Now that most of the VTSU leaders (regular and interim) have been appointed, many have begun working with their staff to identify organizational structures that will best meet the needs identified in the Transformation teams’ discovery and design processes. The Admissions and Enrollment Services departments are further along in doing this work than other areas, as they are key to enrolling and admitting the first cohort of VTSU students. The staffing plans for other departments will be rolled out in the coming months.
Some of the plans presented thus far have proposed an increase in staffing. We are conducting return on investment analysis of these plans to assess whether a proposed staffing increase would generate income for the University. We’re also benchmarking and using best practices. Transformation is a comprehensive and multi-year process, meaning that plans that are not immediately critical to the successful launch of the new university may be implemented after the July 2023 launch. This prioritization is not a reflection on the merits of a particular plan but a recognition of how much capacity exists to manage the amount of ongoing change.
In most cases, staff members’ current jobs are very similar to the VTSU positions being identified and in some areas the number of VTSU positions may equal or exceed the current number of staff employed at CU, NVU, and VTC combined. In these situations, we will be initiating transfers for existing staff into the VTSU roles, in accordance with the terms of any applicable collective bargaining unit agreement. Staff will not have to apply for these positions but may have the opportunity to share their preferences where there is an opportunity to specialize in or focus on a particular area.
While no large-scale position elimination is being contemplated, to meet the goals laid out by the State of Vermont to reduce expenses, the number of senior and mid-level leadership positions have been and will continue to be reduced as the three institutions become one university. In those situations where there are more incumbents than available positions within VTSU, we will work one on one with those who are not selected to find a new opportunity. Many of the positions being eliminated are already empty due to retirement or attrition.
We know this is a big change that has been a long time coming and we appreciate all the work you have done and continue to do. We wouldn’t be able to do this work without you, and hope that the new structure will reduce employee burnout and allow more room for career growth and opportunities for professional development.
We continue to post new positions on the VSC and VTSU internal job boards. You can find these in UKG, under My Company > View opportunities. Everyone who is interested in applying for one of these new opportunities is encouraged to do so. We appreciate the work of the search committees in helping to identify the most qualified candidates for these positions and making recommendations to the hiring manager.