Washington State University’s largest in-house employee development event, Elevating Cougs, will be held Oct. 22–23. The virtual conference, organized by HRS’ Learning and Organizational Development and Modernization, offers WSU staff a unique opportunity to expand their personal, professional, and Workday skills in sessions primarily developed and led by their peers. Elevating Cougs is free to attend for all WSU employees.
The inaugural Elevating Cougs conference last year welcomed nearly 800 WSU staff and faculty attendees and 92 speakers representing WSU as well as other universities and organizations.
Sessions from the 2023 event are still available for viewing in Percipio.
The 2024 conference’s session catalog offers WSU employees the opportunity to tailor their conference agenda to their desired learning goals, with many sessions the result of feedback and suggestions received following the 2023 event. Attendees may choose from over 50 sessions across three distinct learning tracks, encompassing subjects such as personal and professional development, leadership, teamwork and culture, Workday skills and resources, and more.
In addition to sessions within the Leading as a Coug, Developing as a Coug, and Workday Success Stories tracks, this year’s event also features several cross-track presentations, highlighting how WSU employees, systems, and ideas are connected. These sessions include:
- A.I. in the Cougar Workplace: A Panel Discussion for WSU Employees
This panel discussion brings together WSU experts and leaders to discuss AI in the university workplace and answer questions about how WSU staff can effectively and ethically leverage AI in their jobs. - Onboarding New Employees: Finding Essential Resources
Starting a new job can be overwhelming for both new hires and managers. In this session, learn where to find essential resources and how to effectively guide new employee through their first day, first week, and first 30 days. - WSU Org Structure
This session provides an overview of supervisory organization (sup org) structure at WSU, and dives into how sup orgs and Workday security roles inform routing processes.
Over 500 WSU employees have already registered for Elevating Cougs 2024. Registration is currently open and will remain available throughout the conference for those who may choose to attend last-minute. Employees who plan on attending but have not yet registered are encouraged to do so at their earliest convenience, to allow more time to review the conference schedule, bookmark sessions they’re interested in, and explore the Zoom Events platform. Registered attendees may also review these “Know Before You Go” guidelines ahead of the event to learn more about what to expect from the conference experience.
Staff and faculty interested in attending this year’s conference can learn more about the event, explore the session schedule, and register now at the Elevating Cougs 2024 web page. Reach out to the conference organizers at hrstraining@wsu.edu for any questions about the event.
