The Rice University Board of Trustees recently recognized two groups from Human Resources for outstanding performance: the organizational and talent development and human resource information systems (HRIS) teams.
The organizational and talent development team provides services such as performance management, departmental reorganizations and implementation of training and coaching programs.
HRIS is responsible for the overall configuration and maintenance of all Oracle Cloud Human Capital Management (HCM) modules in iO through collaboration with all the HR functional areas as business analysts. This includes oversight of HR data integrity and stewardship, HR security access, collaboration on HCM training and process improvement initiatives and ongoing preparation for and testing quarterly updates from Oracle.
“The talent management team and the HRIS team faced the formidable task of creating a performance management program from the ground up, one that would further the principle of accountability while honoring the breadth of individual contributions necessary to achieve Rice’s goals and mission,” said Cynthia Pepper, interim chief human resources officer, in her nomination letter. “Despite the initial challenge of a lack of existing software, they developed a truly innovative and creative solution that ultimately supported the design of our performance management program.”
Pam Minigan, director of organizational and talent development, along with Josh Hurt, a talent development specialist, and Lorenzo Fitzgerald, an instructional designer, have designed a performance management program that drives accountability and growth through the establishment of performance and professional development goals aligned with the Momentous goals and Rice’s overall mission and culture of care. The extensive software requirements necessitated creating two different iterations of documentation and analytics over the past 18 months along with extensive training across campus to ensure a meaningful and effective user experience for all participants.
Yesenia Servellon, director of HRIS, along with her team of senior HRIS analysts, Rebecca Salinas and Peter Rice, and data analyst Danielle Rossi spent months helping to configure and customize a software module to Rice’s exact specifications.
“This has proved a rigorous, time-consuming process for both teams as they have worked together tirelessly to align the system needs with the human interaction needs against very tight timelines,” Pepper said.
This effort also included in-depth collaborations with the software provider’s technical consultants, serving as translators between Rice’s program and the software capabilities.
“Their relentless commitment, technical proficiency and collaborative spirit have led to the successful implementation of a robust performance management program that will propel growth and benefit Rice, our employees, our students and our community,” Pepper said.