Human Resources Strategic Plan

2015-2020

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 Table of Contents

Mission, Vision and Purpose Statement 3

Guiding Principles 5

Strategic Initiatives 7

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Mission of Human Resources

Mission of Human Resources

4 To exceed customer expectations
4 To promote equitable policies and practices
4 To provide guidance on human resource decisions in support of the University’s mission

Vision of Human Resources

As an active voice in the strategic decisions that guide the University toward achieving its goals, Human
Resources will deliver services that encourage and support the success of the University and the
members of its community.

Purpose of the Strategic Plan

To align our objectives with the University’s overall direction, guide our actions and maintain
transparency with these efforts to support our institution’s mission. A key driver of our strategic plan is
to build upon HR’s foundation in a way that allows foresight to develop long-term strategies while also
providing flexibility to support the rapid growth of the University.

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 Guiding Principles

The goals and strategies in this strategic plan are focused

around five guiding principles as outlined below

Collaboration
Why this is important: We value partnerships. We foster trust through open
communication and work in a cooperative, respectful and inclusive manner. We
listen to our customers, anticipate their needs, and balance innovative solutions
with policies and regulations.
What this means to HR: HR’s success is dependent upon the success of our
customers. In order to ensure success, it is critical to engage with our customers
to understand their objectives, processes and challenges. Knowledge gained from
our customers allows us to effectively partner to create the best possible solutions.

Integrity
Why this is important: We value mutual respect, honesty and consistency. We
understand the importance of providing and maintaining accurate data and quality
services. Equally important is our effort to continuously evolve our practices and
create a thriving University community.
What this means to HR: To do our jobs well, we act in accordance with our
professional standards which focus on making decisions that are consistent and
unbiased, and that model the University’s Ethical Principles and Code of Conduct.
We provide the highest quality of services, resources and data to our customers.

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Expertise
Why this is important: We value knowledge. Great solutions are produced when
we take multiple perspectives into consideration. We recognize and respect the
contributions our customers bring to the University and know that our extensive
expertise can complement these contributions and solve problems.
What this means to HR: In order to meet our customers’ needs, we bring HR
industry knowledge to each partnership. We continuously acquire information
regarding trends, research, and best practices both internal and external to the
University. We leverage this insight to support our customers.

Innovation
Why this is important: We value creative thought. With the rapid growth of our
University, it is critical to seek the most efficient and effective solutions. Innovation
propels us forward and keeps us competitive by saving time, adding value and
maintaining relevancy.
What this means to HR: We apply new and emerging methodologies,
technologies and environments to better serve the evolving needs of our
customers.

Inclusion and Diversity

Why this is important: We value individuals and want each person to
succeed. The ability of our team to reach their full potential and best serve
our customers is facilitated, in large measure, by the extent to which we are
inclusive, welcoming and diverse.
What this means to HR: We recognize the unique strengths of each person within
HR and the University. We embrace and leverage everyone’s qualities, skills and
range of abilities to best meet the unique needs and experiences of our customers. 

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 1 Model Customer Service Excellence

Structure HR central customer services to enable individuals’ easy access to information

and to collaborate with experts in finding solutions. Ensure a continuous improvement
mindset by gathering customer feedback and implement best practices.

Establish an HR organizational structure to meet University service expectations and

future growth needs

4 Benchmark current HR staffing and structure with other institutions, including services
provided, scope of responsibility, ratio of staff to university population, etc.
4 Define networks of expertise to bridge HR’s centers of excellence (e.g. Compensation,
Employment) resulting in cross-functional solutions for our customers 

Improve the overall quality of service

4 Develop annual and periodic customer surveys to assess overall strengths

and opportunities
4 Establish process for survey distribution and obtain baseline metrics with initial survey
4 Introduce pulse surveys for specific initiatives
4 Target areas of improvement

Centralize a customer service infrastructure to answer all basic incoming HR questions

(inclusive of phone, face-to-face, and email inquiries)

4 Benchmark current staffing and structure with other institutions and companies
to gain best practices
4 Leverage and invest in technology solutions to increase self-service options
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Design, update and maintain an integrated HR website to ensure customers
understand HR services, staff roles, responsibilities and available resources

4 Gather feedback from customers to better understand how online resources can meet their needs
4 Assemble an HR-wide website committee to study the feedback, review web traffic, determine
a desired site structure and create new site
4 Review traffic metrics and recommend site enhancements to maximize self-service utilization
4 Ensure website meets expectations in regards to literacy levels, ADA compliance and use of
mobile devices

Provide timely and meaningful information through all HR communications

(e.g. HR Insider, HR Thrive, Supervisor Solutions, etc.)

4 Develop distinct brand for HR

4 Develop purpose statements for each newsletter including guidelines for content, annual
editorial calendar, and process for identifying and including appropriate audience members
4 Record and report open and click rates for all HR newsletters and increase open rates to 30
percent or higher

Enhance the new-hire onboarding experience

4 Define onboarding timeframe, actions, responsible parties and desired outcomes

to be measured
4 Review and evaluate current practices (e.g. New Hire Orientation, website resources, etc.)
4 Benchmark with other institutions including services provided and scope of responsibility
4 Leverage and invest in technology solutions

Create knowledge transfer tools to support supervisors in maximizing the

offboarding process

4 Establish offboarding best practices

4 Implement action plan to provide tools across campus

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 2 Drive Solutions through Technology

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Promote the importance of quality HR data and technology solutions and
leverage both data and technology to make informed decisions and
streamline operations.

Set the stage for use of predictive analytics in planning and decision making

4 Identify existing and potential gaps in data management to promote accurate conclusions
4 Use visual literacy to identify trends with the creation of dashboards
4 Create a suite of workforce-related data that is regularly updated and easily accessible
to leadership
4 Provide guidance to users on the interpretation of data to make business
and operational decisions 

Engage pertinent parties in continuous process improvement of HR-related

University data systems

4 Develop outreach programs to inform and educate system users on data integrity
4 Publish glossary of HR terms and templates of regular system actions taken by end users
4 Create reference documents of common data errors and tips to help alleviate them
4 Promote transparency of HR system connections to understand and recognize data
sources and allow for more efficient and accurate problem solving

Utilize existing technology to maintain operational flexibility and continuity

4 Ensure new employee access to technology and systems to allow immediate productivity
and engagement from start day
4 Remove barriers to accessing University systems from remote locations
4 Maximize use of technological communication tools (Skype, Lync, WebEx)
4 Educate workforce on availability and proper use of mobile technology

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 3 Expand University Partnerships

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Increase engagement with students, faculty, and staff and strengthen existing
partnerships with leaders across the University.

Embed HR expertise within business units by expanding the Business Partner model

4 Expand Business Partner model in Provost area

4 Develop impact metrics to measure effectiveness

Proactively identify and address opportunities through management of customer inquiries

4 Pilot inquiry management in key areas

4 Leverage areas with existing structures or systems to address needs and opportunities

Create model that plans for turnover in key positions

4 Identify key roles and define necessary experiences, abilities and knowledge
4 Leverage learning and expand existing development program from UK HealthCare
4 Pilot expanded program in a defined area

Partner with existing student employment services on campus to create a

comprehensive student employment program to better prepare students for the future
4 Benchmark student employment programs on university campuses
4 Research and understand student employment options and regulations
4 Determine appropriate ways for HR to support student employment program
4 Clearly communicate student employment options

Implement organizational development (OD) practices and solutions to better support the
depth of needs of customers throughout the University
4 Assess highest areas in need for OD opportunities based on UK@Work survey results and
interviews with Training & Development and HR Business Partners
4 Communicate available services to customers
4 Work with HR Business Partners to develop, design and implement unit-specific
change management strategies and support systems
4 Determine effectiveness through continuous feedback from customers and future
UK@Work survey results
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 4 Improve Employee Engagement

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Enhance physical, mental and financial well-being of the UK community. Provide
mutually beneficial workplace solutions which promote a positive work/life experience
and support a variety of work styles and needs. Provide formal inclusiveness and diversity
professional development for employees, including training on unconscious bias and on
how to structurally create inclusive working and learning environments.

Provide an ever-increasing array of proactive coaching and educational opportunities

regarding financial well-being

4 Decrease defaults on loans against retirement

4 Ensure 90 percent or more of new UK retirees have met with a UK Retirement Officer
4 Build a robust financial well-being self-service center online

Improve the well-being of the UK community

4 Grow participation in well-being programs

4 Increase the return on investment from LiveWell Check Ins
4 Maintain or improve rankings for value of health benefits relative to benchmark institutions
4 Integrate supplemental third-party programs where gaps appear in current services

Leverage workplace solutions to support current and future employee and University
needs such as space constraints, accessibility, work/life balance and extraordinary events

4 Increase the number of staff with documented regular utilization of any form of flexible work
arrangements by 10 percent in first year and continue upward trend in subsequent years
4 Increase positive responses with work and personal balance as shown in items related to
stress, balance and workload in the UK HealthCare and UK@Work engagement surveys
4 Identify and address barriers for employees to work remotely (e.g. phone access, technology,
paper-based forms)

Implement best practices and proven strategies from unconscious bias endeavors

4 Provide support in recruiting, hiring, retaining and promoting to increase and sustain diversity
4 Identify other areas that accurately measure the impact of identified best practices
4 Determine baseline metrics and improve trends including demographics of search
and hiring committees
4 Train search committees in order to reduce the impact of unconscious bias

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 5 Exemplify a Thriving Workforce

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HR recognizes its responsibility to lead as well as participate fully in all recommended
strategic initiatives. This responsibility will require investment in HR employees by
decreasing stress and burnout within HR, fostering a coaching culture and setting
expectations for staff development.

Establish consistent expectations for leaders, managers and supervisors to support

employee success

4 Produce written expectations for staff development at all levels

4 Increase opportunities for staff at all levels to participate in continuing education,
career development, coaching, mentoring and professional networking

Streamline and standardize key HR processes to smooth workflow and eliminate

process bottlenecks

4 Map key processes to determine current states

4 Improve selected processes
4 Compare improved process outcomes to original processes to capture benefit data

Mitigate stress and burnout to improve productivity and engagement

4 Increase access to, support of and participation in workplace flexibility options

4 Evaluate and regularly monitor workload, expectations and resources to ensure
all are reasonable
4 Gain consensus and produce written expectations of supervisors’ responsibilities
to manage work distribution

Pilot a coach training program within HR that equips supervisors and managers with
appropriate coaching skills

4 Designate and train initial cohort of HR coaches

4 Identify cohort of participants to be coached
4 Track progress of participants

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