Category: Development and Training

Training, education and ongoing professional development is very important to your ongoing success at MSU. This category highlights professional development news, views and opportunities.

elevateU Contest Winners

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If you attended this year’s HR benefits Fair, you may have noticed that Professional Development Services ran a contest. Everyone who completed a class between October 14 and October 31 in elevateU was entered into a drawing to win one of two prizes. The winners are:

Contest Winner Jamie Lake
elevateU Contest Winner Jamie Lake poses with her State Room gift card and elevateU headphones.

Dennis Bond, Manager of Web Services, College of Agriculture & Natural Resources, who won a basket full of MSU items, including a beautiful stadium blanket.

Jamie Lake, Payroll, Residential and Housing Services, who won a $50 gift certificate to the State Room.

Dennis has been making the most out of his elevateU access. “I’ve really enjoyed using elevateU. It’s quick and easy to jump into a course, and it’s also easy to return if you have to put it down. I’d definitely recommend trying it and have already started assigning courses to my own team.”

Many others have found elevateU helpful as well, both in building skills for their current job, as well as positions they may aspire to. Here are the top 10 classes that MSU employees have taken so far:Continue Reading… elevateU Contest Winners

Transfer Historical ANGEL Content to the University Archives

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Did your unit conduct university business using ANGEL Groups? Have you used ANGEL to store meeting minutes, policy documentation, or other business records? Do you have course syllabi or other content on ANGEL that’s not being migrated to Desire2Learn?

If you conducted university business using ANGEL Groups, your ANGEL content may be of historical value and eligible for transfer to the University Archives. The University Archives has a mission and mandate to collect, preserve, and provide access to the university’s institutional historical and scholarly records, including digital material.

With the permanent decommissioning of ANGEL set for May 15, 2015, it’s important to ensure that your business and curricular records of historical value are transferred to the Archives, particularly for content that will not be migrated to Desire2Learn.

Records of historical value potentially stored in ANGEL include:

  • Meeting agendas and minutes
  • Policy documents
  • Course syllabi
  • Curriculum documentation
  • Instruction notes
  • Research Data

If you think your ANGEL Group includes historical business records or curricular content, please contact Lisa Schmidt or Ed Busch at the University Archives, archives@msu.edu or 517-355-2330, with any questions and for assistance in identifying and transferring these records.

elevateU Contest

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elevateU is an incredible electronic tool that allows MSU faculty and staff to further their professional development at no charge! Sound too good to be true? Well, it just got better! If you complete a courseElevate U Horiz CMYK green in elevateU by this Friday, October 31, you will be entered to win either a Spartan Gift Basket or a $50 gift card to the State Room.

Here’s how:

  • Access elevateU through the EBS portal, www.ebs.msu.edu
  • Click on Employee Self Service (ESS) and then “Professional Development”
  • Click on elevateU, located under “Training Opportunities”
  • View course titles by topic area in the “Resource Catalog” or enter keywords in the “Search & Learn” bar
  • Launch a course, complete a course- YOU ARE ENTERED!

Click here for additional details.

October is National Cyber Security Awareness Month

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We’ve all seen the emails and news stories and heard the horror stories from friends and co-workers, but are you doing enough to protect yourself online?

Protect your devices from attack, damage or unauthorized access.
Protect your devices from attack, damage or unauthorized access.
  • If you have a smartphone, it IS a computer and should be protected like one.  All users of smartphones should have unique passwords (not 1234), regularly run an anti-virus program, and enable anti-theft precautions.  Visit the AppStore,  Google Play or Windows Apps (depending on your platform) for options.
  • Keep your operating system updated.
  • NEVER share your passwords.  No legitimate company will ever ask for your password by email or phone.
  • Don’t open email attachments you were not expecting or from unknown sources.
  • Don’t click on advertisements in web pages.  If you are interested in something mentioned in an ad, go directly to the company website.
  • If you are prompted to update a program, be sure the update is legitimate.  Go to the vendor website or open the program on your computer to do the update.
  • Review statements for credit cards and any accounts you manage online and alert the provider of any anomalies.

For more information, visit tech.msu.edu/secureIT 0r October’s tech blog article Our Shared Responsibility.

Step-by-Step Benefits Open Enrollment Instructions

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Remember to complete your Benefits Open Enrollment during the month of October.  Benefits-eligible employees will complete open enrollment using Employee Self-Service (ESS) in the Enterprise Business Systems (EBS). Here is the process for completing open enrollment:

  • Visit ebs.msu.edu and select “EBS Login.”
  • Log in using your MSU NetID and password.
  • Select the ESS tab.
  • Select the Benefits link.
  • Select the Add or change MSU Benefits and Retirement Plans link.
  • Select the Open Enrollment link.
  • A disclaimer that explains the CDHP/HSA plans (regardless of CDHP/HSA eligibility) will appear. Please read, and then select OK to continue
  • If you have a spouse or OEI on your benefits, the Health Plan Affidavit will appear. Answer the questions, select Next, then Save.
  • Now you will see the Plan Selections screen. Select the first plan you would like to add, edit or remove, click Edit Plan.
  • Select your desired plan and level of coverage, then click Select Dependents.
  • Select the dependents you would like to cover on the plan. Then click Add Plan to Selection.
    • If you do not see one of your dependents, it is either because they are not eligible for the plan or they need to be added as a dependent in the new system. See our screenshot tutorial for how to add a dependent.
  • Once you have added, edited or removed all of your desired plans, select Review Enrollment.
  • Review your plan selections, then select Save.
  • You now have completed open enrollment!

For more information on Benefits Open Enrollment, please visit our website. You also may get enrollment assistance at our Benefits Site Labs.

Don’t Get Caught by Phishing

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Every time you open your email, you get junk mail.  Most is obviously junk and we are all taught to delete immediately.  But what if it looks legitimate?  How can you tell if it’s real?  You CAN and should protect yourself.

Information Technology Services has put together some great information to help.

Phishing – what is it and how to avoid becoming a victim

Phishing Tips and Tricks – how to spot a fake email

Remember, no legitimate company (including MSU) will EVER ask for your username or password via email.

 

 

Maximize Your Reading Experience With Books 24X7

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Along with elevateU, Books 24×7 is an online resource designed to support the high-performance work culture at MSU. Books 24×7 allows users to effortlessly search for specific content or browse a topic of interest to enhance productivity and to save time. Users can create personal folders to save their resources in an organized fashion according to the specific topic or project. Books 24×7 users can also bookmark or annotate key sections within the content for easy tracking and quick retrieval. Between 75 and 150 new books are added to the online and mobile-friendly sites every month, as users can recommend titles, publishers, authors, and topics using the support toolbar on the website. Books 24 X 7 Logo

Books 24×7 users have full control over their book search with the advanced search toolbar, where they can filter content to quickly find exactly what they are looking for. Citing sources is simple with the Books 24×7 citations feature, where users can easily reference books, reports, videos, etc. and include a direct link to the content. This online resource is completely personalized to your reading preferences, and by signing up for New Book Notifications, users will be alerted of new content that pertains to their interests via email. Books 24×7 also allows users to recommend or share links with their colleagues with the click of a button.

Begin browsing Books 24×7 today and learn something new! Log in to elevateU and Books 24×7 through your ESS Tab of the EBS portal.

 

Conflict Resolution

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When opinions differ, conflicts can arise. Learn about the conflict resolution process at MSU Human Resources and ways you can utilize these same steps for your own unit, department or office.

Benefits of Taking The Spartan Experience

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There are plenty of benefits to participating in The Spartan Experience program. The purpose of the program is to inspire a high-performance service mindset to Deliver Outstanding Spartan Experiences (DOSE) with pride in everything we do and to all we serve. Ultimately, we want the quality of our service to improve. We, as MSU staff, must act with the understanding that Spartan Experiences occur each and every day.

Spartys Cafe
Today is a great day to deliver an outstanding Spartan Experience!

So far, we’ve had around 800 people participate in The Spartan Experience from about 70 different MSU units. This is a great amount of people, but we know we can get even more involved! This is a free program, built for MSU staff by MSU staff. Become a part of this initiative that has been developed to make MSU a better place for faculty, staff, students, visitors and the many people that interact with our university. Attending The Spartan Experience benefits you and your unit as a whole.Continue Reading… Benefits of Taking The Spartan Experience

Further your Financial Knowledge!

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Take a second to think, what is your Financial IQ? Do you know what an IRA is? What about stock certificates? April is “Financial Literacy Month” and MSU has partnered with TIAA-CREF to offer the “What’s your Financial IQ?” challenge. MSU Human Resources is proud to be a part of this initiative.

Financial IQ Flyer
How financially savvy are you? Test your knowledge with the Financial IQ Challenge.

The challenge not only allows you to check your financial knowledge, but you also have the chance to win one of three tablet computers! There are 15 unique quizzes for you to explore. TIAA-CREF offers all types of online tools and information to help prepare you for the challenge. Check out their website Check out their website here. They have information on retiring, budgeting, investing and plenty of other helpful tips! The challenge goes through Wednesday, April 30.

The challenge questions are fun and informational for anyone willing to participate! Participants are entered to win one of the tablet computers every time they play. So go ahead, participate in the challenge. You have a ton to gain just by being willing to learn.