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Create a management culture you are proud to be a part of.

The Principles of Management Dialogue Series is a program designed for Student Affairs managers and supervisors to foster a people-centered and equity-oriented management culture across our Division.

The monthly series offers new and experienced managers and supervisors space to reflect, practice, and strengthen the everyday leadership skills that shape how our teams experience their work. Rooted in the Berkeley People Management (BPM) curriculum, and created in response to staff survey feedback provided in our Student Affairs Staff Experience Initiative, each session centers on essential topics such as inclusive hiring, setting expectations, giving meaningful feedback, building trust, and supporting well-being.

Recent staff survey results underscore the importance of this effort: 42% of supervisors disagreed or strongly disagreed that their onboarding provided the information and resources needed in order to be an effective manager, which has far- reaching effects for supervisors and staff alike. In some departments, over 20% of staff feel their manager doesn’t listen to or respect their input; in others, more than 30% report feeling unsupported by leadership in creating a culture of trust. Additionally, nearly 14% of open-ended comments call for stronger communication and leadership.

Grow as a leader.

You’ll have the opportunity to:

  • Reflect with colleagues on shared challenges and solutions
  • Build common language and intentional leadership practices
  • Address key gaps in staff care, communication, and engagement
  • Support a division-wide culture of inclusion, growth, and accountability

Access year-round programming.

Join us for one session a month (virtual or in-person – you decide!). We offer two dates to choose from a month for both virtual and in-person programming to make it easy on your schedule. We strongly encourage you to make time for these sessions. Attending the full series in order will offer the greatest impact, but even joining when you can is far better than missing out entirely.

View our schedule:

September

Hiring and Strategic Onboarding

Equity-focused themes: equity in access, setting clear expectations

Scheduled dates: September 2 (in-person) and September 19 (virtual)

October

Shared Foundation for Supervision

Equity-oriented themes: transparency, goal-setting

Scheduled dates: October 7 (in-person) and October 17 (virtual)

November

Staff-Centered Care

Equity-focused themes: recognition, burnout, work/life balance

Scheduled dates: November 4 (in-person) and November 14 (virtual)

November/December

Difficult Conversations

Equity-focused themes: feedback as care, coaching for growth

Scheduled dates: November 20 (in-person) and December 5 (virtual)

January

Trust Building Part I

Equity-focused themes: inclusion, bias, micro-affirmations

Scheduled dates: January 6 (in-person) and January 30 (virtual)

February

Trust Building Part II

Equity focused themes: communication, transparency

Scheduled dates: February 3 (in-person) and February 20 (virtual)

March

Performance Appraisals

Equity-focused themes: accountability with empathy

Scheduled dates: March 3 (in-person) and March 20 (virtual)

April

Sustaining Engagement

Equity-focused themes: support, kindness, innovation

Scheduled dates: April 7 (in-person) and April 17 (virtual)

 

Any schedule changes will be communicated via bCal and email.

 

Register today

Register for an upcoming session, or two, or three, or all! We encourage signing up in advance, as slots are limited and will fill up quickly.

Register for an upcoming session