HR Manager

University of California, San Francisco•San Francisco, CA

20d

About The Position

The HR Manager I reports to the Director of HR Shared Services and provides strategic and operational leadership for a team delivering HR services to departments and business units across UCSF. The manager partners with campus and health leaders, departments, and Human Resources colleagues to provide efficient, compliant, and customer-focused services throughout the employee lifecycle. The role is the HR Shared Services lead for the employee and manager pre-boarding experience across UCSF Campus and UCSF Health, with responsibility for designing, coordinating, measuring, and continuously improving key onboarding experiences while also overseeing HR generalists and broader shared services responsibilities. In collaboration with the Director, the manager establishes operational goals, service standards, and performance measures. The position improves pre-boarding timeliness, readiness, employee and manager experience, and cross-functional handoffs; builds client partnerships; manages service expectations; uses technology to improve efficiency; and leads process and experience improvements. The manager establishes pre-boarding standards and feedback mechanisms, uses service data and feedback to identify friction, and leads cross-functional changes that create a more consistent, accessible, and effective experience. As a people leader and member of the HR Shared Services leadership team, the manager fosters a high-performing, collaborative, and inclusive culture grounded in UCSF's PRIDE Values, and contributes to the broader Human Resources leadership community. The position builds stakeholder alignment, translates employee and manager needs into practical improvements, and champions service design, continuous improvement, and accountability. The manager also provides HR management and consultation to assigned departments and leaders, applying staff HR policies, practices, and operational expertise to support effective and compliant workforce practices.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in a related area and/or equivalent experience or training.
At least 8 years of HR-related experience.
At least 5 years of demonstrated management skills, including collaboration, coaching, and developing subordinates.
Ability to interpret staff personnel policies to support the Shared Services Staff Director and advise department people leaders on appropriate actions that meet business and strategic goals.
Direct knowledge of specific functions in a university's HR management information systems.
Strong communication skills across diverse communication styles, including the ability to make oral or written presentations.
Experience making hiring, evaluation, and subordinate-development decisions and determining how best to achieve unit goals.
Ability to build relationships internally and externally to the organization.
Demonstrated ability to handle extremely difficult or volatile situations or individuals effectively.
Experience leading employee experience, employee or manager pre-boarding, customer experience, or service improvement initiatives involving multiple stakeholders.
Experience providing HR management or HR generalist support while leading cross-functional employee experience, pre-boarding, service delivery, or process improvement initiatives.
Experience using employee and manager feedback, service data, metrics, or other insights to identify pain points, prioritize improvements, and evaluate outcomes.
Project and change management skills, including leading cross-functional initiatives, managing competing priorities, and driving implementation through completion.
Ability to influence and build alignment across organizational teams and levels, facilitate decisions, and create shared accountability for experience and service outcomes.

Nice To Haves

Experience with Human Capital Management Systems (HCM) and other HR technology supporting pre-boarding and employee self-service.
Experience with website content management, knowledge management, or employee-facing content strategy.
Experience managing in an environment with standard work, service level agreements, and key performance indicators (KPI), especially applying these practices to employee and manager pre-boarding.
Experience designing, implementing, or improving employee and manager pre-boarding in a complex or matrixed organization.
Experience with service design, journey mapping, process improvement, or similar methods to reduce friction in employee or customer experiences.
Experience using pre-boarding or employee experience metrics, dashboards, or service measures to guide continuous improvement.

Responsibilities

Lead the strategy, design, implementation, and continuous improvement of employee and manager pre-boarding across UCSF Campus and UCSF Health, focusing on cycle time, experience, readiness, and reducing unnecessary handoffs.
Map pre-boarding journeys, identify pain points, and prioritize improvements that simplify the experience while meeting policy, operational, and business requirements.
Establish pre-boarding standards, playbooks, manager resources, communications, and service expectations for a clear, consistent, welcoming early employment experience.
Coordinate roles and handoffs across HR teams and partners to improve clarity, timeliness, and accountability.
Develop and monitor pre-boarding experience measures and feedback mechanisms, using employee and manager input and service data to assess effectiveness and identify improvements.
Lead pilots, change management, and implementation of pre-boarding improvements; communicate progress, outcomes, and recommendations to HR and organizational leaders.
Establish and monitor pre-boarding outcome measures, including timeliness, readiness, experience, process reliability, and reductions in avoidable friction and rework.
Provide strategic leadership for a shared services team delivering responsive, high-quality, customer-focused HR services to UCSF departments.
Build and maintain client partnerships by understanding business needs, fostering trust, and ensuring a strong service experience.
Maintain team capacity and accountability for the employee experience portfolio, including onboarding priorities and deliverables.
Lead, coach, and develop HR professionals by setting goals and performance expectations and fostering a collaborative, high-performing culture.
Plan, prioritize, and assign work to balance customer needs, operational priorities, and service commitments, adjusting resources as business demands change.
Oversee team talent management, including recruitment, selection, onboarding, performance management, employee development, coaching, and succession planning.
Promote accountability, continuous learning, and operational excellence while enabling staff to deliver consistent, efficient, and compliant HR services.
Provide HR management and consultation to assigned departments and leaders on staff HR policies, practices, employee relations, performance management, workforce needs, applicable agreements, and regulations.
Partner with department leaders and HR colleagues on employee lifecycle matters, practical guidance, and effective, compliant workforce practices.
Collaborate with HR Shared Services managers, the Director, and Human Resources leaders to advance strategic priorities and departmental goals.
Build cross-functional alignment around employee and manager experience priorities, especially where pre-boarding relies on coordinated work across HR functions and operational partners.
Lead implementation and continuous improvement of tools, systems, and operational processes that improve service delivery, efficiency, and employee and customer experience.
Partner with HR colleagues to develop, maintain, and optimize self-service resources, including HR website content, knowledge management tools, and HCM Tier 0 support content, ensuring information is accurate, accessible, and aligned with organizational needs.
Prioritize tools and self-service resources that support pre-boarding, including manager guidance, timely employee information, knowledge resources, and effective use of HCM and other technologies.
Contribute to developing, evaluating, and improving HR policies, practices, and operational standards in alignment with organizational goals, regulations, and best practices.
Partner with HR leaders and stakeholders to implement policy and process changes that improve service delivery and employee experience.
Ensure pre-boarding policies, procedures, communications, and change materials are clear, coordinated, accessible, and aligned with the intended experience.
Represent HR Shared Services on departmental, Human Resources, and campus-wide committees, contributing operational expertise and supporting cross-functional initiatives.
Support clear, effective communications about HR policies, procedures, and organizational changes, and serve as a resource and spokesperson for new initiatives as appropriate.