Associate Director, Organizational Development

Department

Department: NUL Org Dev

The Associate Director of Organizational Development (OD) holds a senior role in implementing all staff and faculty Human Resources functions within Northwestern University Libraries and University Press.

Serving as an organizational consultant and advisor to library teams and facilitating process improvement and change initiatives across the organization, the Associate Director works closely with the OD Director and library leadership team to advance initiatives that enhance operational effectiveness, strengthen organizational alignment, and support a high-performing, collaborative and innovative culture.

The Associate Director administers HR programs, policies, and procedures that support the Libraries’ workforce and align with institutional priorities. Responsibilities include implementing staff and faculty HR practices, facilitating faculty librarian promotions and staff reclassifications, and fostering an empowered, productive work environment. The Associate Director provides advice to the OD director and makes recommendations for library policies, guidelines, and updates.

Working to build trust across the organization, the Associate Director partners with department directors, faculty, and staff to promote continued learning, engagement, growth, and effective performance. As a co-liaison to the Office of the Provost, Human Resources, SEIU Local 73, and the Office of Student Affairs, the role coordinates recruitment, compensation, onboarding, promotion, merit and retention activities within a unionized environment.

The Associate Director also collaborates with the Organizational Development team to lead workforce engagement initiatives including National Library Week and Staff Engagement Day that strengthen and renew the Libraries’ culture.

• Partner with library leadership to align people-focused priorities with the Libraries’ strategic vision, priorities and organizational goals, fostering a collaborative, high-performance and innovation culture.
• Provide feedback and recommendations on organizational effectiveness, performance management, talent acquisition, and compensation; identify talent gaps and lead coaching, training, and communication initiatives, including support for initiatives such as organizational realignments.
• Supervise the department administrative assistant and/or student worker; provide work direction to others and coordinate administrative efforts across departments.
• Ensure clear, consistent communication of HR policies, procedures, and programs; maintain strong working relationships with university HR partners such as the Provost Office, Student Affairs, Office of Human Resources, HR Business Partners, and department directors.
• Use data to identify trends, recommend improvements, develop project plans, and lead high-impact implementation efforts that increase operational effectiveness.
• Lead compliance programs; implement departmental and university policies; ensure adherence to all relevant laws, regulations, and institutional requirements; develop tools and resources to support faculty and staff compliance.
• Optimize HR services, technologies, policies, and workflows; represent the Libraries on HR-related committees (e.g., recruitment, staffing, HRIS); perform other duties as assigned.
• Build and maintain effective working relationships with union stewards and SEIU Local 73 representatives through ongoing collaboration and administer aspects of the collective bargaining agreement.
• Coach supervisors on performance concerns, leave administration, approve timesheets, and oversee completion of annual staff Conflict of Interest survey, annual ARL report submission, merit increases and ad-hoc requests from union.
• Initiate and implement the librarian faculty promotion and application process from submission to notification.
• Work with the Business Office Support team to facilitate financial approvals and vendor payments.
• Partner with managers to promote fairness and consistency across performance management and labor relations practices.

Performs other duties as assigned.

• Bachelor’s…