UT L&D Manager Spotlight - Emmanuel Nshimirimana

Emmanuel Nshimirimana
Assistant Manager, Custodial Services

1. Describe your role for UT.

I am the Assistant Manager for Night Operations in Custodial Services. Among other duties, I oversee the night custodial operations and support seven supervisors and about 50 front-line supervisors. I am also in charge of hiring new employees and junior leaders in Custodial Services. Due to the vacancies of the Training Manager, the Workload Coordinator, and the Senior Administrative Assistant, I temporarily assist the team with some HR-related tasks like the pay action requests and WCI. I also still cover my previous position of Workload Coordinator while waiting to get a replacement.   

2. What was the most important lesson you learned as a new manager?

The most important lesson I learned as a new manager is a need for training. I realized that I need to be well trained and well informed to be able to train, develop, and support my team adequately. One indeed has to be trained to become a manager, but once you are a manager, your team will expect more information and solutions from you. I deducted that a constant training would keep me sharpened and ready to support my team.

3. What advice do you have for managers to help develop their team?

My advice to managers to help develop their team is to actively listen and understand their team members.The most important thing that team members are expecting from their manager is to understand them and pay attention to their needs and concerns.

4. Why is learning in the workplace important?

Learning in the workplace is very important because it benefits both the employee and the organization. The organization benefits by developing and retaining talented employees. The more talented employees are, the more the production grows. The employee benefits by acquiring more skills, experience, and pride in their work.

5. What is your favorite way to learn (feel free to mention any tool, subscriptions, or services here as well)?  

I am a visual and logical learner. I learn better in seminars/classrooms with demonstration settings. I also learn by watching video materials similar to those found in UT-Learn. I learn better when the material/information involves order, steps, and logic.