Dear Colleagues:
It has been my privilege to serve as the founding Interim Director of the HR Communities of Practice Office these past two years. As I prepare to retire from UW–Madison later this month, it is with great confidence that I leave this effort in the hands of Sarah Carroll, Joshua Schwab, and the many of you in the campus HR/Payroll community who have contributed so much to our efforts. These past two years have seen us move from a vague concept – “What is a CoP and how might this office help us?” – to a trusted partner with all of you as you seek to provide outstanding services to our employees. Over that time period, our office has worked with many of you to:
- Establish and sustain eight HR-related communities of practice, as well as related working groups;
- Develop an array of resources for new HR and Payroll professionals, including monthly Orientation and HR@UW sessions, online learning programs, and peer-developed job aids;
- Articulate a set of 7 HR Competencies and related rubrics, with EID at the heart of the learning, that translate into effective professional development frameworks for us all to master;
- Pilot learning cohorts to delve into these competencies in ways that are meaningful to our roles and responsibilities on campus;
- Serve as a resource for convening working groups that have delved into some of the thorniest issues we face together;
- Create new classes, both online and face-to-face, that help us master the HR-related technologies essential to our jobs; and
- Launch an annual “HR@UW Conference” that will build upon its initial success last year with a second incarnation this December.
Much of the credit for our successes goes to Sarah and Josh, to be sure, although it also goes to those many among you who repeatedly step up and, despite full workloads, continue to offer your energy and expertise to our efforts. The idea of shifting from a centralized, transaction-based set of relationships to a collaborative, consultative set of relationships is a significant cultural challenge, but as I speak with many of you I am convinced it is one we can embrace successfully. There remains much to be done, and I look forward to reading and hearing about your successes in the months and years ahead. But I hope you share my feeling that we now have an excellent foundation upon which to build, and I thank you for the opportunity to be involved in this effort.
Best regards,
Harry