The Hub brings mentoring infrastructure and benefits outreach to large employers and is geared towards underserved, entry-level employees. Large employers often have a host of HR and support programs, yet entry-level employees still get lost in the shuffle. Turn-over rates tend to be particularly high among entry-level employees. This is not because they lack the necessary "hard skills" to perform their tasks, but is instead caused by underdeveloped social skills, stresses and time constrains that contribute to absenteeism, or high levels of dissatisfaction with the job. A mentoring relationship could alleviate some of these problems by providing an open ear, trusted advice, and connection to resources that provide relieve resource burdens.
Large employers typically offer comprehensive benefits packages, but they are often underutilized by entry-level employees. Low takeup rates occur even when employers have staff devoted to making the employees aware of the options available to them. For example, Stanford University, our intended pilot host, has energetic and caring staff who implement a variety of communication and outreach strategies to reach over 10,000 staff. Despite their efforts, at the end of the day many entry-level employees most in need of benefits still do not take advantage of them. Understanding and unlocking this puzzle is a great opportunity to help entry-level employees retain their jobs and address some of the other strains in their lives.
Orientation sessions designed to expose new employees to benefits packages cover a broad range of subjects and can often overwhelm participants. Though explanatory literature may alleviate the problem, it is impossible to ensure that every individual will read, complete, or understand written supplements and go on to complete necessary paperwork or webwork. Language barriers can present another obstacle, as information sessions and benefits literature are not often translated into other languages. As a result, many non-English-speaking employees remain unreached.
At Stanford, the Benefits department communicates benefits options through an up-to-date, outstanding web site, printed materials (including booklet guides, newsletters, and special notices for critical deadlines), and in-person through workshops and tabling events. Higher levels of individualized attention from a trusted mentor may succeed where these strategies have not, helping overcome language, literacy, intimidation, and comprehension barriers.
Besides the intricate maze of benefits to navigate, new employees also face challenges outside of work. Finding available affordable housing units or locating childcare for the first time or in a new area can present a time-consuming challenge. With these factors to consider in addition to expected tasks at work, even well-organized employees sometimes have trouble attaining a level of job comfort that allows them to consider and obtain promotion.
Although job training programs and staff placement agencies offer support to people seeking work, no formal support system exists after permanent employment is secured. Mentoring can fill this void in a highly personal way. Not only can mentors serve as valuable coaches and trusted friends, but evidence suggests that having a mentor is important for job retention and job advancement. A survey conducted by the Stanford Alumni Association and the Career Development Center at Stanford asked a focus group of alumni what they most wanted in the way of services. Mentoring, it turns out, was the most desired service. As people leave a job training program and enter the working world, they are even more in need of continuing guidance.
The Hub provides two core services: designing, deploying, and coordinating a mentoring infrastructure and conducting more-targeted benefits outreach.
With the goals of creating community, empowering new employees, and making existing benefits and resources more widely available, the Hub will facilitate a mentoring relationship between an experienced staff member and a newly-hired employee. The Hub's program will utilize a flexible curriculum to educate new employees about benefits by using current employees and the motivational spirit that they can bring to the interaction. The Hub's focus will move beyond company benefits to explore available resources such as housing, childcare, and transportation. Mentoring relationships are an an effective way to clarify available benefits, make resources such as affordable housing and childcare more accessible, and provide a continuing social and professional support system within Stanford's framework. As individuals familiarize themselves with the process necessary to gain benefits and other resources and notice tangible results, they will gain loyalty to their employer, stability in their job, and reduced stress and strain on the job and after work hours. This cadre of better-informed entry-level employees will feel more comfortable in the workplace and, as a result, are more likely to consider job advancement a realistic possibility.
While most large employer's have no shortage of HR programs, the Hub specializes in a particular facet, serving a population that is typically neglected or not reached very effectively. We bring focus, expertise, experience, and time and resources to set up a very tailored mentoring and benefits outreach program. The end results benefit mentees, mentors, and the employer.
For our pilot program, the Hub has chosen to partner with Stanford University, a large employer who has a wealth of benefits available to full-time employees. The pilot program will first draw its mentee population from the employees placed by Springboard Forward, a nonprofit job placement agency that is committed to the success of those they place in entry-level positions. In addition, the Hub will work with the Stanford Diversity and Access Office to obtain mentors from the existing Stanford employee pool through announcements at staff meetings, flyers, and e-mail. The Hub will then work closely with the BenefitSU Office to develop a curriculum to educate mentees about benefits and resources available to them.
The Hub at Stanford intends to grow with the success of our program participants. As a mentoring community is formed through mentor-mentee relationships, social activities, and participant input, the services Hub offers will expand beyond connecting employees with Stanford benefits but also helping them to solve the problems that they themselves identify. Because the job promotion cycle tends to occur approximately every six months, a rate which slows as employees climb the job ladder, we will continue our pilot for six months and then assess the progress of our program. After this evaluation period, our venture will expand our program participant base to include all interested new employees.
Our venture's marketing plan and growth strategy revolve around the opportunities offered through our partnerships with job placement agencies, employer resources, and community support services:
The Hub's model is generalizable and will ultimately expand to target all employees at Stanford. Once a program at Stanford has been implemented, our venture will approach another large employer whose employees would benefit from the creation of a Hub program at their workplace. The core part of the Hub is a partnership between a resource-rich, large employer with job positions that allow for job advancement, job placement agencies who are committed to the future success of the workers they place, and an environment that supports the creation of supportive workforce community.
New employees benefit from the Hub through being connected with benefits and resources offered by their employer and the surrounding community. Stanford offers benefits like childcare subsidy grants, life insurance, and health insurance. Working families are strengthened and their children helped through the Stanford Tuition Reimbursement Program (STRP), which gives each child of an employee an amount equal to half of Stanford's tuition to pursue higher education anywhere. To encourage job retention and continued job advancement, the Stanford Training Assistance Program (STAP) provides employees with a yearly stipend to take continuing education and job training classes. Also, workers can save for their future with 403(b) retirement plans, for which Stanford offers matching funds. But foremost, through their mentoring relationships, new employees will become a part of a community where there is personal attention and interest in their success.
Mentors benefit from being part of the Hub program because as they participate in mentor training, they are educating themselves about all the benefits that Stanford has to offer employees. As people who have been through the difficult process, they can feel good that they are now in a position to help others. And like new employees, they become a part of a community for employees supported by employees.
Large employers like Stanford benefit from our program by having a lower turnover rate for a more stable entry-level workforce. By making individuals invested in a working community, they cultivate a higher quality, better trained, and more engaged workforce. Finally, employers have interest in improving employer-employee relations, as doing so creates a better working atmosphere for all parties involved.
The immediate tangible goal of the Hub is to establish a central location to connect Stanford employees with on and off campus resources and increase access to this location. To do this, our program aims to clarify the benefits to which workers are entitled and make the process of signing up for these benefits easier by pairing them with an existing worker who understands the system.
Through these supportive mentoring relationships, the Hub also hopes to empower employees to retain their job and advance in their career goals. This involves developing lasting relationships with hiring managers across campus who believe in our venture's mission and in the ability of its employees. As part of this support for personal empowerment of employees, the Hub hopes to an engaged network of employees that form a community and culture for support of Stanford workers.
Lastly, the Hub hopes to extend its curriculum beyond educating employees about Stanford benefits to connecting employees to applicable support services in the surrounding community that can truly improve the quality of life for workers and their families.
The Hub is a well-leveraged venture that utilizes existing community resources and networks wherever possible to provide directed, continued, and strategic support to those who want to help themselves. We add value by empowering workers to become involved in the solutions to the problems they want solved in their lives. Mentoring relationships build a community and culture for support at Stanford as well as increase job retention and advancement for the working poor. And through these mentoring relationships, we are tapping the energy and experiential expertise of existing employees to create a community to help those who are just starting down the path of sustained employment.