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Abstract
Higher education is in the midst of a staffing crisis that has been smoldering for decades, and now threatens the operations of campuses across the country. The purpose of this study is to
understand how non-faculty professional staff talent is managed, particularly in the early career
stage. The case for this study focuses on a mid-sized private university in the southeastern United
States, and on the onboarding experiences of staff members who are responsible for studentfacing activities related to student engagement, retention, and success. The two questions guiding
this study are: (a) How do newly hired non-faculty professional staff at a small private university
reflect upon their onboarding experiences; and (b) How do institutions and HR leaders describe
the onboarding process and its value for newly hired non-faculty professional staff? Qualitative
data was generated using semi-structured interviews and organizational documents.