Director, Workplace Experience

Company: Stanford University
Location: Redwood City
Posted on: November 19, 2021

Job Description:

Stanford University is one of the world's premier academic and research institutions, devoting tremendous intellectual and physical resources toward the betterment of humanity. As a major Silicon Valley employer, Stanford seeks people committed to excellence and to improving our world. In turn, the university is committed to supporting its employees as they develop their careers and enrich their lives.-- The Director of Workplace Experience will contribute to envisioning, creating and operationalizing a memorable workplace experience that connects, motivates, and inspires Stanford employees regardless of where or how they work. Given the unprecedented shifts in work during the past year+, this role will initially focus on the strategic implementation of flexible work initiatives as developed by the university's long-term recovery team's recommendations. This will include serving as a strategic advisor to human resource professionals, leaders, managers and individual contributors seeking to successfully follow Stanford's foundational flexible work framework including workplace, technology and policy implementation. Given the future opportunities to challenge our pre-pandemic assumptions about where, when, and how employees carry out their responsibilities and embrace new ways of working, this position will also partner with HR/university leaders and colleagues in the visioning and scaling of a workplace experience that reflects the organizational culture, diversity of backgrounds and needs of our university employees, to ultimately offer a broad array of programs and services to foster collaboration, productivity and effectiveness, while also helping to drive recruitment and retention of talent. The Director of Workplace Experience will report to the Associate Vice President of Employee Support Programs and Services (ESPS) and will serve as an important advisory partner to the other schools and VP areas and within the central unit, University Human Resources. Your responsibilities will include:

• Develop multi-year goals and plans to help scale the future workplace experience that authentically reflects the mission, vision, and values of Stanford, including the physical workplace, benefits, programs and services, harmonized policies, and various work experiences; collaborate across relevant UHR departments in defining both university-wide initiatives and supporting school or unit in piloting local ideas for potential scalability.--
• Provide thought leadership on the future of work, flexible work initiatives, and employee experience strategies and direction; provide advice and counsel senior leaders in aligning these to the greater university mission and long-range plan efforts, advise on programmatic and policy development; coordinate the necessary stakeholders, operations, culture, technology resources, and communication in support of flexible work.
• Act as a central point of contact to facilitate policy interpretation and exceptions for specific hybrid or remote work arrangements. The role will work collaboratively with the VP of HR, ELR, Comp, Benefits, Payroll and OGC as needed to facilitate decision making and ensure all policy exceptions are documented to ensure consistent application of these new policies across the university.
• Collaboratively work with HR, leaders, and managers to build out additional resources and tools necessary to support the significant shifts in the where, when, and how employees work, including manager training and support, coaching for managers and individuals working to find an agreement that meets university business needs and individual preferences, problem solving with HR leaders within schools and units as leaders make significant shifts in how work is accomplished; strive to make the employee experience seamless wherever someone is working
• Create listening campaigns to collect and leverage data to understand what staff desire and what managers need; integrate that learning into current and still to-be-designed programs and systems that amplify the university purpose and connect employees to meaningful work and to each other
• Support employee engagement for remote, hybrid, or onsite roles; create meaningful, purposeful connections; encourage productivity and collaboration among employees working in different ways; create methods for spontaneous as well as planned connections for employees
• Advocate for an equitable and consistent experience for everyone working at Stanford; drive people-focused practices that will empower our workforce; partner with HR and others to determine best methods for equal participation and access to training, development and career opportunities for all types of work arrangements; recommend and implement programs and services that create connection and community for employees in various workplace arrangements--
• Create measurements to capture a variety of critical metrics relative to flexible work implementation and effectiveness, leader and employee adaptability, and equity
• Creatively encourage integration of the focus on humanity and compassion in initiatives and programs to encourage compassionate behavior and mindset shifts that influence the future direction a broader broaden our definition of the employee experience
• This position may eventually supervise staff To be successful in this role, you will bring:
  • Bachelor's degree and seven years of relevant experience in administrative and organizational management and leadership in areas such as HR, technology, change management, project management, or combination of education and relevant experience;--
  • Subject matter expertise in the areas of flexible work, future of work, employee experience Demonstrated leadership, supervisory, planning and change management skills
  • Experience in highly decentralized decision-making environments; experience achieving objectives through others
  • Excellent interpersonal skills to interact with managers and employees and foster trust
  • Excellent oral and written communication skills--
  • Advanced analytical and problem-solving skills to assess organizational and employee needs, evaluate feedback and translate those into actionable recommendations to improve the work environment
  • Strong planner, program designer and project manager; experience with organization-wide implementation--
  • Ability to solve problems that are new (no precedent or policy - yet); manage difficult issues while keeping an eye to the future
  • Strong knowledge of industry standards and/or federal, state and local regulatory requirements
  • Ability to constantly perform desk-based computer tasks; frequently sitting; occasionally stand/walk, reach/work above shoulders, use a telephone, writing by hand, lift/carry/push/pull objects that weigh up to 10 pounds; rarely twist/bend/stoop/squat, sort/file paperwork or parts, lift/carry/push/pull objects that weigh 11-20 pounds Why Stanford is for You Imagine a world without search engines or social platforms. Consider lives saved through first-ever organ transplants and research to cure illnesses. Stanford University has revolutionized the way we live and enrich the world. Supporting this mission is our diverse and dedicated 17,000 staff. We seek talent driven to impact the future of our legacy.--Our culture--and--unique perks --empower you with:
    • Freedom to grow.--We offer career development programs, tuition reimbursement, or audit a course. Join a TedTalk, film screening, or listen to a renowned author or global leader speak.
    • A caring culture.--We provide superb retirement plans, generous time-off, and family care resources.
    • A healthier you.--Climb our rock wall, or choose from hundreds of health or fitness classes at our world-class exercise facilities. We also provide excellent health care benefits.
    • Discovery and fun.--Stroll through historic sculptures, trails, and museums.
    • Enviable resources.--Enjoy free commuter programs, ridesharing incentives, discounts and more The job duties listed are typical examples of work performed by positions in this job classification and are not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, tasks, and responsibilities. Specific duties and responsibilities may vary depending on department or program needs without changing the general nature and scope of the job or level of responsibility. Employees may also perform other duties as assigned. Consistent with its obligations under the law, the University will provide reasonable accommodation to any employee with a disability who requires accommodation to perform the essential functions of his or her job. Stanford is an equal employment opportunity and affirmative action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. Human Resources Services, Redwood City, California, United States Human Resources Services, Redwood City, California, United States Human Resources Services, Redwood City, California, United States We're always looking for people who can bring new perspectives and life experiences to our team. Found the perfect role and ready to apply? Learn more on what to expect next. Consistent with its obligations under the law, the University will provide reasonable accommodation to any employee with a disability who requires accommodation to perform the essential functions of his or her job. Stanford is an equal employment opportunity and affirmative action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Keywords: Stanford University, Redwood City , Director, Workplace Experience, Executive , Redwood City, California