"Brown Bag" Meetings

This week I visited with staff across the state in what I called "Brown Bag" meetings. Apparently I need a new name because the guys in West TN informed me that brown bag means something entirely different in their part of the state - more closely related to liquid refreshments than food!

At any rate, I appreciate 66 of you turning out for our gatherings, some with brown bags and some simply to listen. Either way, it worked. I thought I would share with you the recurring themes I heard across the state.

Budget - we talked briefly about the budget in some of the meetings. As I said in my earlier email, we are generally in good shape for this year, and the coming years, assuming the economy continues to recover and federal funds remain stable.

Procurement cards - we talked about the need to use these cards for caterers and training events. Gail White is working with the Treasurer's office on this issue. Currently these items are classified as entertainment and blocked from procurement cards.

Transportation - we talked about the state contract with the commuter rail and metro bus for free transportation for state employees. We will check to see if there is a way to include UT employees in this contract.

Inclement weather closing policy - The UT HR office revised the policy this year and tied all Nashville offices to the state closing schedule. We will get clarification on how this information is communicated.

Mileage reimbursement rates - we discussed why the rate has not changed. The UT rate is tied to the state rate, so I am asking Gail White to determine how often the state reviews the rate.

Travel reimbursement policies - we had a lot of discussion about travel! Click here if you want to read the official UT travel policy. Bottom line, we must follow official UT policy and should avoid making up CLRs (no explanation needed) that make more work or simply is for someone's convenience. I'm asking Gail White to determine how IPS might go about getting site licenses for those employees who travel regularly to enter their own travel directly into IRIS. This will require training on the part of the travelers. More to come on this topic.

Purchasing procedure - we also discussed purchasing guidelines. They can be found here. Bottom line, if you are in travel status (not local miles) purchases can be filed with your travel, but if you are not in travel staus and driving locally, purchases must be filed on a petty cash reimbursement.

Salary increases - everyone seems to understand how increases are being distributed based on my earlier email. Letters should be in the mail before the end of July.

HR128 credit - everyone understands the need to track our training hours. Judie Martin will check to see if we can enter our own information into IRIS.

APR process - we have room for improvement in both employees understanding the process and supervisors conducting a good review. We will plan to schedule additional training this coming fall and winter.

I enjoyed our conversations and encourage you to ask a member of your management team about any specific agency question you might have that I could not answer.

Thanks!
Mary