Justin Tidd
Leadership (LEAD)
I tend to focus on servant leadership in my work which emphasizes the creation of various documents and practices in order to better support the day-to-day tasks and functions of my staff. By providing assistance to their cause, I am able to also have educational discussions with them about policies and departmental changes that could impact their view of the work and how they can begin to reframe how they complete and feel fulfilled in the job. The consideration of my staff and their needs also falls into my training efforts where I typically work to create initially fun and socially engaging environments that allow everyone an opportunity to speak their mind, learn more about each other and themselves, and take proactive steps in discovering how we can collaborate throughout the year to create a positive, healthy work culture. Overall, I believe my efforts in creating a tight knit community through service and connection allow me to develop an environment that feels safe and well supported in all facets of the work. As I grow into new and diverse leadership roles, I hope to further vary my communication approaches with my staff so I can further cater to their work styles and personalities and not create an environment that is unfamiliar to them.
Foundational Outcomes
Relevant Experiences
Educational
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Identify and understand individual-level constructs of “leader” and “leadership.”
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I recognize that my servant leadership thrives in proactive, considerate environments which motivates me to continuously search for ways to improve the student and employee experience of my community.
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Explain the advantages and disadvantages of different types of decision-making processes (e.g. consensus, majority vote, and decision by authority).
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I analyze various processes through a leadership team and student employee lens and talk through the outcomes with my leadership team to ensure that whatever decision is made has the building’s best interests at heart.
Training
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Identify one’s own strengths and challenges as a leader and seek opportunities to develop leadership skills.
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I lean into my extroverted, welcoming personality during training presentations and take a step back to listen to my staff members who may be more reserved than I am to develop various essential qualities related to being an active leader.
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Identify basic fundamentals of teamwork and teambuilding in one’s work setting and communities of practice.
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I emphasize the importance of creating a light hearted community and facilitate icebreakers that revolve around playful energy and team collaboration.
Development
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Describe how one’s personal values, beliefs, histories, and perspectives inform one’s view of oneself as an effective leader with and without roles of authority.
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My emphasis for respect, organization, and support, motivates me to do good work in a timely fashion to respect my staff’s time and resources, and I find ways to achieve this both as a supervisor and as a team member of any group I’m a part of.
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Build mutually supportive relationships with colleagues and students across similarities and differences.
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I validate my colleagues emotions while offering full support and provide my students with the necessary resource hubs that allow them to feel informed and confident in the choices and offerings at their disposal.
Engagement
Intermediate Outcomes
Relevant Experiences
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Advocate for change that would remove barriers to student and staff success.
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I reflect on areas of tension in my work environment to analyze the most stressful elements of it and propose actionable plans that would address those issues moving forward.
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Encourage colleagues and students to engage in team and community building activities.
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I consistently inform my staff of programming efforts that their colleagues are considering and encourage them to collaborate in a manner that is authentic and beneficial to their personal and professional endeavors.
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Understand campus cultures (e.g. academic, student, professorial, administrative) and apply that understanding to one’s work.
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I recognize my institution's strengths of offering both an academically and athletically vibrant community and encourage my staff members to take advantage of this in professional and personal ways.
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Think critically, creatively, and imagine possibilities for solutions that do not currently exist or are not apparent.
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I examine the pros and cons of on-call schedules and develop multiple alternative plans that could serve unique purposes that may benefit the staff who conduct nightly rounds.
Advanced Outcomes
Relevant Experiences
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Display congruence between one’s identity as a leader and one’s professional actions.
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I recognize that my “why” for working with people is to provide support and help them in their individual journeys, and I structure my professional environment and resources in a manner that helps me put my staff and professional environment in the position to succeed and adapt to change.
Artifacts
Read Welcome Week Parking Key
This move-in document was created to inform families of where to relocate their vehicles to keep the move-in process as smooth as possible. By providing visual and textual aid, my student staff were able to save time and energy explaining this repetitive fact to families and those newcomers were able to easily take a photo and understand the listed instructions. This initiative created efficient communication which made the traffic in our move-in environment more bearable.
Timelog Walkthrough
I created this timelog walkthrough to simplify a recurring task that previously caused confusion for student staff. The guide breaks down each step, provides practical advice on how to complete them, and lists clear deadlines in one accessible location. After implementing this resource, staff submitted more accurate timelogs and required fewer corrections, demonstrating the effectiveness of proactive support and clear communication.