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SELF EVALUATION
Robert Manners
Staff Secretary

Work Description:
On a daily basis, my main tasks are answering the phone (directing calls to others if they’re available or else taking messages; if possible I callers’ questions) and writing/word-processing all letters and other documents sent from this office. I also download emails (though I seldom read them, as most are from listserves, I just archive them) from our AOL account every day. I sometimes sort the mail, but JB does this rather more often than I do, though if I notice something important in the mail pile I will pull it out.

Another of my ongoing duties (though not a daily occurrence) is the maintenance of the membership database; I input new members, compare membership activity against the payroll deduction registers, forward membership information to the national affiliate (via an internet/network interface for which I received two days’ training), and answer membership queries from the Faculty and our affiliates. I also use this database, as well as my access to the District’s mainframe, to look up phone numbers and other contact information for the Professional Staff.

Twice a month I distribute (usually by mail) the agenda/attachments and minutes of the Executive Body Meetings. I reserve the room for these meetings, assemble and deliver refreshments, and take notes. This calendar year I have also become the sole writer of meeting minutes (in the past, I only did so occasionally). For the twice-a-semester Membership Meetings, I make room reservations, advertise the meeting, prepare the sign-in sheets, and take notes.

Once a month, I receive the due and fee deductions from the District payroll department, deposit those and all other income in the bank account, and calculate the per capita numbers sent to the national and other affiliates. More recently (this calendar year) I have become responsible for the paying of bills, which entails collecting and opening bills when they arrive, writing checks for those bills, getting the checks signed, and remitting the bills; I then report all the checks and deposits to the Bookkeeper (in the recent past, the former bookkeeper did all this; in the more distant past, I did all except write the checks); I generally do this twice a month, to coincide with Executive Body meetings.

On an as-needed basis: I edit from contributed copy (and occasionally contribute to) and format (and now print) the faculty newsletter and distribute it to all four campuses (which entails thirty miles of driving and an average twenty minutes of box-stuffing); I post an online version of these to our AOL website, along with any other information that is needed or requested or of interest; write, format, print, and distribute all flyers (on an average of two per month); print, fold, label, assemble, seal, and post all mailers, including but not limited to all secret-ballot elections and the annual fee-payers’ notices (an average of five a year); shop for office supplies and groceries; and run miscellaneous errands as required.

Particular Skills
My best skill is writing: I have a certain flair for formal writing that has stood me in good stead when writing or editing letters to administrators and other such correspondents; I am very good at filling out newsletter articles or finding information to squeeze into the blank spaces; and I am fairly skilled in writing explanations and instructions that cover all bases. I am furthermore very skilled in formatting documents, creating flyers, newsletters, ballots, sign-in sheets, etc., in a visually pleasing manner.

I also have a certain talent for dealing with office machines: I can usually figure out how to operate any business machine with a minimum of training; I am very good at learning the quirks and foibles of a particular machine and can usually troubleshoot equipment problems; and I can often find ways of making older machines perform efficiently.

I learn new processes very quickly, I have a fairly retentive memory for contract language and other information, and am blessed with an excellent telephone manner. I am extremely flexible about my schedule, am usually willing to be out-of-pocket when purchasing supplies or groceries for which we do not maintain accounts, and have no compunction about using gas and putting miles on my car in the course of my work.

Areas for Improvement
I am by nature extremely untidy: I have found it impossible to create an organized system of paper-placement, either on my desk or in the filing cabinets; while I can occasionally force myself to tidy up around my desk and file loose documents (using the various systems that evolved before I arrived), I have never been able to achieve any consistent improvement or workable overarching system. While I am by no means averse to improving, I have no idea how to go about it.

It is also very difficult for me to admit my own shortcomings: I have often agreed to take on responsibilities that I am not capable of dealing with, rather than stating outright that the task is beyond either my abilities or my time constraints. As a result, I become overwhelmed and either the new task or a series of other tasks suffer from inattention (which can occasionally result in serious consequences).

I feel extreme discomfort making outgoing phone calls, especially to people I do not know; I suffer from “mood swings” (the beginnings of bipolar disorder), mental and physical depressions that sometimes adversely affect my performance; and I have a tendency to procrastinate endlessly when faced with mindless and repetitive tasks.