Annual Report 2023-2024-DIGITAL - Flipbook - Page 11
DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS & TECHNOLOGY
CONNIE BROICH
This year has been a year of transition and learning for our
staff. We have a team of people who do the behind-the-scenes
work of maintaining the building, overseeing building use and
administrative activities, and managing our technology footprint.
Much of our work may seem invisible, but it is critical to the dayto-day functioning of Plymouth Church. The Operations and
Technology team consists of the following people:
• Director of Operations and Technology – Connie Broich
• Executive Assistant – Dan Schott
• Facilities Manager – Dan Mowry
• Assistant Facilities Manager – Jan Kinney (PT)
• Custodians: Roberto Sanchez, Mike Perry, Zack Creviston,
Abraham Yang (PT), Brian Leckrone (PT)
Administrative and Technology Updates
• We are gathering all the church policies and procedures so we
can begin the work of organizing/updating them.
• With assistance from the HR Committee, the Employee
Handbook has been updated.
• In May, we dissolved our Managed Services agreement with
Heartland Business Systems (HBS). Instead of paying a monthly
fee for desktop monitoring and support, we monitor the platform
internally and HBS will assist Plymouth on an as-needed basis
and monitor our systems when we are unavailable to do so.
• After the completion of the technology infrastructure
upgrade in 2022, we still had a balance with HBS that was
non-refundable. We had to use the money by October 2023,
or we would end up forfeiting it. We decided to use this balance
to hire HBS to clean up a small cupboard filled with network
cables, located in one of our administrative offices. HBS spent a
week rerouting all the cables to the data closet across the hall.
Additionally, they identified and labeled all the data ports on
the administrative and 3rd floor offices. It improved network
management and removed an unsightly tangle of cables so we
could repurpose the space.
• We moved a hot water heater out of the main data closet,
thus eliminating the risk of water getting on our network and
security equipment.
• The staff shuffled offices to help promote easier collaboration
with their teams.
• We are implementing managed print which will help reduce
unnecessary printing, provide confidentiality, and allow us to
track printing costs on a more granular level.
• We saved money by eliminating our church Zoom account in
favor of using Microsoft Teams which is included in our
monthly Microsoft 365 subscription.
Building and Grounds Updates
Plymouth’s commitment to operational excellence includes
providing first-class facilities to support the congregation
and Plymouth’s staff. The Trustee’s Building and Grounds
Committees guiding principles are to operate and maintain
Plymouth’s buildings and grounds in a way that is respectful of
its historic and artistic features and of our planet and that is
respectful to the needs of the next generation.
Plymouth Foundation-Funded Projects:
The Plymouth Foundation has been instrumental in their support
of the necessary facilities projects throughout this past year. Here
is a list of the projects they sponsored through their generosity:
• The south elevator (located near the Welcome Center) had
a door part failure on one of its two doors which had to be
replaced. In a cost-savings measure, we decided to replace this
part in both doors of this elevator and preserve the functioning
part for possible use in the east elevator which is the same
make and model.
• The Church’s roof has undergone serious damage due to a
derecho in 2020 and a hailstorm in 2021. All the roof surfaces
need to be replaced. This includes the slate roofs on the original
1926 building, the roofs on the 1977 addition (Greenwood,
Burling, Spiritual Growth, Rehearsal Hall), and the 2003
addition (Waveland Hall and education wing). We have hired
OPN Architects and Neumann Brothers as construction
manager to plan and implement a Master Roof and Facilities
Plan which includes investigation of foundation structure and
water leak solutions. The Foundation has funded both the
Master Roof and Facilities Plan and a temporary repair on the
Greenwood and Burling flat roof to mitigate current leaking
issues as we continue to make plans for future repairs.
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