did You Hear the Great News? Implementing New Loan Relief Benefits - Student Debt Direct Pay Policy In July 2022, Vinfen implemented a new benefit for licensed medical, nursing, social work, and counseling professionals to help pay down their (often significant) student loan debt. The new Student Debt Direct Pay Policy offers up to $100 per month in direct student loan relief to qualified staff who hold certain positions and professional licensures. This significant investment provides relief for professional job types that often require a costly degree or certification to move into.
Eligible employees are scheduled to work at least 30 hours per week, have an hourly pay rate of less than $48.08 per hour, and are in an eligible position such as a Clinician, Registered Nurse, Licensed Practicing Nurse, or other eligible job type. Learn more about the eligibility requirements by going to the Benefits page on SharePoint
For questions about the program or how to enroll for the benefit, email Benefits@Vinfen.org.
Increasing the Tuition Reimbursement
This year Vinfen is increasing the tuition reimbursement amount offered to employees and reducing the waiting period for new employees to access the benefit. Previously, Vinfen provided up to $1,600 per semester in direct tuition reimbursement for staff pursuing a degree or certification through the Professional Development Program. During this time, employees were only eligible if they worked at least 30 hours per week and had been employed for at least one year before program applications were due.
Starting in 2023, Vinfen will increase the tuition reimbursement benefit to $2,000 per semester, whereby eligible employees will receive up to $6,000 a year to pay for their education costs. Vinfen has also made participation easier by reducing the waiting period to only 6 months of previous employment. Education costs increase regularly, and with this increase in reimbursement monies, Vinfen hopes to better support our staff’s education goals. Since its inception, more than a decade ago, the Professional Development Fund has awarded more than $1 million in tuition reimbursement to employees.
English as a Second Language classes are now eligible for relief through the Professional Development Fund. ESL classes taken through an accredited education institution are eligible for relief up to $1,000 per course. By expanding the Professional Development Fund, we hope that many more people will find education more accessible and affordable.
To learn more about the program or how to apply, email TuitionBenefits@Vinfen.org.
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Providing Paid Internships If you are a licensed healthcare professional, you must take an internship or practicum to get hands-on practice under the guidance and supervision of those with experience in your field. Students spend hundreds of hours shadowing, learning, and practicing the skills they will eventually need to do independently. But for the student, internships can be another substantial education cost that makes pursuing these types of careers challenging. Many students are asked to spend 1-3 days a week practicing their skills through an internship, which historically is not paid.
All of these new initiatives and investments aim to build a robust Vinfen workforce. We hope this will not only be a great benefit to our staff but also help us attract more people to work at our company so we can continue to provide the best care possible to our communities. The more we can help people get licensed and certified, the more people we attract to work at Vinfen, and the more we will be able to fill critical vacant positions in our company. It is a circle of success for everyone involved – from the clients who will receive better care, to the employees who will work in higher-paying positions, and the teams that will be better staffed. This staffed. This will be a win across the board!
Starting in 2023, Vinfen will offer paid internships in
certain positions throughout the company.
Still today, specific academic programs exist that require their students to accept internships without pay, even if the employer is willing to pay them. Sometimes the inability to work without pay means a person cannot finish their degree, resulting in wasted time and money. It is a hardship for any student and many of our employees who want to pursue certain degrees and licensures that require an internship. It’s hard for any student and many of our employees who wish to pursue certain degrees and licensures that require an internship. This year Vinfen has made a concerted effort to reduce this barrier and (hopefully) help more people become licensed professionals. These paid internships will be instrumental in curbing the impact unpaid work can have on a person. Paid internships will also attract a more diverse group of candidates into our internship positions, as many more students will be able to intern with us. The 2023 Internship Program Vinfen continues to expand opportunities for students to gain valuable educational experiences through our popular Internship Program. Starting in 2023, Vinfen will begin offering paid internship opportunities in certain positions throughout the company. Vinfen has also been offering new types of internships at different programs throughout the company, so we can continue providing diverse options for students with different needs and interests. We are excited to host a student intern for the first time in the spring at our Autism Support Community Center and Family Support Community Center. This past fall , we hosted a Graphic Design Intern and Social Media & Design Intern, who worked with our Communications & Development team on various projects throughout the semester. Our Art Connection Studio in Connecticut also hosted a student intern interested in a career in art therapy which helped support the studio’s activities and their fall art show.
We are excited to continue providing new opportunities and improving the program overall. Last year, Vinfen hosted more than 35 students in various programs across Massachusetts and Connecticut. We are invested in the program’s continued growth that last year, we also applied for up to $1.5M in additional funding to offer more paid internship opportunities and improve program resources overall. This grant funding, if awarded, will go into effect starting January 2023. S taff in need of an internship are encouraged to apply to intern at Vinfen. While we cannot guarantee the availability of internships for staff, we do our best to place them in a different program or division from the one where they work as regular employees. Staff who need an internship for the Summer or Fall of 2023 should inquire about an internship now.
Want to host an intern? Please contact broughtonc@vinfen.org. To apply or inquire about internship contact internships@vinfen.org We are now accepting applications for Summer or Fall 2023 internships.
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Establishing a Diverse, Equitable and Inclusive Workplace
By Anny Domercant, Director of Culture & Engagement
In 2023, the DE&I Council will continue to provide DE&I Drop- in meetings 1-2 times per month on relevant DE&I topics. On January 12, 2023, we will host a DE&I Drop-in entitled "MLK/What is Your Dream?” This Drop-in will be an opportunity for Vinfen staff to share their hopes, goals and vision for DE&I with co-workers and friends.
Establishing a Diverse, Equitable and Inclusive workplace is a cornerstone of Vinfen's vision as an organization. Studies show that diverse teams are more successful and productive. However, another key to success is creating an environment where people of diverse backgrounds can coexist in a manner where everyone feels included and that they belong. As we look forward to 2023, one of Vinfen's DE&I Council's key objectives is to help foster an environment where DE&I is infused into our workplace culture. We plan to build upon the strong DE&I foundation that has already been set. The DE&I Council will continue to meet on a monthly basis to develop
programs and initiatives that will continue to educate and raise awareness of our protected classes while also creating opportunities for staff to learn about the different religious and cultural backgrounds that exist at Vinfen. Some of these programs will include but will not be limited to events focused on Black History Month, Women’s History Month, Disability Awareness Month and LGBTQ Awareness Month. We will also use some of the DE&I Drop-ins to host mini-trainings for Vinfen staff to gain a better understanding of DE&I related topics. One of the trainings that we anticipate offering throughout the year is the training on Unconscious Bias, which some Vinfen staff have already participated in. Through this training staff will become aware of what unconscious bias is and that there are steps that can be taken to decrease the likelihood that these biases will impact their decisions and behavior in the workplace as knowledge is the key to any change in behavior. Finally, DE&I, HR, and Training are working on in-person manager DE&I Training with a planned spring launch. This training will be highly interactive and present ideas and strategies for building inclusion into teams and work. The Council is excited about what 2023 will bring for our DE&I efforts and are looking forward to more engagement with Vinfen staff to continue to create a workplace environment that firmly stands on its mission statement of “transforming lives together”.
Upcoming Early Winter Events
A Fun Start to the New Year: Get Ready, Get Set, Get Fit Wednesday, January 18, 2023 11:00 -11:30 am
DE&I Drop-In Discussion: What Is Your Dream? Thursday, January 12, 2023 2:00-3:00pm
Celebrate Winter and Win Prizes Send your photos and brief description of your fun to recognition@vinfen.org for a change to win Vinfen warm and cozy items like blankets, hats, coffee mugs, and gift cards! All entries are due by January 27
Drop-in to learn about how to advance your career Tuesday, January 17, 2023 12:00-1:00pm
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