The Workforce Wellness Adventure
An Interview with Tameika Chandler-Jones, MHRM, MBA, CLRP, SHRM-PMQ, President and Owner, Transcendent Consultative Solutions, LLC
Tameika is teaching a brand-new Civic Leadership Academy webinar, “The Workforce Wellness Adventure: Retain, Cross-Train and Kill Toxicity” on Dec. 9. We spoke with Tameika to learn more about the course, her human resources background, and her top advice for supervisors and managers.
Can you start out by sharing a little bit about your background and how you got into human resources?
I was going to Chicago State University for my bachelor’s in criminal justice, and I did work study in the human resources department while I was there. Initially I wanted to go to law school, become a family law attorney and then ultimately a judge. Then I shifted focus and wanted to join the FBI. But I met the person who would later become my husband, my priorities shifted, and as part of that process I realized the work I was already doing in human resources was my passion!
While finishing my undergraduate from Chicago State , I took the Civil Service exam and continued working in HR full time for the university until I graduated in 2003. HR combined my love of learning about law, with providing great customer service and advocacy. I then went to Keller Graduate School of Management for my master’s in human resources management, and I continued for my second master’s in business administration with a concentration in general management. After that, I worked in HR as a Benefits Administrator for the Illinois Student Assistance Commission in Deerfield then as Director of Human Resources for the City of Waukegan. Then, in 2023 I became the Director of Human Resources for the Village of Mundelein.
I began Transcendent Consultative Solutions, LLC in July 2023, because HR is my passion, and I want to continue working in the field after I retire from municipal work.
You’ve worked for several municipalities and a university, all in the public service world. What’s special about doing HR for a public serving organization like that?
The people I serve as my clients are the employees – and how I treat them models how the employees then go out and treat the public. To me, HR is the centerpiece of quality public service and customer service. How you treat the employees, that internal culture, then gets spread externally through how they treat the public. That means in HR we have the power to make a difference, to help employees take pride in what they do, whether they’re a public works employee repairing potholes, a fire fighter helping a senior citizen who has fallen in their home, or a police officer interacting with people on the street.
What are some of the biggest challenges municipal employees are facing, and your top pieces of advice?
One of the biggest challenges, of course, is money. In municipalities, and the public sector as a whole, we tend to operate with minimal budgets. That means we have to be creative to understand what our employees need and find other solutions that don’t involve just paying people more. It requires getting down to the root of the problem if you have employees who are feeling burned out or undervalued. What can we do to make you feel valued and feel that you matter?
My top piece of advice is, it’s all about work morale, figuring out ways to limit workplace toxicity and finding ways to make employees feel valued. One thing you can do is give your employees autonomy. Find out what their skill sets are and then give them certain projects that they can take ownership of. Then, when they do a good job on projects that are beneficial for your community, take the time to praise them. Maybe present them with an award at a municipal board meeting, for example. That may seem tedious or seem like it won’t make a difference to the employee, but often those sorts of recognition mean the world to someone.
Is there anything that you want people to know about the webinar? Who should attend, and what should they expect?
While the webinar was designed with municipal leaders and managers in mind, it can be applicable to a manager or supervisor in any organization – or even someone who would like to advance their career and is aspiring to become a supervisor.
I tell people all the time, your technical skills are what got you promoted to supervisor – but the skills you need to thrive in the role and be successful are very different! You need what we often call “soft skills” – communication, understanding and managing different personalities, learning to be a supervisor to employees who were previously at the same level as you. That transition is very challenging, and it’s important to learn new skills to help your team function as well as possible.
Can you say more about what some of those “soft skills” are that are so important?
Communication is key, learning to actually listen. When I do mediations with employees, I like to use an acronym drawn from one of my favorite TV shows, Marriage Boot Camp. The acronym is LUV (love), which stands for listening, understanding and validating. I use it in my work with employees, and I train supervisors to use it when they’re interacting with employees. The most important skill is being able to listen to someone, take a moment to understand what they’re saying to you and then validate that.
Another very important skill is emotional intelligence. You have to first become self-aware and understand your own emotions before you can understand and validate the emotions of others. Once you’re able to do that, you can know your team – understand their skills sets and their personalities and manage them accordingly. That’s how you can start building a thriving team.
Is there anything else I didn’t ask about that you think our audience should know?
There’s really a three-part goal to this course. Parts one and two are, I want people to walk away with the ability to recognize workforce challenges and identify retention strategies. Part three is controlling workplace toxicity, but it’s actually all connected because limiting toxicity is one of the best ways to improve retention and address challenges.
It’s easy sometimes for supervisors and managers to get into workplace gossip and negativity, not realizing that becoming part of it makes it grow. Instead, it’s important to nip it in the bud, to keep some separation and, to the best of your ability, limit the amount of negativity that comes across your teams. Because the more negative energy that comes in, the more it feeds, grows and then gets out of control. So I want to address how to contain negativity so you can create a thriving team.
Should people come in prepared with ideas or challenges from their own workplace?
Not necessarily in advance of the webinar. They should just show up prepared to listen and learn. But afterwards, I will send folks home with some post-workshop homework to do for themselves. I’ll provide a set of challenges they can engage in to put what they’ve learned into practice at their own organization.
Is there anything else you’d like to leave us with?
This is my first webinar with the NIU Civic Leadership Academy, so I’m very excited to be presenting to my industry peers about something I care so much about!
