Associate Vice-President, Human Resources

Position Details

The University of Lethbridge invites applications for the position of Associate Vice-President (AVP), Human Resources. This is a significant leadership opportunity to advance people, culture, and organizational effectiveness at a pivotal time for the University.

The Role
The Associate Vice-President (AVP), Human Resources, is the University’s senior human resources leader, responsible for advancing a strategic, people-centred, service-oriented HR function that supports the academic mission and long-term sustainability of the institution. Reporting to the Vice-President (Finance and Administration), the AVP provides strategic and operational leadership across labour and employee relations, compensation and benefits, organizational development, policy, talent management, wellness, and HR systems.

The University is entering an important implementation phase following foundational strategy work. Key priorities include advancing the People Plan aligned with the University’s strategic plan, leading a provincially required non-union compensation review, supporting modernization of enterprise systems and processes and navigating collective bargaining and mediation in a complex unionized environment.

The AVP works closely with the broader university community and interest holders, and must demonstrate a strong understanding of collegial governance, consultation, and the unique dynamics of post-secondary education in Canada.

Key Areas of Responsibility Include:

Strategic People Leadership – Advance a comprehensive people strategy aligned with institutional priorities, public sector requirements, and the University’s values.

Labour and Employee Relations – Lead labour relations in a multi-union environment, including collective bargaining, mediation, grievance management, and complex employee relations matters.

Compensation and Workforce Systems – Oversee compensation, classification, and job evaluation initiatives, including provincially mandated reviews, and guide the modernization of HR systems and processes.

Collaborative and Consultative Leadership – Build trust and credibility across academic and non-academic employee communities through transparent communication, sound judgment, and respectful engagement.

Organizational Development and Culture – Foster a respectful, inclusive, and relational workplace culture grounded in integrity, humility, and strong emotional intelligence.

The Ideal Candidate
As the ideal candidate, you are a highly experienced and trusted human resources executive with a demonstrated ability to lead in complex, unionized, public sector environments. You bring strong judgment, emotional intelligence, and a deep respect for consultation and collegial decision-making. You are an accessible and approachable leader who builds trust through transparency, sound judgement and authenticity. You are comfortable engaging in hands-on work when required, while consistently maintaining a strategic focus on systems, process improvement, and institutional capacity building.

You understand the realities of higher education, including its governance structures, academic culture, and pace of change, and can build trust across diverse employee communities through authenticity, transparency, and consistency. You are a highly capable project leader who can translate strategy into action while maintaining institutional stability.

Why Join the University of Lethbridge?This is an opportunity to make a lasting impact on a dynamic and evolving institution during a period of significant strategic growth and organizational renewal. As Associate Vice President, Human Resources, you will play a critical role in advancing the University’s people strategy, strengthening organizational culture, and supporting a respectful, engaged and high-performing workplace community. As AVP, you will join a committed and collaborative leadership team committed to institutional sustainability, academic excellence and continuous improvement.

Application Process
The University of Lethbridge is committed to Accessibility, Belonging and Community and strives to best support its diverse campus community. The University…