A thought for the day…
"Don't wait until you've reached your goal to be proud of yourself. Be proud of every step you take toward reaching that goal."
– Simone Biles (b. 1997) American gymnast, two-time Olympian, and winner of seven Olympic medals (including silver and bronze medals at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games)
 IN THIS ISSUE
Guest notes from Charlie Zelle
Chair
No matter where you live in the seven-county metro area, if you drive a car, you will eventually get stuck in traffic on Interstate 494. It is one of the region’s most vibrant, growing areas with the Mall of America, the airport, hotels, businesses — even IKEA. Trucking and freight associations have named this area one of the most congested bottlenecks in the country — truckers know traffic.
The good news is we’re making progress on a better I-494. Recently, the U.S Department of Transportation awarded MnDOT and the Met Council a $60 million grant, through the Infrastructure for Rebuilding America program, to help move the $273 million construction project forward. While MnDOT will be responsible for the hard work of renovating I-494, the Met Council is playing a key role in working with the cities, counties, and communities along the route that will use the roadway.
In developing the region’s current Transportation Policy Plan, we learned from communities about how this key transportation corridor should look in the future. It will include bikeways and pedestrian bridges to connect the business and residential activities on each side of the freeway.
Read the Chair's full message on MetroCouncil.org.
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The COVID-19 pandemic led many Met Council staff to conduct their work remotely, which meant many employees were learning how to use online tools for the first time, most notably Microsoft Teams and Webex. As much of our internal and external collaboration is done virtually these days, it's important to educate yourself on the various ways that a meeting can be more accessible to you, your colleagues, and to community members.
Virtual meetings, events, and interviews are here to stay at the Met Council, so we all need to do our part to make them accessible so everyone feels welcome and can fully participate. Based on staff feedback, the Office of Equal Opportunity created three quick guides to improve the accessibility of virtual meetings, events, and interviews. Included are tips for planning, hosting, and following up after the event.
Access the guides on the Accessibility Hub page on MetNet. For feedback or suggestions on additional guides, please contact Guthrie Byard, ADA & Title VI Administrator, at Guthrie.Byard@metc.state.mn.us.
 Navigating through MetNet
Looking for accessibility tips on MetNet just got easier. You can now click to the Accessibility Hub in the main menu dropdown under Workplace Resources > Create Content.
Microsoft recently announced changes to the way Teams meeting recordings are stored and shared. Starting Aug. 17, recorded meetings will no longer save to Microsoft Stream. Instead, meetings created specifically for a Team Channel will save to the Team’s SharePoint site. All other recorded meetings will automatically save to OneDrive. Recorded meetings already stored in Microsoft Stream are not affected at this time; though Microsoft expects to announce more changes soon.
Best practices for Teams recordings
Because meeting recordings will be stored in OneDrive or SharePoint, they are able to be shared with individuals external to the Met Council once the recording has ended. Nonetheless, you should not share a meeting recording outside of the Met Council unless you know the recording contains only public data.
In response to a request for data under the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act, or during court proceedings as part of the discovery process, the Met Council may have to produce meeting recordings to third parties. Therefore, unless there is a compelling need, employees should avoid recording staff meetings. Whenever possible, employees should consider alternatives to recording meetings, such as taking detailed notes.
If an employee must record a meeting, the employee should announce at the beginning of the meeting that it will be recorded so that participants are aware they are being recorded. This is especially important for participants who cannot see the message indicating a meeting is being recorded – for example, participants with low vision. If a participant objects to the meeting being recorded, the employee should not record the meeting.
Resources for Microsoft Teams
Review this job aid to learn how to create and view Teams meeting recordings, and how to create a meeting for a Team Channel. To learn more about Microsoft Teams, visit the Microsoft Teams page on MetNet.
If you have questions about the change, submit them to this Team Channel.
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• Starting Aug. 17, recorded Teams meetings will no longer save to Microsoft Stream
• Recorded meetings already stored in Stream are not affected at this time
• Only share recordings externally if you know the recording contains only public data |
In its August/September issue, Twin Cities Business recognized our own Marcy Syman, Human Resources director, in this year's list of Notable Leaders in Human Resources who "rose to unprecedented challenges and deserve big thanks – especially this year."
The magazine writes, "As the pandemic and social unrest swept through Minnesota in 2020, it was human resources executives who were tasked with quickly determining how to keep employees operating. They enacted remote work policies, increased safety measures, and extended benefits; they monitored employees’ physical and mental well-being, responded to endless questions and concerns, buckled down on diversity and inclusion practices, and more. Without them, the companies they support wouldn’t have been able to move forward."
We couldn't agree more! Kudos to Marcy for this recognition and helping us navigate the pandemic and to make the Met Council a great place to work.
MARCY SYMAN
Director, Human Resources
Notable Leaders in Human Resources 2021
"Marcy Syman oversees strategic direction for the St. Paul-based Met Council’s Human Resources policies, programs, and practices. She supports Met Council staff through values of inclusion, collaboration, trust, customer focus, and efficiency.
"A key focus under Syman’s leadership is diversity, equity, and inclusion. She has been instrumental in creating training programs to build cultural competence and inclusive management practices and to recognize unconscious bias. She has also led improvement of recruitment and selection processes to diversify the Met Council workforce. Efforts like these have contributed to a 13 percent increase in Met Council employee diversity over five years."
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 Over the next few months, the badge readers employees use to unlock doors and open gates are being replaced at all Met Council sites. The new readers will allow the Met Council to transition to a more secure employee badge, which will occur in 2022. In the meantime, all existing badges will work with the new readers.
Each reader takes approximately 15-20 minutes to replace. During the replacement, external facing doors/gates will remain locked until the new reader is functional. If you arrive at a door/gate where a reader is being replaced, please wait or find an alternate entrance to the building. Thank you for your patience!
If you have any questions or concerns, contact Jon Sitzer at Jonathan.Sitzer@metc.state.mn.us.
The following highlights provide a summary of important information you need to know related to the Met Council’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The newest and most complete information is available in the COVID-19 update emailed to all staff every other week on Thursdays.
Read the most recent bulletin (Aug. 5), which includes:
- The Met Council's Face Coverings Procedure (PDF) is once again in effect. All employees who are inside Met Council facilities must wear a face covering, regardless of vaccination status.
- At this time, the telework transition timeline remains but is flexible.
- Remember that we do not expect that all returning teleworkers will report onsite immediately after Labor Day. Teams are making plans now, and the teleworker's new schedule – whether it is onsite, hybrid, or remote – should be implemented the middle of October. Departments are providing general direction, and employees and managers will work together on their individual schedules.
- The new Telework Transition FAQ page on MetNet provides details on related policies and procedures, the new hybrid schedules, how to prepare for the transition, and technology and workspaces in the new hybrid setup.
Tools to help you find vaccine appointments:
COVID-19 testing:
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Workforce data dashboard now available
A new online dashboard is now available that summarizes and displays the Met Council workforce snapshot data in alignment with our Affirmative Action Plan goals. Making this information available provides important context for our employees, equity change teams, and Council members to make informed decisions. The information helps us understand where we are today as an organization, compared with the demographics of the region, and what aspects of our hiring, retention, and organizational culture we need to prioritize to be more reflective of the Twin Cities region.
We encourage you to check it out and send your feedback to the Office of Equal Opportunity about what works and where we could make improvements. This dashboard is a work in progress, and we are working to update the visual presentation and build it out with additional information. We hope you will use it, ask questions that the data should be able to answer, and establish plans in your work areas based on what this tells us about our colleagues.
Read more about the dashboard and the long-term plans for this project in last week's HR Connect.
Play the summer scavenger hunt through the regional parks
It’s time for the Regional Parks Summer Adventure, a metro-wide, digital scavenger hunt using the GooseChase app! Missions are available for more than 20 regional parks. You can search for specific parks or agencies, and each mission has a link to the park’s website for more information. Try to complete all the missions, or just check off a few!
Have fun playing while learning about some of the hidden gems of our regional parks system. You can play as a team on one phone, or use multiple phones to participate. The GooseChase runs through August 31.
Follow the instructions on MetroCouncil.org to download the GooseChase app and start playing.
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Managers and supervisors session recordings now available
On July 21, Human Resources and the Telework Transition team hosted a Q&A for managers and supervisors with direct reports surrounding the telework transition. If you were unable to attend, the recording is now available to watch on Stream.
On Aug. 3, Human Resources also presented an Ask HR session for managers and supervisors on best practices using the Perform module. If you were unable to attend, the recording is now available to watch on Stream.
Carol Madden
Pronouns: she/her/hers
Benefits Analyst
Human Resources
Primary duties
I am part of the Benefits team and will be working with retiree benefits and Medicare.
Started
June 28
How does it feel to start a new job when many employees are working from home?
Like many office people I have been working from home since last March – I only went into the office a couple of times a month. Since I am currently training, I am in the office three times a week, and there are usually only a few people in this huge building. I’ve only met about five people in person, so it’s very strange.
Hometown
My 93-year-old parents still live in the same house they moved to in 1952 in Bloomington, where I grew up. I moved away for college, moved out of state for a few years, and then back to Bloomington for 25 years until recently.
Current residence
I moved to an 1890 house in downtown Shakopee a year ago.
Family
I have two kids. My daughter (Jozanna) is going to be a sophomore at St. Ben’s, and my son (Sam) graduated from the U of M in March of 2020. He’s living at home and looking for work. We have a lab/beagle mix, Gus, aged 11.
Experience
My parents both grew up in Saint Paul, and my dad had a bookstore for over 40 years in the Hamm Building, where I worked through college (at St. Kate’s). I worked as an elementary teacher until we had kids, and then stayed home with them while working part-time jobs. I went back to work full-time at the City of Minneapolis in the Benefits department, where I worked for almost nine years. I have always loved Saint Paul, and working at the Met Council feels like I’m coming home, even though I live in Shakopee!
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Teresa Dambowy
Principal Administrative Specialist
Environmental Services
Primary duties
I am assisting plant engineering managers and their staff with wastewater treatment plant projects. My duties include meeting management, creating and updating documents, and procurement.
Started
July 26
How does it feel to start a new job when many employees are working from home?
I am excited to be an employee at Met Council. I enjoy working in the office as it provides me an opportunity to be around a small group of people following socially distanced guidelines.
Hometown
I was raised in Inver Grove Heights, which at the time was considered living in the "country." I come from a family of three daughters; I am the middle child. My sisters and I enjoyed living on the large property as we were able to play softball and go sledding.
Family and current residence
I live in Woodbury with my beautiful yorkie poo, Lucy Mae. She enjoys taking road trips with me, being a therapy dog, and having her photo taken. She’s had her photo included twice in calendars that were published to raise funds for dog rescue organizations.
Experience
I have over 30 years of experience in administrative roles. The fields I have worked in include legal publishing, banking, and medicine.
Other interests
I enjoy traveling, especially road trips both short and long. The farthest road trip I have done was to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. I look forward to doing more air travel as my nephew, Leroy, is working on his graduate work at UCLA. I spend as much time as I can with my niece, Tabitha, who lives in the metro area.
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Hearty congratulations to the following employees who in August celebrate major milestones in their service to the Met Council. This recognition includes only Robert Street employees and Regional Administration employees working off-site. For recognition of Metro Transit and other Environmental Services employees, read Insights and ES Update, respectively. The information is presented when it is made available by Human Resources.
Years of Service
45 Years
Harriet Simmons, Senior Administrative Specialist, Environmental Services
20 Years
Roderic Southall, Equal Opportunity Consultant III, Human Resources
Stacy Sorsveen, Occupational Health Technician, Human Resources
15 Years
Andy Streasick, Customer Service Manager, Metro Mobility
10 Years
Stephanie Paulson, Assistant Director, Metro HRA
Steve Ylitalo, Manager, Facilities and Central Services
5 Years
Jennifer McQuown, HRA Coordinator, Metro HRA
Marcus Bush, Principal Engineer, Environmental Services
Tonisha Farmer, Senior Administrative Specialist, Facilities and Central Services
New Staff
Margaret Grefig, July 19, Financial Analyst, Environmental Services
Teresa Dambowy, July 26, Principal Administrative Specialist, Environmental Services
Alexandra Warren, Aug. 2, Business Systems Analyst 1, Information Services
Tracy Sherbert, Aug. 2, Talent Acquisition Specialist 1, Human Resources
Cheeneng Yang, Aug. 9, Planner, Community Development
Lindsey Duthoy, Aug. 16, Manager, Payroll
Departures
Kate Nyquist, July 17, Senior Outreach Coordinator, Environmental Services
Stephen George, July 24, GIS Technician, Community Development
Douglas Wilton (retired), Aug. 10, Liability Claims Representative II, Risk Management
 Winding through the forest
Web and Social Media Editor Crystal Colby Mulry took this photograph at Crosby Farm Regional Park last fall while she was out looking for wildflowers. "I loved how the evening sun was filtering through the trees," Crystal said. It's easy to get lost in the warm glow and arching trees and forget you're right in Saint Paul – a getaway in the woods along the Mississippi River!
Looking for your cool photo!
Do you have photos to share? The Wire is always looking for the next cool photo from staff, from a close-up in your flower garden, to scenic vistas up north, to exotic travel adventures, or more artful fare like reflections and silhouettes. The only criteria is that it's a cool photo! Just email the editor at the address below.
The Wire is published every two weeks for employees of the Met Council. Everyone is invited to submit comments and story ideas. Contact the editor at TheWire@metc.state.mn.us.
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