Coordinator
The human resources department at your college or university will most likely help orient the new coordinator for your green living program (GLP). It will provide information about employment policies, benefits and payroll information. If your institution offers employee orientations, be sure to send your coordinator. It will give him or her the opportunity to learn about the campus work environment and to start meeting people in other departments.
Because of the specialized nature of running a GLP, you should familiarize the chosen candidate with the culture and political landscape of your institution and partner organizations as well as with those of the various schools or divisions. Also review the college or university's accounting structures and anything else you have learned in the process of getting your program idea off the ground. Give the new coordinator as much anecdotal information as possible.
Consider running your own orientation to give him or her a sense of being specially trained and empowered to step forward to do a great job. Be mindful that you may need to dedicate more time to this area if the chosen candidate is not familiar with the institution already. A few other steps to take include the following:
- Set up individual meetings between your coordinator and GLP sponsors.
- Provide background information about other campus-greening efforts at the college or university.
- Provide materials or direct the coordinator to resources where he or she can learn about similar programs and start getting ideas.
- Provide links to helpful partners across campus.
- Ensure the coordinator has a comfortable, ergonomically correct work station with ample desk and storage space.
To productively use the initial time in getting the coordinator up to speed, you can develop a structured entry plan that will familiarize the chosen candidate with the program and position him or her as a leader within it.