Vice President of Human Resources
Ithaca College
September 2015
Vice President of Human Resources
Ithaca College
Ithaca College in Ithaca, New York, seeks an outstanding individual with strategic
vision, strong communication and interpersonal skills, and experience with talent
analytics to join the College’s leadership team as the Vice President of Human
Resources (VP). The VP serves as a key member of the college leadership team which
is engaged in implementing transformative change at the College. The VP is a key
partner in the development and implementation the College’s strategic plans. The VP is
a collaborative leader in the innovative development of human resource policies and
procedures and works with senior leadership, faculty, staff, and the human resources
team to seek effectiveness in operations and in leading thoughtful organizational and
cultural change.
Ithaca College
Ithaca College, a comprehensive, residential, student-centered private institution,
founded in 1892, integrates a strong liberal arts tradition with professional education.
The College is set in a suburban campus overlooking Cayuga Lake in the Finger Lakes
region of New York State about 4 hours from Manhattan and 2 hours from Rochester.
The College has an undergraduate enrollment of about 6,300 students. Ithaca is one of
the nation's top college towns and Ithaca College offers a first-rate, truly distinctive
education emphasizing real-world preparation in the classroom and beyond.
Ithaca College is the perfect place to prepare for a lifetime of personal and professional
success. From thought-provoking classes taught by expert faculty to exciting hands-on
learning, co-curricular activities, and study abroad, IC students have plenty of
opportunities to prepare for future success. With an intimate student-faculty ratio of 12
to 1 and a focus on active learning and involvement, the academic experience is one of
personalization and engagement.
Five schools - Business, Communications, Health Sciences and Human Performance,
Humanities and Sciences, and Music - offer over 100 undergraduate degree programs,
and over 15 teacher certification options. Ithaca College also has 20 graduate degrees
in 10 programs. IC students gain valuable experience in a variety of settings, including
on-campus labs and clinics, through original faculty-student research projects, and via a
nationwide internship network that accommodates students of all majors. Satellite sites
in New York City, Los Angeles, and London provide even more options for immersive
and engaged learning. The Ithaca College learning community is further enriched by
visits from distinguished guests and alumni who give lectures and performances, teach
master classes, and share their perspectives and professional expertise.
Over 70% of Ithaca College undergraduates live on campus, creating an immersive
campus community that fosters personal and professional growth. Students participate
in dozens of co-curricular and extracurricular activities. The College has 26 highly
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competitive Division III varsity teams, more than 180 student organizations, dozens of
recreational sport clubs, and holds hundreds of concerts, recitals, and theater
performances annually. Students manage the College's television station, two radio
stations, two campus magazines, and a weekly newspaper, all of which consistently win
top honors from regional and national professional organizations. The College also
provides many opportunities for students to help their community. Habidash is the
school’s annual Habitat for Humanity 5K race; Food for Thought is a campus program
that helps malnourished children; and Service Saturdays is an event through which
students can volunteer in the Greater Ithaca area.
Ithaca, NY
The city of Ithaca is nestled in the Finger Lakes region, the heart of New York State’s
wine country. The Ithaca metropolitan area is a thriving, culturally diverse region of
more than 100,000 residents and offers significant social, cultural, and recreational
amenities, including excellent theater, both on-campus and off, spectacular hiking trails
through gorges, and boating access to Cayuga Lake. Ithaca has been ranked by
multiple groups and publications, such as Forbes, as being one of America's Smartest
Cities, Most Secure Places to Live, Healthiest Cities, Best Green Places to Live, and
Number-One Emerging City. For 2013-2014 the American Institute for Economic
Research named Ithaca as the top college town in the U.S. noting that Ithaca has the
comfort of a small city with all the luxuries of a big city environment. Ithaca’s
neighborhoods are well-kept, safe, and diverse, and its housing stock ranges from
modern condominiums to century-old historic homes. There are six first-rate public
school districts in Tompkins County, one regional vocational school, a parochial school,
three private schools, and several licensed childcare centers and nursery schools.
Ithaca is home to four theatre companies, the Multicultural Resource Center, and almost
daily performances of music and dance. Sports lovers will find nationally-ranked college
teams, softball, soccer, active running clubs, and exceptional outdoor recreation,
athletic and sport facilities throughout the area. The quality of life offered in Ithaca has
contributed to the College’s ability to attract and retain exceptional students, faculty, and
staff.
The Position
The Vice President for Human Resources reports to the Senior Vice President and
General Counsel, sits with the other vice presidents on the President’s Council, and
leads the full range of human resources services including talent management, benefits
and work/life, compensation and workforce analysis, payroll, diversity and inclusion,
equity and compliance, and student employment. The VP leads a department of
eighteen professionals and works with them to establish, implement, and communicate
policies, systems, and procedures to support a positive, diverse, and inclusive
environment and culture. The VP is an inspiring and strategic leader who understands
college strategy and planning, engages the HR staff in the development and delivery of
an HR strategic plan aligned with the institutional strategic plans, and who is able to
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deliver those plans in an effective and responsive manner to all members of the
community.
The college leadership includes the president, six vice presidents and five deans who
work in a highly collaborative environment to move the college forward in its strategic
goals. Working with senior leaders, the VP will serve as a key driver in the development
of strategic human resources plans and policies. Included in this are: talent
management and succession planning, workforce analysis and organizational
development; competitive compensation and benefits plans with an eye towards
recruitment, retention, and diversity and inclusion; and programs that motivate and
reward effective performance and create a social contract between the employee and
the College for the short and long-range health and welfare of the members of the
Ithaca College community.
Key Opportunities and Challenges
Ithaca College has in recent years assumed a place of leadership in developing a
strategic focus for affordable educational quality and then reshaping its organization and
processes so as to achieve a high level of performance with greater attention both to
quality outcomes and to cost control. This initiative has elevated both the role of HR,
and this position (from AVP to VP), within the College, particularly with respect to
organizational design and personnel development. These initiatives are on-going. The
successful VP will help the College achieve the full benefit of these initiatives as well as
develop policies and processes for staff development and career growth in an
organization that seeks to retain its dynamism.
Ithaca College is a mid-sized private institution with a structural complexity that more
closely resembles a university. The College has 493 full-time faculty and 246 part-time
faculty in its five schools, along with 1074 administrative and staff employees. The
operating budget for Ithaca College (2015-2016) is $233 million and the college has an
endowment of $279 million.
The College is in a robust financial position. Admission applications have grown by
more than 30% in the last two years, and the College has consistently met its
enrollment objectives. A recent Moody’s review confirmed the College’s A2 bond rating.
The College community is not content, however, to rest on these indicators of current
accomplishment. As a high quality/high cost educational option, the College community
recognizes its obligation to be a highly accomplished organization in the achievement of
the educational mission as well as a cost aware organization in how to achieve that
mission. The incoming VP will join a leadership team and lead a human resources
team that develops transformative programs and processes to achieve these goals.
The Human Resources Office works on behalf of the entire institution and recognizing
the needs of the many different constituent groups will be critical. The VP will take the
time to develop relationships with faculty, staff, and senior leadership, and hear their
concerns and needs. The VP will provide support to the academic leadership, partly
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through partnering with the Center for Faculty Excellence, to assist in the recruitment
and retention of faculty in addition to increasing access to both leadership and
professional development for faculty and staff aligned with the College’s strategic
initiatives and mission.
The VP will be a major champion for diversity and inclusion initiatives for the entire
Ithaca community. The VP will be a visible leader in advising and assisting the
community in fostering and advancing a strategic approach to diversity and in
supporting and advancing an environment free of discrimination that affirms the values
of diversity through the cultivation of mutual respect, acceptance, and understanding.
The incoming VP should have a solid understanding of the best practices related to
technology and talent analytics in advancing HR initiatives. The VP will need to assess
systems and leverage multiple data sources so the campus will have reliable
information as strategic HR decisions are implemented.
Within the Human Resources Office, the VP will have the opportunity to lead the team in
defining their mission and prioritizing their initiatives. The VP will work to strengthen the
HR team’s ability to work together across functional groups and create strategies for
further developing the staff. There is an appetite on campus for more partnership and
guidance from human resources and a matching desire on the part of the HR staff to
implement and follow through on innovative and analytical approaches. Working within
the real limits of staffing and budget, the VP will have the opportunity to meet these
wishes.
Qualifications
The successful candidate will have many of the following qualifications and
characteristics:
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Extensive leadership experience within Human Resources in higher education or
a similarly complex environment;
Ability to lead in the development of an organizational culture that works with
cohesion and pride to achieve the mission of the college;
Ability to think analytically and strategically, to build consensus and collaborate
with others, and to articulate and implement human resources programs that
reflect organizational goals;
Strong listening skills; a presence that earns trust, confidence and respect; and
the ability to lead by influence and example;
Excellent communication, and problem solving skills, including conflict resolution
and presentation skills;
A thorough understanding of recruiting, retention and succession planning,
performance management, employee relations, training and development,
diversity and inclusion, labor relations including negotiations, grievances,
mediation, and arbitration, employee benefits, compensation and payroll, HR
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information systems, and the use of data analytics in development and
assessment of HR initiatives;
Knowledge of diversity issues with a demonstrated clear understanding of the
importance of a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment;
A proven track record of working with teams and managers to achieve more
efficient and effective operations;
A deep appreciation of and respect for life-long learning and residential higher
education and Ithaca College’s role as an educator of professionals with a strong
liberal arts tradition;
Personal qualities including strong emotional intelligence skills, honesty,
accessibility, a sense of humor, and high energy;
A Bachelor’s degree is required, Master’s degree, evidence of continuing professional
education, and certifications relevant to the position preferred. Final candidates will be
required to complete a background check successfully.
Ithaca College is committed to building a diverse academic community and encourages
members of underrepresented groups to apply. Experience that contributes to the
diversity of the college is appreciated.
Please send nominations and applications including a letter of interest and CV to the
Brill Neumann team working on the search:
Elizabeth Neumann and Tom Phillips
Brill Neumann Associates
IthacaVPHR@brillneumann.com
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