Position Management
Position management involves a thorough review of open and planned positions when a vacancy becomes available or new responsibilities are added to a team. Taking time to review current positions and work distribution prior to filling a vacancy or creating a new position results in:
Alignment with Strategic Goals
Every position must support the institution’s strategic priorities. This involves ongoing workforce planning conversations for new or backfilled positions and continuous evaluation of current responsibilities to ensure they effectively drive intended outcomes.
Fiscal Responsibility and Clarity
The University’s workforce is its most significant and valuable resource. It is essential to maintain precise records of both filled and open positions to ensure a balanced accounting of these resources and their associated costs, supporting an optimal workforce.
Communication and Collaboration
Position management goes beyond simply filling roles; it focuses on developing a workforce ready to meet future challenges and drive innovation. This requires close coordination between HR, unit leaders, finance, and other stakeholders prior to making decisions related to organization structure and hiring.
Employee Development
Position management is closely linked to employee career development. Creating pathways for career progression allows both individuals and the university to prepare for future needs as the industry evolves. Each opportunity for employees to develop new skills and take on different roles strengthens the workforce’s overall effectiveness .
Data Utilization
Incorporating data, such as time in position, can be another crucial aspect of position management.
When you have a vacancy or new work that needs to be addressed, before moving forward with a hire recommendation consider these questions:
- Is there any work we can or should stop doing? Can the remaining work be distributed to other team members?
- Is there anyone on the team capable and ready to take on new responsibilities? If yes, what needs to happen prior to this work redistribution?
If you answer “yes” to either of the above questions and feel that the resulting work adjustments are significant enough to warrant a career progression or reclassification, you should contact your HRSP or HRC to discuss before taking any action.
If the new work or work left by the vacancy cannot be absorbed by the current team, and you recommend a new position or backfill you must meet with your HRSP or HRC to discuss position details and obtain appropriate unit approvals. yOnce these two actions are completed you are ready to move forward to begin Recruiting and Hiring.
Position management is part of a comprehensive Workforce Planning strategy and there are tools in place to help managers effectively do this work. In addition to the information available in the Tools for Managers website, the Workforce Planning Toolkit for Managers is a comprehensive resource available in the LRN. Once launched for the first time in the LRN, it is easily relaunched from your transcript.