Are you experiencing difficulties in your marriage, stress with a rebellious teenager, do you have an aging parent who needs more care than you’re able to give or are the holidays an especially difficult time for you? If so, Heartland’s EAP (employee assistant program) is here to help.
EAP services are available to all staff members through Bensinger, Dupont and Associates (BDA). Under EAP you can receive no-cost, confidential help for a wide variety of needs and concerns, such as:
• Depression
• Stress management
• Anxiety
• Marital difficulties
• Relationship problems
• Family conflict
• Alcohol or drug addictions
• Financial concerns – telephone consultation with financial consultant on budgeting, taxes and debt consolidation
• Parenting concerns
• Problem gambling
• Eating disorders
• Legal concerns – telephone and/or one in-person consultation with an attorney on tax filing, guardianship and power-of-attorney services
• Childcare and eldercare – telephone consultation with a work-life professional to provide information, referrals and resources related to childcare or eldercare concerns
BDA offers up to three in-person assessment and counseling sessions by masters-degreed counselors 24-hours a day, seven days a week through a toll-free number. Your information will be completely confidential.
If this service would be of assistance, contact:
Bensinger, DuPont and Associates
(866) 451-5465
Online services are available at: www.niseap.com
Your password is: NISenhanced
Click here to download a brochure that details EAP services.
Questions or feedback may be addressed to Kathy Martin, Benefits Specialist, at kmartin@aea11.k12.ia.us or ext. 14385.
Monday, December 12, 2011
Out of Office Protocols For Quality Customer Service
It is important to have correct referral information available to internal and external customers who may call or e-mail staff members during absences. Considering upcoming holidays and leave/vacation schedules, this is a good time to review the steps we all need to take prior to being out of the office.
Change Voicemail Greeting to Unavailable (samples below)
• Thank you for calling Heartland AEA. You have reached Santa Claus. I am currently out of the office until (date you return). If you need immediate assistance, please contact Rudolph at extension 00000, otherwise leave your name and phone number and I will return your call when I am back in the office. Thank you.
• You have reached Santa Claus at Heartland AEA. I am out of the office until (date you return). Please leave your name and phone number, and I will return your call when I am back in the office, or if you need immediate assistance, please press “0” and someone else will assist you. Thank you. (In this case, make sure that you have asked Jim Lagnese to program your phone to zero out to the person who is covering for you.)
• You have reached Santa Claus at Heartland AEA. This is the week of December 26 and our offices will be open on Wednesday, December 28th only. I will be out of the office the entire week, however, if you need assistance you may contact Rudolph at extension 00000 on December 28. Otherwise I will return your call on January 2. Thank you.
Tip: If you want to change your voicemail greeting from your home phone or cell phone, you may do so by calling either (515) 270-0405 or (515) 473-7450 and pressing # when you begin to hear the greeting. This gets you into your voicemail and you can then follow the prompts to access your messages, change your voicemail greeting or set it to out of office if you are ill and want callers to get immediate help.
You can also choose to forward your phone to another staff member so that all your calls go directly to their phone. Follow the directions below.
If you press the blue “super key” on your phone, you will be presented with two choices on your phone display. It will show “Phonebook?”, “Yes” and “No.” Press the button below “No.” The next is “Call Forwarding.” Press the button that is below “Yes.” You will see “Always” displayed. Next, press the button below “Review.” Press the button on the left, probably below “Change” and then press the button below “Program.” Type in the extension number that you are forwarding to (or outside number with an “8” before the phone number), then press the button below “Save.” Then press the button below “Change” and then press the button below “Turn On,” which will put an asterisk after the phone number. Then press the button below “Next” and then the blue “super key” and you are done.
Change Kerio E-mail to “Out of Office” (sample below)
• Thank you for contacting Heartland AEA. I will be out of the office until January 2. If you need immediate assistance, please contact Santa Claus at santaclaus@northpole.com or ext. 00000 or Mrs. Claus at mrslcaus@northpole.com or ext. 11111. Thank you. To create an out of office greeting, go to “Settings” in the top left hand corner of Kerio Mail then choose “Out of office.” Click on the circle that says “I am out of office now.” Type in your message using the contact person’s name that is filling in during your absence. Read your message to check for spelling errors, etc. and then click “ok” when finished.
Change Employee Dashboard to “Out of Office”
On your Employee Dashboard home page in the upper left under “Workflow Tasklist” is a box to click when you are out of the office. This enables any workflows to go to the secondary approver when you are set to out of office. This is important if you do purchase requests, so they don’t sit on your tasklist while you are absent.
Please be mindful not to refer a customer to another staff member who is also scheduled to be out of the office. Check with that person to make sure he or she will be available and aware that you are forwarding customers and/or staff members to them during your absence.
Change Voicemail Greeting to Unavailable (samples below)
• Thank you for calling Heartland AEA. You have reached Santa Claus. I am currently out of the office until (date you return). If you need immediate assistance, please contact Rudolph at extension 00000, otherwise leave your name and phone number and I will return your call when I am back in the office. Thank you.
• You have reached Santa Claus at Heartland AEA. I am out of the office until (date you return). Please leave your name and phone number, and I will return your call when I am back in the office, or if you need immediate assistance, please press “0” and someone else will assist you. Thank you. (In this case, make sure that you have asked Jim Lagnese to program your phone to zero out to the person who is covering for you.)
• You have reached Santa Claus at Heartland AEA. This is the week of December 26 and our offices will be open on Wednesday, December 28th only. I will be out of the office the entire week, however, if you need assistance you may contact Rudolph at extension 00000 on December 28. Otherwise I will return your call on January 2. Thank you.
Tip: If you want to change your voicemail greeting from your home phone or cell phone, you may do so by calling either (515) 270-0405 or (515) 473-7450 and pressing # when you begin to hear the greeting. This gets you into your voicemail and you can then follow the prompts to access your messages, change your voicemail greeting or set it to out of office if you are ill and want callers to get immediate help.
You can also choose to forward your phone to another staff member so that all your calls go directly to their phone. Follow the directions below.
If you press the blue “super key” on your phone, you will be presented with two choices on your phone display. It will show “Phonebook?”, “Yes” and “No.” Press the button below “No.” The next is “Call Forwarding.” Press the button that is below “Yes.” You will see “Always” displayed. Next, press the button below “Review.” Press the button on the left, probably below “Change” and then press the button below “Program.” Type in the extension number that you are forwarding to (or outside number with an “8” before the phone number), then press the button below “Save.” Then press the button below “Change” and then press the button below “Turn On,” which will put an asterisk after the phone number. Then press the button below “Next” and then the blue “super key” and you are done.
Change Kerio E-mail to “Out of Office” (sample below)
• Thank you for contacting Heartland AEA. I will be out of the office until January 2. If you need immediate assistance, please contact Santa Claus at santaclaus@northpole.com or ext. 00000 or Mrs. Claus at mrslcaus@northpole.com or ext. 11111. Thank you. To create an out of office greeting, go to “Settings” in the top left hand corner of Kerio Mail then choose “Out of office.” Click on the circle that says “I am out of office now.” Type in your message using the contact person’s name that is filling in during your absence. Read your message to check for spelling errors, etc. and then click “ok” when finished.
Change Employee Dashboard to “Out of Office”
On your Employee Dashboard home page in the upper left under “Workflow Tasklist” is a box to click when you are out of the office. This enables any workflows to go to the secondary approver when you are set to out of office. This is important if you do purchase requests, so they don’t sit on your tasklist while you are absent.
Please be mindful not to refer a customer to another staff member who is also scheduled to be out of the office. Check with that person to make sure he or she will be available and aware that you are forwarding customers and/or staff members to them during your absence.
Reminder: Upcoming December Payroll Timelines
Due to the upcoming agency holiday schedule, staff members paid from a timesheet must have their December 1-15 timesheets completed, approved by their supervisor and submitted to the Payroll Department by the end of the day on December 21 in order to ensure they receive pay at the end of the month.
Agency offices will be closed on December 29 and 30; as a result, payday will be December 28. Please contact Steve Jordan, Payroll Specialist, at ext. 14908 or Michelle Westcott, Payroll Specialist, at ext. 14422 if you have any questions.
Agency offices will be closed on December 29 and 30; as a result, payday will be December 28. Please contact Steve Jordan, Payroll Specialist, at ext. 14908 or Michelle Westcott, Payroll Specialist, at ext. 14422 if you have any questions.
Effective January 1: Revised Pricing for Print Services
Heartland has not changed the prices charged for color or black and white (b/w) copies for several years. As a result, the Agency is not recovering service, supply and labor costs when producing printed documents from our Print Center. Effective January 1, 2012, our prices for copying/printing will increase. Click here to see a chart of the revised prices. The information below was used to determine revised printing costs.
Cost formula: Service and supply costs (referred as a “click charge”) + paper costs + labor costs
Note: A “click charge” is defined as one 8.5 x 11 image, therefore . . .
• A 1-sided b/w or color 8.5 x 11 is billed as one "click"
• A 2-sided b/w or color 8.5 x 11 is billed as two "clicks"
• A 1-sided b/w or color 8.5 x 14 is billed as one "click"
• A 2-sided b/w or color 8.5 x 14 is billed as two "clicks"
• A 1-sided b/w or color 11 x 17 is billed as two "clicks"
• A 2-sided b/w or color 11 x 17 is billed as four "clicks"
Revised printing costs:
• A 1-sided b/w 8.5 x 11 or 8.5 x 14 image = $.005 (click charge) + $.005 (paper charge) + $.00722 (labor charge) = $.01722
• A 2-sided b/w 8.5 x 11 or 8.5 x 14 image = $.01 (click charge) + $.005 (paper charge) + $.0144 (labor charge) = $.0294
• A 1-sided b/w 11 x 17 image = $.01 (click charge) + $.01 (paper charge) + $.0144 (labor charge) = $.0272
• A 2-sided b/w 11 x 17 image = $.02 (click charge) + $.01 (paper charge) + $.0288 (labor charge) = $.0588
• A 1-sided color 8.5 x 11 or 8.5 x 14 image = $.043 (click charge) + $.01 (paper charge) + $.00722 (labor charge) = $.06022
• A 2-sided color 8.5 x 11 or 8.5 x 14 image = $.086 (click charge) + $.01 (paper charge) + $.0144 (labor charge) = $.11
• A 1-sided color 11 x 17 image = $.086 (click charge) + $.02 (paper charge) + $.0144 (labor charge) = $.12
• A 2-sided color 11 x 17 image = $.172 (click charge) + $.02 (paper charge) + $.0288 (labor charge) = $.22
The price increases are not directly linked to our new partnership with Laser Resources. Our prices have been outdated for many years, and the increase is needed in order to recover the cost of providing our printing services to our staff and the schools we serve. Despite the increases, the price per copy remains considerably lower than commercial printers and our office copiers. For example, the estimated per copy cost of printing to one of our office color printers is up to $.20 per copy, depending on coverage. That same color copy printed in our Heartland Print Center is $.06 for a one-sided copy and $.11 for a two-sided copy.
Please continue to use the Print Center for copies of 25 or more. If you have questions regarding our printing capabilities, please contact the Print Center at printcenter@aea11.k12.ia.us or ext. 14412. If you have questions regarding the Print Center transition or pricing, please contact Steve Prall at sprall@aea11.k12.ia.us or ext. 14423.
Thank you for your continued support, and we look forward to fulfilling your printing needs in the future.
Cost formula: Service and supply costs (referred as a “click charge”) + paper costs + labor costs
Note: A “click charge” is defined as one 8.5 x 11 image, therefore . . .
• A 1-sided b/w or color 8.5 x 11 is billed as one "click"
• A 2-sided b/w or color 8.5 x 11 is billed as two "clicks"
• A 1-sided b/w or color 8.5 x 14 is billed as one "click"
• A 2-sided b/w or color 8.5 x 14 is billed as two "clicks"
• A 1-sided b/w or color 11 x 17 is billed as two "clicks"
• A 2-sided b/w or color 11 x 17 is billed as four "clicks"
Revised printing costs:
• A 1-sided b/w 8.5 x 11 or 8.5 x 14 image = $.005 (click charge) + $.005 (paper charge) + $.00722 (labor charge) = $.01722
• A 2-sided b/w 8.5 x 11 or 8.5 x 14 image = $.01 (click charge) + $.005 (paper charge) + $.0144 (labor charge) = $.0294
• A 1-sided b/w 11 x 17 image = $.01 (click charge) + $.01 (paper charge) + $.0144 (labor charge) = $.0272
• A 2-sided b/w 11 x 17 image = $.02 (click charge) + $.01 (paper charge) + $.0288 (labor charge) = $.0588
• A 1-sided color 8.5 x 11 or 8.5 x 14 image = $.043 (click charge) + $.01 (paper charge) + $.00722 (labor charge) = $.06022
• A 2-sided color 8.5 x 11 or 8.5 x 14 image = $.086 (click charge) + $.01 (paper charge) + $.0144 (labor charge) = $.11
• A 1-sided color 11 x 17 image = $.086 (click charge) + $.02 (paper charge) + $.0144 (labor charge) = $.12
• A 2-sided color 11 x 17 image = $.172 (click charge) + $.02 (paper charge) + $.0288 (labor charge) = $.22
The price increases are not directly linked to our new partnership with Laser Resources. Our prices have been outdated for many years, and the increase is needed in order to recover the cost of providing our printing services to our staff and the schools we serve. Despite the increases, the price per copy remains considerably lower than commercial printers and our office copiers. For example, the estimated per copy cost of printing to one of our office color printers is up to $.20 per copy, depending on coverage. That same color copy printed in our Heartland Print Center is $.06 for a one-sided copy and $.11 for a two-sided copy.
Please continue to use the Print Center for copies of 25 or more. If you have questions regarding our printing capabilities, please contact the Print Center at printcenter@aea11.k12.ia.us or ext. 14412. If you have questions regarding the Print Center transition or pricing, please contact Steve Prall at sprall@aea11.k12.ia.us or ext. 14423.
Thank you for your continued support, and we look forward to fulfilling your printing needs in the future.
December 2011 Board of Directors Meeting Agenda
Click here to download the agenda for the December 13, 2011 Heartland Board of Directors meeting.
Planning Council Membership Document Now Available
Upon the request of many staff members, we’ve created a front/back document of the Agency’s planning councils membership. Click here to download the document. Please use it as you see fit.
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