A legacy of service

I had a different plan for the fall return of ALTogether Now, however, that plan now seems irrelevant – and certainly unimportant – given the events of the past week. I will not pretend that I have not been impacted by the life and the passing of Isabel Bader.

Like many advancement professionals, I have had the special privilege of developing authentic relationships with many wonderful people because of my professional role. The public record of contributions to society is well documented for those individuals – as it is in Isabel’s case. That public profile is nonetheless augmented by a deeper knowledge that advancement professionals have access to through the considerable time we spend with individuals exploring their motivations, their aspirations, and even their fears.

In Isabel’s case, I know she cared so deeply for people in her orbit that she had trouble sleeping at night because she could not stop thinking about how to help them. 

Isabel was impatient about moving Agnes Reimagined forward so that she could see her vision for the role of art conservation in Dr. Alfred Bader’s legacy realized.

During a walk through the gardens at Herstmonceux Castle in 2019, Isabel shared her sadness that this would likely be her last visit. 

Isabel regularly forwarded messages about things that caught her attention or made her laugh. She fussed over getting things right, and she caught me with her dry wit on more than one occasion.

Isabel’s life was a model for service orientation. She expressed her love and respect in the most admirable and self-sacrificing ways. The example she set by how she lived her life makes me want to be a better person. 

The world was a better place when Dr. Isabel Overton Bader was among us, and she set a standard for how to live one’s life that I hope I can someday live up to. 

Rest in peace, Isabel. I will miss you.

Ask the ALT

As posted on QUIRC last week, this is a friendly reminder that the next Advancement Leadership Team (ALT) Q&A session will be at 11 am ET on Thursday, Sept 8.

For those of you that are new to Queen’s Advancement, the rules for these open Q&A sessions are as follows: attendance is optional; anyone can ask any member of the ALT any question on any topic; and there will be no pre-set agendas so the Q&A session will last as long as attendees have questions (the optional Zoom meeting already in your calendar is booked for up to 45 minutes). 

We understand that some people may not be comfortable asking their questions out loud in front of the group. If you would prefer to submit your question(s) via an anonymous survey, we are happy to add that option for you. Sarah Blayney Lew will manage these anonymous questions, submitters will not be identified to Sarah through the survey, and she will ask them on your behalf at the ALT Q&A. 

The option to personally pose your question(s) at the meeting still exists.

Please consider questions you would like the ALT to answer and either submit them via the anonymous survey by 4 pm on Sept. 7 or come prepared to ask them Sept. 8. Members of the ALT look forward to the discussion, and we will do our best to answer your questions.

Advancement Engagement Safety Guidelines

With the start of the fall season and resumption of external stakeholder engagement for many Queen’s Advancement staff, this is your friendly reminder about the Stakeholder Engagement Safety Guidelines available on QUIRC. Please sign into the Queen’s VPN for access to safety guidelines that reflect the special circumstances related to Advancement work involving on- and off-campus interaction with donors, alumni, volunteers, and/or other stakeholders.

These guidelines are always available under Human Resources from the toolbar on the left-hand side of your homepage. Select Health and Safety for the full guidelines.

Summerhill room-booking tool

With the start of the fall season, this is your friendly reminder that access to the Summerhill room-booking tool is available on QUIRC from the toolbar on the left-hand side of your homepage. Please sign into the Queen’s VPN for access.

Your perspectives on our hybrid work pilot

Queen’s advancement professionals were invited to take part in a survey in May to learn current perspectives on our hybrid work pilot. Seventy-four individuals completed the survey before it closed on June 17, and ALT received the survey results in July. 

Survey results were posted to QUIRC on July 13. In the event you missed this posting due to summer vacation or would like to review the results again, ALT would like to remind everyone that the survey results are still available for review on the I: DRIVE (please log into the VPN to access): ADV Common\2020-2025 Advancement\Building a Better Workplace\Hybrid Work Assessment_SurveyResults.pptx. 

Your feedback matters

The idea of an ALT personal development plan (PDP) came out of Building a Better Workplace discussions. Last November, Steve invited Queen’s advancement professionals to provide mid-year feedback on the inaugural ALT PDP and feedback received by the Nov. 29 due date was shared via ALTogether Now on Dec. 6. Given the extremely limited number of responses received last November, multiple staff surveys in May/June, and the work required to complete the ALT PDP, ALT has decided to discontinue the ALT PDP.

While this tactic will not continue, feedback on the ALT performance continues to be welcomed throughout the year in other ways. You can always share feedback through your manager, any member of ALT, or Advancement Human Resources. Anonymous comments, suggestions, and concerns can also be shared through Advancing Your Voice – available on QUIRC from the toolbar on the left-hand side of your homepage. Remember to please sign into the Queen’s VPN for access. 

Employee spotlight

The Employee Spotlight celebrates the arrival of our new and existing staff by profiling responses they share through a fun and informal survey that will help us get to know them better. Be sure to review these profiles and use these fun facts and tidbits to find commonalities, embrace differences and spark a conversation. 

Over the summer, we welcomed six new members to Advancement. Here are three of them (be sure to stay tuned to learn about others next week!):

Tess Kozina in the position of Communications and Events Officer, Strategic Communications and Events. Learn more about Tess and the best piece of life advice she has received.

Sukhjot Pummar in the position of Senior Development Officer, Faculty of Law. Learn more about Sukhjot and what languages she speaks.

KP Anand in the position of Executive Director, Development, Faculty of Arts & Science. Learn more about KP and what song you would find him singing at a karaoke night!

Jobs with Advancement

We need your recruitment help. Know great talent that would be a good addition to our team? If so, please promote the vacancies below with your networks and let’s find some amazing new team members.

Applications (including a cover letter and résumé) must be submitted through CareerQ. For additional information on this posting, please reach out to either Carla Ferreira Rodrigues or the hiring manager for the position you are interested in.