Strategic Hiring
Personnel is a crucial part of operating the University of today and moving towards the aspirations and goals for the future. It is imperative that all resources we spend on our employees are looking toward achieving our University’s objectives that are aligned to the University’s strategic plan, mission and vision.
Since salaries and fringe benefit costs comprise 80% of the university’s budget, a strategic hiring process Launch Date is September 1, 2024. This is one of several activities to ensure that the university has a standardized approach to position management while providing financial stewardship toward meeting the university’s five-year budget plan. It also prepares units to strategically think about vacancies to design positions that will make them successful in achieving organizational goals.
Please use the link to below access the Strategic Hiring Request Form. Completed forms and required documents are to be submitted to HR Talent Acquisition at employ@ku.edu.
Weekly Approval Timeline
Strategic Hiring Forms are due to HR Talent Acquisition at employ@ku.edu by noon on Wednesday, or by 5:00 pm on Tuesday if Wednesday is a designated holiday. The HR Compensation and Talent Acquisition Teams will review each request. Endorsed requests will be submitted to the Leadership Committee by the close of business on the following Monday. The Leadership Committee will typically meet each Tuesday to go over all requests. Please note the following:
- All dates are subject to change due to availability and university closures.
- Significant preparation and review is needed before a form will be routed forward to the Leadership Team for review, so please submit your requests as soon as possible.
- Submission at or near the due date slows the process and could result in a delayed review until the next review cycle.
- Submission of the strategic hiring form by the due date does not guarantee that the committee will review the submission at their next meeting. All required criteria must be completed. Failure to respond to HR’s inquiries during their review process may result in delays in the request being sent to the Leadership Committee for review.
Weekly Approval Timeline
Leadership Committee
Delegates of the Provost and the Chief Financial Officer
Searches Excluded from Strategic Hiring
Strategic Hiring Forms are not required for the indicated positions outlined below but must still follow all HR procedures for filling open positions.
- Any faculty, unclassified academic staff, career & specialty faculty (non-tenure track)
- New or refilled positions are required to go through the annual call process as administered by the Office of Faculty Affairs.
- Search waivers or personnel actions must be discussed in advance with HR and the Office of Faculty Affairs.
- Temporary unclassified professional staff positions
- HR will work with the department to verify job responsibilities and identify appropriate compensation rate, prior to posting or hiring.
- Pool Hired Positions that are within the FTE approved for that fiscal year’s budget
- These positions are limited to job titles that have ongoing recruiting and hiring needs (i.e., custodial, landscape worker, police officer, etc.). If hiring needs exceed the budgetary FTE allocated, requests are required to go through the Strategic Hiring Process.
- Any position that is fully funded from sponsored projects or grants.
- 100% grant funded positions;
- Positions split between the grant and cost-share totaling 100% of the salary; and
- Limited term Postdoctoral Researchers
- Student positions
- Any student position regardless of funding or job title
Process Steps
The steps below outline the process by which a Strategic Hiring Request Form is completed, submitted and reviewed.
- A recruitment or position change is identified for a non-excluded position (as outlined above).
- The requesting unit completes the Strategic Hiring Form including all required attachments. (see example form)
- Hiring unit routes the materials to acquire all signatures.
- Send the signed Strategic Hiring Form, a word version of the updated position description, and all supporting documentation to employ@ku.edu.
- HR Compensation will review the position description to assign the job title and FLSA designation, and perform a market analysis.
- HR Talent Acquisition will review the job duties, qualifications, conditions of employment of the position ad assess that the position is in alignment with university goals and mission and unit needs.
- All approved requests will be forwarded to the Leadership Committee for a final assessment, ensuring that the full package of materials are available for review.
- Leadership Committee meets and may request additional information if needed to render a decision.
- Leadership Committee provides decision to HR.
- HR informs unit of outcome.
- Approvals = Assigned HR recruiter will work with the unit to finalize the requested action.
- Denied = The strategic hiring request cannot be submitted again for approval until action steps have been completed (if outlined by Leadership Committee) or 3 months has passed.
*Submission of a strategic hiring form by the due date does not guarantee that the Leadership Committee will review the submission at the next meeting. To ensure that your request is expedited as efficiently as possible, please be sure to fully complete the form and submit all materials on or before the deadline. Visit the Weekly Approval Timeline page for details.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
To ensure all hiring is in alignment with the mission and strategic goals of the university/hiring unit within fiduciary parameters.
- Regular Unclassified Professional and University Support Staff positions that are or have become vacant
- Any promotional activity (personnel action) for an existing employee moving into a new position/role
- Any direct hire (search waiver) requests
- Any new positions not previously budgeted
- Increased FTE needs beyond the approved budget for pool hired positions (ex.: custodial, police officer, etc.)
- Any position funded from sources other than sponsored projects, grants, or contracts
The following positions are excluded:
- Any faculty, unclassified academic staff, career & specialty faculty (non-tenure track), or any student positions regardless of funding
- Temporary unclassified professional staff positions
- Pool hired positions that are within the FTE allocated and approved for the fiscal year
- Any position that is fully funded from sponsored projects, grants or contracts
- Limited Term Postdoctoral Researcher positions
Recruitments or extensions for all limited term appointments (except Postdoctoral Researchers) require approval through strategic hiring.
Yes. All positions funded completely or partially by endowment, fees, revenue, etc. need to go through the strategic hiring process. At the time of review, it needs to be demonstrated if the position will be indefinitely funded by these resources, or if it is creating the possibility of a long-term cost that might impact the general fund.
The following materials are to be submitted to HR. Any incomplete form will be returned.
- A completed Strategic Hiring Request Form (including all signatures)
- Position Description
- Supporting Documentation (i.e., organizational chart, unit assessment, resume of candidate for all direct hire requests, other)
The university understands the business needs in addressing requests in a timely manner. The length of time will be dependent on when the request is received through the weekly review process noting that the review time may vary depending on the quality of the materials submitted, complexity, and the volume of requests received. The Weekly Approval Timeline is as follows:
Wednesday
•Deadline for Hiring Unit to submit recruitment packet to HR
Thursday - Monday
•HR determines if recruitment packet will be forwarded to Leadership Committee
Tuesday
•Leadership Committee reviews recruitment requests and notifies HR of outcome
Wednesday
•HR communicates Leadership Committee decision to Hiring Unit and initiates next steps
There are a number of approvals required. Once all approvals have been received at the unit and budget level, the request will be submitted to HR for an initial review. If approved by HR, it will be sent to a Leadership Committee for review and decision on future action.
The Leadership Committee is comprised of delegates of the Provost and the Chief Financial Officer.
The decision made by the Leadership Committee is final and is not eligible for appeal or resubmittal before a three-month period.
The unit should work with their unit hierarchy and HR designated coordinator/recruiter to begin the posting or recruiting process.
If the position is classified as temporary, no. If the position is a regular, limited term UPS or USS appointment, approval through the strategic hiring process needs to be received.
Reposting a position requires going back through the approval process if the position description is materially modified or if there is a delay of 3 months in reposting the position.