Staff Award for Excellence - Julie Seeger

Julie Seeger and husband, Greg

Administrative Specialist Associate - Division of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine

Nominator, Carly Kish -  "When Julie isn't supporting our division chief and division administrator, she is collaborating with colleagues, completing her 'weekly check-in's' to touch base with staff, organizing team gatherings and volunteering to help others. Julie goes the extra mile in everything she does, making all those she interacts with feel special." 

Work Performance

I appreciate Julie's willingness to take care of the "extras" that goes along with her position such as planning team events, sending condolence or gift packages on behalf of our team--taking care of the details. The ownership she takes of her role in the Division has created a standard for the administrative support that is provided. The division would not be the same without her, and her contributions and work ethic are invaluable.

Examples of exemplary work performance:

  • Creating a recruitment tool to highlight benefits of working at U-M, living in Ann Arbor etc.
  • Volunteered to cover extra responsibilities after the economic recovery plan (almost an entire FTE!)

Leadership

Julie's leadership ability is demonstrated in the way she treats everyone she works with; she is a great staff member that brings positivity and friendliness to work every day. She is inclusive and consistently shows respect to all, she listens, never disregards opinions or suggestions, and really looks for ways to incorporate changes into her tasks. She will engage in conversation that is constructive with her colleagues and they have come to look to her as their 'lead', someone who is willing to not only help, but who respects them in a way that helps them grow as professionals.
 
Examples of leadership:
 
 
  • Serves on interview committee for open positions within the division ensures that all new staff are orientated at the staff level
  • Setting up 1:1 meetings
  • Serving as a point person checking-in with her colleagues weekly to make sure they have someone to 'chat' with, even just to say hello Serves as mentor to colleagues
  • Employee Engagement Ambassador

Customer Service

Julie is extremely helpful to all in the Division, she is a significant resource to her colleagues and faculty. She has served in many different capacities since starting with the Division, so she is knowledgeable in many areas. However, she doesn't pretend to know everything and will admit if she needs to get more information. She doesn't wait for continuous direction, she has an intuitive ability to know what comes next, which resources she can tap into and how to help to the best of her ability. When in a stressful situation she does not rattle easily, remains calm and that helps others around her stay calm, as well. She doesn't meet anxiety with anxiety, just settles in to take care of the task at hand.

Examples of commitment to customer service:

  • Participated in planning meetings to restructure administrative support team
  • Developed mail run schedule to make sure all 'in-office' work was performed while staff transitioned to WFH
  • Served as backup during absences and while we hire new staff (fellowship, administrative support)

Process Improvement

When Julie was hired to support the Division Chief and Division Administrator there were two specific projects that she was going to improve - faculty recruitment and cv review and faculty evaluations.

  • Faculty recruitment: created recruitment experience for faculty rather than a 'visit' CV review: development of timeline, engaged staff and follow up to make sure CV are updated as well as submitted by the due date
  • Faculty evaluations: engaged staff and faculty early in the process so that no one is rushed, that faculty are not inundated with more deadlines, work with staff to complete evaluations and update CVs, arranging the division chief's calendar efficiently so that the evaluations do not compete with other deadlines