The Challenge:

This major public university's central HR organization spanned multiple specialized teams: talent acquisition, position management and compensation, employee relations, organizational and employee development, HR operations, technology, and the service center. Each operated with its own priorities and ways of working. Roles and accountabilities also overlapped with partner offices across campus, including the Provost's Office and other administrative units, leaving gaps in who owned what. With the goal of evolving from a transactional service into a trusted strategic partner, the function needed a clearer operating model: defined roles and accountabilities, standardized core processes, and a structure that every team could see itself in, all in a climate that had historically been resistant to change.

The Solution:

Worked in partnership with HR leadership to design the function's operating model from the ground up, clarifying how the organization is structured, how its centers of excellence work together, and where accountabilities sit across central HR and partner offices. A strategic planning framework aimed connecting purpose and vision to three-year goals, annual objectives, and quarterly tactics, anchored on three design pillars: Strategic Partnerships & Collaboration, Workforce Excellence & Employee Experience, and Operational Effectiveness & HR Transformation. Within that model, each center of excellence defined its own objectives, KPIs, targets, and accountabilities, captured on a one-page plan and supporting scorecards. Core processes such as hire, employee support, and separation were standardized, and a roadmap was set to reduce manual work and establish continuous-improvement routines across the function.

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