Perspectives FSAP - New and improved! 

Northwestern University is offering an Employer Assisted Housing pilot program to help eligible faculty and staff take advantage of Live Evanston, a City of Evanston initiative that makes attractive, high quality homes and condos affordable for moderate income families. For more information.

 

Help the NU Cares Program Grow!

NU Cares offers faculty and staff an opportunity to make contributions to assist fellow employees who may be experiencing a crisis. Thanks to the many generous contributions received to date, we have met our initial goal, and are accepting applications. To learn more about the fund, how you can help, and how to apply, please click here.

Health Insurance Premium Holiday

 

We are happy to announce that November 2011 is a health insurance premium holiday for active Northwestern University faculty and staff. Individuals enrolled in the Premier PPO, Select PPO, Value PPO, HMO Illinois or Cigna International will not have regular health insurance premium deductions on the biweekly paychecks dated November 4 and 18, or on the monthly paycheck dated November 30. Although these deductions will not appear on your paycheck, there is no gap in your insurance coverage for you and your family members.

 

You will continue to see your regular premiums for dental, vision, and other non-medical plans throughout the month of November. If you were contacted by the Benefits Division regarding a special retroactive charge for a prior month of coverage, this will still be deducted.

 

If you have any questions, please contact the Benefits Division at 847-491-7513 or benefits@northwestern.edu.

Benefits Briefs - Open Enrollment Reminder

 

With Open Enrollment coming to a close on November 11 at 5:00 pm CST, it is important that you complete your elections through Self Service, submit all relevant forms to the Benefits Division, and print your preliminary confirmation statement.

 

Complete Your Elections through Self Service: 

• If you are currently enrolled in a health care, limited-use or dependent care FSA or an HSA and you want to continue participating in 2012, you MUST actively re-enroll in these plans. Your FSA Debit Card will continue to be valid until the expiration date listed on the card. PayFlex will send you a new FSA Debit Card when your current card expires.

Submit Forms to the Benefits Division:

• If you are adding a new dependent to your health insurance you must provide proof of dependency prior to January 1, 2012. If documentation is not provided before the beginning of the plan year the dependent will be dropped and will not be eligible for coverage until Open Enrollment 2013 unless there is a qualifying change in family status.
• If you are re-enrolling in the dependent care FSA, and you wish to apply for the University match, you MUST submit a copy of your 2010 United States income tax form 1040 along with the Dependent Care Match application to the Benefits Division. 
• If you are enrolling in or increasing your life insurance coverage for 2012, you will need to complete an Evidence of Insurability Form.  This includes Basic Life Insurance increases, Supplemental Life Insurance and Spouse Life. 

All forms must be received by November 11 at 5:00 pm CST. You can drop off your form(s) at the Benefits Office, 720 University Place, on the Evanston Campus or at Abbott Hall, 710 N. Lake Shore Drive, on the Chicago Campus.

 

Print your Confirmation of Benefit Plan Elections statement:

1. Once you have completed your 2012 Open Enrollment election, click on the "Submit" button on the bottom of the summary page.
2. You will be taken to the Submit Benefit Plan Selections screen. Under the Authorize Election section, click on the "Submit" button.
3. The next Screen is the Submit Sections screen, click on the "Continue" button.
4. Next, you will see the Open Enrollment screen. In the Open Benefit Event box, click on "View Benefits Confirmation Statement" link.
5. On the Confirmation of Benefit Plan Elections screen, click on the "Print" button located in the upper right corner of the screen.

Need help deciding?  Visit the Benefits Website for additional tools and resources to help you make your decisions, including the Health Care Decision Tool kit located at www.nuhealthtoolkit.com.

As always, please contact the Benefits Division with questions at benefits@northwestern.edu or 847-491-7513.

Conducting Reference Checks

 

As a hiring manager, nothing is more important than ensuring you are hiring the best possible talent for your team. One of the simplest but most powerful tools available to support you in this effort is the reference checking process. Conducting reference checks can provide you with valuable information on a candidate's past performance and substantiate that you are making the right decision. In other cases, it can keep you from making a bad hiring decision, as well as save you time during the hiring process.

 

Both what the references say, as well as what they don't say, can be telling. Pay particular attention to the tone of the conversation and how the individual responds to your questions. If there is a particular competency that is critical for success, a reference check is the perfect opportunity to focus on this to gather more information. Make sure the reference provides complete and detailed responses. If one word answers are provided, ask the person to expand on their response or provide more details. Conducting reference checks is also a good way to confirm information that has been listed on the application and resume, such as the duration of employment at a particular company, job duties, and salary history.

 

Northwestern requires a minimum of two professional reference checks once a final candidate has been selected and prior to an offer being extended. Normally, one of these references should include the current supervisor or, if the individual is not currently employed, the most recent past supervisor. The Staffing Team is trained in conducting reference checks and will work with you to complete these once you have identified a final candidate.

 

If you have questions regarding the University's reference check process for staff positions, or would like further information, please contact your department's Staffing Consultant.

 

 

 

The Northwestern University Learning & Organization Development (L&OD) team collaborates with faculty and staff who want to develop their talent and advance their workplace outcomes, processes and engagement. L&OD provides consulting, coaching, workshops, retreats and tools for individuals, groups and organizations.

 

Registration Opens for Winter Workshops

Registration is now open for workshops offered in December, January and February. Check your mailbox for our winter catalogue or look online to see what's coming up.

We offer a variety of workshops and opportunities to help improve workplace performance.  Check them out! Questions? Comments? training@northwestern.edu  or 847-467-5081.