DIRECTOR OF PERSONNEL PROJECTS

Req #: 226081

Department: SCHOOL OF MEDICINE

Job Location: Health Sciences Center, Remote/Hybrid

Posting Date: 09/20/2023

Closing Info: Open Until Filled

Salary: $10,000 - $16,500 per month

Other Compensation:

Shift: First Shift

Benefits: As a UW employee, you will enjoy generous benefits and work/life programs. For a complete description of our benefits for this position, please visit our website, click here.

As a UW employee, you have a unique opportunity to change lives on our campuses, in our state and around the world. UW employees offer their boundless energy, creative problem-solving skills and dedication to build stronger minds and a healthier world.

UW faculty and staff also enjoy outstanding benefits, professional growth opportunities and unique resources in an environment noted for diversity, intellectual excitement, artistic pursuits and natural beauty.

The School of Medicine has an outstanding opportunity for a Director of Personnel Projects to join their team.

Under the general guidance of the Director of Personnel Policy, the Director of Personnel Projects (Director) is responsible for project-specific guidance and assistance on particular personnel and/or policy matters arising out of School of Medicine (SoM) departments and units, as well as providing ongoing human resources consultation services with a focus on academic personnel. The Director will assume primary responsibility for a wide range of projects related to the consultation, guidance and/or investigation of a variety of personnel issues, such as performance management, remediation, professionalism and compliance. The Director will exercise discretion and independent judgment in handling personnel projects, including:

• Providing guidance, consultation and coordination on employment or appointment-related matters;

• Developing, accessing and implementing training on specific topics; and

• Reviewing inquiries and coordinating investigations of workplace concerns, complaints or grievances.

The Director is a key member of a team of directors in the Personnel Policy Unit (PPU) of the Business Unit in the dean’s office in the SoM. In handling assigned projects and ongoing consultation, the Director is expected to engage in frequent and active collaboration with PPU members, as well as colleagues in the Business Unit, SoM (or UW Medicine) administrators and central UW administrators from various offices, including Academic HR, Human Resources, Labor Relations, the Office of Research (OR), Clinical Risk Management, the Ombud’s Office, Office of the Title IX Coordinator, SafeCampus, the University Complaint Investigation and Resolution Office (UCIRO), the Office of Research Misconduct Proceedings (ORMP) and the Attorney General’s Office (AGO).

This position has a primary reporting relationship to the Director of Personnel Policy. On occasion, the position also may receive direction from and work closely with the UW Medicine Clinical Business and Regulatory Affairs Officer, SoM Vice Dean for Administration and Finance and the Associate Dean for Business and Regulatory Affairs.

Position Complexities

The Director is expected to understand and support the single mission of UW Medicine to improve the health of the public, as well as support the academic, research, and clinical care activities of the SoM, a nationally and internationally ranked medical school. The SoM has 31 academic departments with over 1,700 teaching and research faculty, 4,000 clinical faculty, and 700 research and training fellows, and administrative support staff who work across a five state WWAMI (Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana, and Idaho) region.

The Director is also expected to understand the role of the SoM within the UW, a large, complex and high-ranking institution of higher education, as well as the role of the SoM within UW Medicine. The SoM is part of UW Medicine, which is comprised of the SoM and the following additional clinically integrated entities: UW Medical Center (Montlake and Northwest), Harborview Medical Center, Valley Medical Center, UW Physicians, UW Medicine Primary Care, Airlift Northwest, and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center. UW Medicine also shares in the ownership and governance of Children's University Medical Group. In addition, UW Medicine has numerous clinical affiliations with other entities such as Seattle Children’s Hospital and the Veterans Affairs Puget Sound Health Care System. Understanding the intersection between SoM education, clinical and research activities, the UW, and UW Medicine’s clinical operations is critical to advancing the work undertaken in the Business Unit.

The Director is required to possess a comprehensive knowledge of practices, policies, and key issues impacting the SoM's personnel and human resources requirements. The Director also is expected to have a demonstrated ability to work closely and collaboratively with SoM, UW and UW Medicine leadership, administrators, faculty and staff. The Director is expected to understand the position’s distinct role in ensuring SoM compliance with employment regulations and policies, while recognizing the intersecting role of separate offices within the UW and UW Medicine to oversee such compliance.

The Director is expected to manage a high volume of diverse projects and consultative matters that range in complexity and involve a diverse set of constituent groups, including peers and leadership across the SoM, UW Medicine, and the UW. The Director must manage the workload with attention to detail and competing deadlines, provide clear communications about status updates, and involve key stakeholders in progress reports and decision-making.

The Director contributes to the larger Business Unit team as well as the PPU, which is a smaller team in the Business Unit that works on personnel, HR and employment matters.

Position Dimensions

Under the guidance of the Director of Personnel Policy, this position advises SoM leadership, including the vice deans, chairs and vice chairs/directors/administrators, regarding significant personnel and employment issues impacting the operations of the SoM. The Director must work to align SoM operations with SoM, UW Medicine and UW priorities, policies, and budgeting considerations as well as compliance with regulations and policies, including the faculty code, that apply to faculty and staff in the SoM’s departments and units.

POSITION RESPONSIBILITIES

Representative elements of the Director's duties and responsibilities include the following:

Guidance and coordination on employment or appointment-related matters:

• Serve as subject matter expert to SoM and UW Medicine leadership for academic HR matters including guidance on faculty code interpretation and application, UW HR policies, and state and federal regulatory requirements related to academic HR.

• Serve as a resource to SoM chairs and vice chairs/directors/administrators, as well as SoM human resources administrators, on personnel regulations and policies related to professional staff, classified staff, students and trainees.

• Proactively and in response to inquiries, provide leadership to SoM on particular complex, challenging or disputed individual personnel actions. Projects may include performance management, suspension, disciplinary action, termination, promotions, disability accommodation, leaves of absence and workplace safety concerns.

• Provide claims support and coordination regarding employee claims, grievances, labor grievances, adjudications and litigation, including serving as primary SoM representative to assigned counsel, mediator or lead administrator.

• Assess risk, evaluate strategic options, and lead strategic decision making to guide matters to resolution, while considering the multiple processes, goals, and policy or regulatory requirements of different offices within UW and UW Medicine.

• Collaborate closely with UW offices charged with personnel oversight and guidance, including but not limited to: Academic HR, Human Resources, Labor Relations, the Office of Research (OR), Clinical Risk Management, the University Complaint Investigation and Resolution Office (UCIRO), Office of the Title IX Coordinator, the Office of Research Misconduct Proceedings (ORMP) and the Attorney General’s Office (AGO).

• Lead coordination between UW Medicine entities and units such as medical directors’ offices, legal counsel, practice plan, department and others as necessary in complex faculty matters involving an individual’s multiple statuses (such as faculty member, medical staff member and/or practice plan member).

• Lead processes, decisions and outcomes of such matters.

• Communicate, or assist in communications among UW leadership, agencies, and the public regarding particular matters and their resolution.

• Ensure adequate records are developed and maintained to document particular personnel actions (academic, staff, students, trainees) and their resolution.

• Collaborate with SoM Director of HR Policy, SoM Director of Personnel Guidance and other SoM HR leadership in management of other HR individual matters.

• Other related duties as assigned.

Developing, accessing and implementing training on specific topics:

• Provide education, outreach and training within SoM on personnel related topics such as personnel policy compliance, performance management, diversity, ethics and professionalism.

• Coordinate with and serve as primary SoM contact to other UW or UW Medicine offices charged with providing personnel-related training.

• Participate on SoM, UW or UW Medicine committees and working groups related to training and training topics.

• Other related duties as assigned.

Reviewing inquiries and coordinating investigations related to workplace complaints or grievances:

• Coordinate with and serve as primary SoM contact to other UW or UW Medicine offices, including UCIRO, ORMP, SafeCampus and UW Medicine Compliance, charged with undertaking institutional-level investigations.

• Coordinate with and serve as primary SoM contact to individuals engaged from outside UW to perform workplace investigations.

• Perform local level reviews or investigations of faculty or staff complaints and concerns, including those related to allegations of unprofessionalism, discrimination, and workplace threats or violence.

• Provide summary of investigation findings and/or conclusions to SoM leadership, orally or in writing.

• Other related duties as assigned.

Policy development and implementation:

• Identify and analyze issues where policy guidance is needed.

• Research, develop, revise and lead implementation of personnel policies, as assigned, ensuring compliance with regulations and other policies.

• Participate on workgroups and committees related to personnel policy topics.

• Other related duties as assigned.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

Master’s Degree in Business Administration, Healthcare Administration or a related field of graduate study. (Law degree preferred.)

Requires four plus years of experience including:

• Substantial experience in human resources and employment matters, particularly in the higher education environment

• Demonstrated knowledge of and familiarity with laws, regulations and policies related to employment, labor relations and human resources

• Outstanding interpersonal skills and communication skills (written and verbal)

• Excellent analytical and organizational abilities

• Demonstrated ability exercising a high-level of confidentiality and working with sensitive information

• Demonstrated ability to work closely, credibly, collaboratively and confidentially with all levels of an organization, including faculty leaders (physicians and researchers) and staff, on highly complex or sensitive matters

• Highly-refined sense of diplomacy

• Proven ability to function independently and effectively navigate within a large organization

• Experience coordinating or conducting workplace investigations with written or oral findings

• Experience implementing and conducting effective employment training

• A track record of cooperation and creative problem solving

• Proven ability to perform high-volume work in a fast-paced and sometimes stressful working environment

• Proven leadership skills to facilitate solutions-oriented approaches and cooperative decision-making

• Demonstrated ability to understand and work with highly ambiguous subject matter and to create and bring consensus among those involved and to facilitate action plans

• Proven ability to raise and discuss difficult issues and ask probing questions while maintaining professional and collegial working relationships

Equivalent education/experience will substitute for all minimum qualifications except where there are legal requirements such as license/certification/registration.

DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Substantial experience in an academic medical and research environment

• Knowledge of and familiarity with UW regulations and policies, including those related to human resources, academic affairs, conflicts of interest and professionalism

• Knowledge of UW School of Medicine and the clinically integrated entities that form UW Medicine

WORK ENVIRONMENT

Work is currently being accomplished under a hybrid work arrangement with partial remote work and partial work in an office setting in the Magnuson Health Sciences Building at the Seattle campus of the University of Washington.

This position may require more than 40 hours of work per week, including evenings or weekends if necessary to complete the project.

CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT

The application process for UW positions may include completion of a variety of online assessments to obtain additional information that will be used in the evaluation process. These assessments may include Work Authorization, Cover Letter and/or others. Any assessments that you need to complete will appear on your screen as soon as you select “Apply to this position”. Once you begin an assessment, it must be completed at that time; if you do not complete the assessment, you will be prompted to do so the next time you access your “My Jobs” page. If you select to take it later, it will appear on your "My Jobs" page to take when you are ready. Please note that your application will not be reviewed, and you will not be considered for this position until all required assessments have been completed.

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Committed to attracting and retaining a diverse staff, the University of Washington will honor your experiences, perspectives and unique identity. Together, our community strives to create and maintain working and learning environments that are inclusive, equitable and welcoming.

The University of Washington is an affirmative action and equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, age, protected veteran or disabled status, or genetic information.

To request disability accommodation in the application process, contact the Disability Services Office at 206-543-6450 or dso@uw.edu.

Applicants considered for this position will be required to disclose if they are the subject of any substantiated findings or current investigations related to sexual misconduct at their current employment and past employment. Disclosure is required under Washington state law.