Teamwork headlines staff development day

Texas A&M College of Dentistry’s 2022 Staff Development Day is planned for Jan. 5 at the nearby Home2 Suites by Hilton. Scheduled from 8:30 a.m. to 3:45 p.m., the event offers a chance for college staff to get together and focus on improving the workplace and enhancing their skills.

Rebecca Egbert, chair of the Staff Advisory Council, says one main focus of the upcoming day will be tools available to improve teamwork. One such tool, praised by staff members already, is Microsoft Teams, a videoconferencing and workplace chat software that also allows file storage and sharing.

Heather Zimmerman, business manager in oral & maxillofacial surgery, says her department uses Teams for almost everything, such as instant messaging, scheduling, logging tasks, and more. She describes it as a useful tool that she has recommended to lots of people.

“We’ve used Teams with our staff for probably 18 months now,” Zimmerman says. “It’s like professional development in real-time. You have a group resource at your fingertips.”

A Microsoft representative will be at Staff Development Day to explain the ins and outs of Teams, particularly how it can be used for communications and collaboration. Egbert says much more is planned for the day as well. A tentative schedule of events includes teambuilding exercises, managing changes in the workplace, a discussion on cultivating an inclusive work environment, and more.

Register for Staff Development Day and enjoy this jump-start to 2022! Lunch will be provided. Those who wish to view the presentations but can’t attend in person may email CODSAC@tamu.edu for more information.