The Administrative Professional Certificate Program is designed to provide University administrators and front-line employees with tools and experiences to enhance their knowledge and skills on behalf of their individual success and that of their organization. Participants will build communication skills to positively impact their workplace relationships; project management, financial management, and problem-solving skills to improve effectiveness; learn the importance of diversity and inclusion at the University; and enhance their knowledge of technology management in an administrative role. The Program requires completion of five required workshops, two elective workshops, and a capstone session that reviews what has been learned and how it can be applied. It is recommended that the Administrative Professional Certificate be completed in two years. The core courses and elective courses are offered on a rotating basis each fall and spring through FSDP.
Participants should track their own progress offline and submit the Completion Form to Organization Development once all seven workshops have been completed. At that point, participants receive an invitation to the next scheduled Capstone Session held in January and June. Certificates are issued in January and June.
The Administrative Professionals Certificate Program consists of the following five required workshops and two elective workshops:
Five required core workshops:
- Effective Interpersonal Communication
- Introduction to Financial Management for Administrators
- IT Fundamentals for Administrators
- Problem Solving Skills for the Workplace
- Project Management Basics in Higher Education
Choose two elective workshops:
- Customer Service for Success
- Diversity & Inclusion course offered through the Faculty & Staff Development Program
- Managing Up
- Strategies for Excellence in Written Professional Communication
- Time Management
Customer Service for Success
Presenter: Jordan Miller, Learning and Development Specialist
Organization Development, Office of Human Resources
Date: Tuesday, December 5, 2023
Time: 10 a.m.-noon
Location: Virtual
Who Should Attend: All faculty and staff
In any position we hold, our personal success has much to do with our orientation and commitment to serving others. This workshop guides and empowers participants in exploring exactly who their customers are, discovering what “customer service” means in their roles, and identifying opportunities to meet customer needs through listening, empathy, adaptability, and a cooperative, solution-focused approach. Participants will grow in their individual understanding of the value and impacts of customer service best practices and identify opportunities to apply customer-facing strategies to their own roles to increase personal professional success.
Effective Interpersonal Communication
Presenter: Laura Ainsley, Manager, Leadership Development
Jordan Miller, Learning and Development Specialist
Organization Development, Office of Human Resources
Date: Thursday, October 19, 2023
Time: 10 a.m.-noon
Location: 342 Craig Hall, in-person
Note: remote access provided for those who cannot make it to campus
Who Should Attend: All faculty and staff
Communicating and listening effectively in the workplace is critical to your organization’s success. Participants will review different ways to communicate with and actively listen to any individual. Participants will learn their preferred way to communicate and how to adjust it based on the other person.
Introduction to Financial Management for Administrators
Presenters: Brenda Hussey, Assistant Controller, Financial Reporting
Cassie Brenner, Project Director, Office of the SVC/CFO
Cole Kurtz, Procurement Specialist, Purchasing Services
Carrie Showman, Operations and Compliance Specialist, Payment Processing & Compliance
Tammy Murray, CPP, Payroll Operations Manager
Mark Anderson, Executive Director, Enterprise Risk Management, Office of the SVC/CFO
Date: Thursday, November 9, 2023
Time: 10 a.m.-noon
Location: Virtual
Who Should Attend: Faculty and staff who have responsibility for financial administration within their University organization
How does the University fund its operations? What does Pitt’s budget look like? What is the role of a financial administrator/manager in the University’s budget process and monitoring the use of funds? This course will answer these questions and provide a unique glimpse of how money moves and the budget process at the University of Pittsburgh.
This course is designed for financial administrators, business managers, Directors of Administration, and other staff and faculty who have budget and financial responsibilities and want to learn more about how their role fits into the University’s budget process. The training will provide an overview of:
- Key elements of the University’s budget
- The budget formulation process, including how to request new resources and an overview of the University’s Budget ReSTART model
- The budget execution process, including how to monitor budget results, how to utilize the various financial systems, and an overview of critical financial operations such as Purchase, Pay & Travel, and Payroll
- Enterprise Risk Management functions and Resources
This course will provide attendees with an introduction to financial management and resources to find additional information.
IT Fundamentals for Administrators
Presenter: Mark Mercier
Pitt Information Technology
Date: Wednesday, October 11, 2023
Time: 1:30-3 p.m.
Location: Virtual
Who Should Attend: All faculty and staff
Navigating the world of information technology can seem overwhelming without a foundation of core understandings. This course focuses on three key areas: hardware, software, and security practices. In the hardware portion of the workshop, participants will become familiar with the ports of a computer and associated cables. An overview of the Microsoft Office 365 suite will provide the basis of the software portion of the workshop. Our final topic, information security, will give an overview of best practices for protecting yourself and your data against cyber security threats.
Managing Up
Presenter: Jordan Miller, Learning and Development Specialist
Organization Development, Office of Human Resources
Date: Thursday, November 30, 2023
Time: 10 a.m.-noon
Location: Virtual
Who Should Attend: All faculty and staff
The ability to partner with supervisors to develop mutual goals can help individual employees, their supervisor, and their organizations become productive and successful. An employee’s relationship with their supervisor is the most important relationship in the workplace. “Managing up” is a skill that helps an employee influence their supervisor to create positive change in the workplace and affect organizational goals and outcomes. This interactive workshop will provide tips and tools to support a constructive relationship with supervisor even when that effort may be challenging. Participants will leave the session with an action plan for “managing up.”
Problem Solving Skills for the Workplace
Presenter: Jordan Miller, Learning and Development Specialist
Organization Development, Office of Human Resources
Date: Tuesday, December 12, 2023
Time: 10 a.m.-noon
Location: Virtual
Who Should Attend: All Faculty and staff
This workshop will provide participants with an overview of how to identify, approach, and solve problems creatively and effectively in the workplace. The facilitator will use interactive skill-building exercises to guide participants through the stages of the problem-solving process using specific examples of problems. Participants will learn the process from defining the problem through making an appropriate recommendation to solve the problem. The objective of this workshop is to allow participants to feel prepared to find their own solutions to problems they uncover in their work environment.
Project Management Basics in Higher Education
Presenter: Rebecca Roadman, Chief of Staff
SVC Business and Operations
Date 1: Wednesday, October 25, 2023 from 9 a.m.-noon
Location: 342 Craig Hall, in-person
Date 2: Tuesday, November 7, 2023 from 9 a.m.- noon
Location: 342 Craig Hall, in-person
Who Should Attend: Faculty and staff who conduct project work or who are interested in learning about project-based work.
Projects are temporary endeavors undertaken to create unique products or services. Many of us participate in project-based work, but we do not always utilize valuable project management methods and tools in the higher education environment. In a condensed format, we will address selected foundations of project management, including: project manager roles, project scope, project charters, triple constraints in projects, communication, roles and responsibilities, stakeholders, risk, and project closing. Participants will receive resources that can be used and adapted to their project work.
Note: Participants must come to the session with at least one project idea to explore and develop; ideas should ideally be related to work. A personal project idea can be used as an alternative.
Strategies for Success in Professional Correspondence
Presenter: Patrick Manning, Outreach Coordinator
The Writing Center
Date: Tuesday, November 14, 2023
Time: 1-3 p.m.
Location: 342 Craig Hall, in-person
Who Should Attend: Staff and faculty who do considerable writing, such as emails and electronic or hard-copy letters, memos, requests, and notifications.
Do you want to make sure the recipients of your professional correspondence understand and efficiently act on requests or instructions within an email, letter, or memo? This workshop is designed to provide faculty and staff with strategies for writing effective emails, letters, and memos. The session will cover email etiquette, how best to address correspondence to various audiences, and how to most effectively include information and instructions within correspondence. Participants will leave this session with a list of useful references and other handouts to use toward best outcomes when corresponding with faculty, students, supervisors, applicants, customers, and colleagues.
Time Management
Presenter: Jordan Miller, Learning and Development Specialist
Organization Development, Office of Human Resources
Date: Wednesday, November 8, 2023
Time: 10 a.m.-noon
Location: 342 Craig Hall, in-person
Note: remote access provided for those who cannot make it to campus
Who Should Attend: All faculty and staff
There is not a one size fits all solution for better time management. What works for one, may never work for another. This workshop provides time management techniques, helps participants identify priorities, and instructs how to remove obstacles to managing time. Through pre-work, participants will identify the tools most effective to their individual style.