The OA Job Family Framework Project is beginning the next phase of discovery and information gathering as the Office of Human Resources makes plans to conduct listening sessions at the end of the month.

“Hearing directly from university leadership, unit and department human resources representatives, and officers of administration is critical to achieving our goal of providing a clear, consistent and compliant OA compensation program,” said Kaia Rogers, senior director of HR programs, services and strategic initiatives.

HR will host several meetings with a variety of stakeholders the week of April 29 to learn more about needs and expectations, with a specific interest in engaging OAs in a conversation about the project.

“Delivering a job framework that allows OAs to more easily understand how OA positions across campus relate to each other is a key goal of this project,” Rogers said. “Greater clarity about OA positions and advancement opportunities will attract and retain OAs, who play a unique role at the University of Oregon.”

OAs are invited to participate in the discovery phase of the OA job family framework project by attending a stakeholder listening session in Erb Memorial Union on Wednesday, May 1. Two forums are scheduled. The first is 10 to 11 a.m. in the Redwood Auditorium and the second is 3 to 4 p.m. in Crater Lake North.

Each session will cover the same information, so OAs only need to attend one of the two offerings. OAs working in Portland will be conferenced in to each session. OAs planning to attend should submit an RSVP to HR.

In these sessions, HR hopes to learn from OAs what is and is not working well with the current OA compensation structure and what challenges the university faces in attracting and retaining top talent.

“The OA Council is pleased to see progress on this project as part of the university’s response to needs expressed by OAs in our climate survey, particularly the interest in career growth,” said Micah Sardell, director of enterprise systems and co-chair of the OA Council. “We encourage OAs to take this opportunity to share their thoughts and feedback with HR.”

Rogers said this is an extensive and important undertaking that will provide clarity, consistency and compliance. An advisory committee with representatives from across the university will partner with HR and Sibson Consulting over the next 18 to 24 months to complete the work necessary to deliver a comprehensive compensation structure. The OA job family framework is expected to be fully implemented by the end of calendar year 2020.

Human resources has dedicated a section on its website to the OA Job Family Framework Project, which will serve as a primary resource through the term of the project. Questions, comments and feedback about this project can be submitted by email to oajobfamilyproject@uoregon.edu.

“The HR website is the best way for the campus community to stay informed about this project,” Rogers said. “In addition to the project overview and a timeline currently published, we will provide periodic updates about our progress.”