Introducing Dukes at Work, JMU's New Employee Onboarding Program

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Human Resources is excited to introduce Dukes at Work, JMU’s new employee onboarding program!

Dukes at Work involves maximizing the time for collection of relevant new hire forms and dissemination of benefits information; building more personalized connections with the Human Resources team; providing guidance to departments to accelerate the time to full productivity; and creating enhanced, meaningful opportunities for new employees to connect to the JMU culture and community.

The first component of this strategy is now being implemented, and there are four significant changes: 

  • Human Resources has created a new web presence that showcases the Dukes at Work onboard program. The pages are user friendly and provide new employees with onboarding information that is unique to their classification. The content and materials are broken down into six categories:
    • New Hire Paperwork
    • Benefits
    • Policy, Practices and Compliance
    • New Employee Events
    • Communication
    • Resources

Each category outlines the specific steps that need to be taken for successful onboarding. 

  • New employees will now schedule appointments online in order to complete their new hire paperwork and benefits enrollment with the Human Resources team.  When Human Resources receives the approved hiring PAR, the employee will receive an email from both the Onboard Specialist and the Benefits Assistant with instructions and a link for online scheduling.  If the hire date is less than 14 days away, the employee will receive a phone call and follow-up email with the information.  Hiring managers and supervisors will receive a copy of the email sent to the employee from the Onboard Specialist so they are aware of the communication and can prompt the employee, if necessary, to schedule their appointments. 
  • The presentation of benefits information will now be delivered via online video modules. Benefits packets will be provided to the new employee at the time they complete their new hire paperwork. All new full-time employees will be required to view the videos before their one-on-one enrollment session with a Benefits Specialist.  Employees will review benefits materials in their office or department versus traveling to our office for a group or individual presentation.  The online videos provide consistent, clear information and outline the benefits applicable to the employee’s classification.
  • Employee awareness of JMU policies, practices and compliance information continues to be an integral part of the onboarding process.  All new employees will be asked to complete the Policy Summary Acknowledgement and to view the required compliance online videos. The information regarding these steps is highlighted on the Dukes at Work website and will be provided to the new employee at the time they complete their new hire paperwork. 

We have developed a list of FAQs for the Dukes at Work onboard program. One of your first questions may be “Why?” The answer is simple - Dukes at Work is a culmination of efforts to fulfill our mission: Human Resources is dedicated to customer service, a positive approach to change and the pursuit of excellence that promotes university and individual success.

In the coming months, additional components of the Dukes at Work program designed to engage and connect new employees will be rolled out. As those initiatives are launched, we look forward to sharing the information with you.

If you have any questions, please free to contact Human Resources office at 540-568-6165 or humanresources@jmu.edu. 

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Published: Monday, August 10, 2015

Last Updated: Thursday, November 2, 2023

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