Creating the Future of College: Reimagining Henderson

Position Management Process FAQ

Updated January 20, 2022

The following frequently asked questions (FAQs) have been prepared to provide further information and guidance regarding position management.

Q: What is the position management process and when does it begin?

A: Beginning in January 2022, faculty and staff positions that are vacant or become vacant may remain in an unfilled status indefinitely or may be eliminated. Justification to hire must be based on factors related to health, safety, or revenue and will require Vice Chancellor and Chancellor approval.

Q: Who is affected by the position management process?

A: The position management process applies to full and part-time new positions, vacant positions, positions that become vacant, promotions, reclassifications, and market adjustments.

For faculty positions, the Provost and Chancellor will determine faculty searches to be conducted for the coming academic year. A portion of salary savings from vacant faculty positions may be approved for temporary hires, including adjunct faculty and overload assignments, to cover essential classes.

Q: Does the position management process apply to all areas of the university?

A: The position management process applies to all general funded positions, which can be reviewed for exception on an individual basis based on health, safety, and revenue.

Q: Does the position management process apply to grant-funded or work study positions and graduate assistants?

A: Departments may continue, and are encouraged, to hire federal work study students and may continue to employ graduate assistants. Grant-funded, work study, and graduate assistant positions are not required to complete the exception process.

Q: Are there exceptions to the position management process?

A: An exception to the position management process may be approved for positions involving campus and personal health and safety, revenue, or delivery of essential university services.

Q: How will requests for exceptions be processed?

A: Written justifications requesting an exception must be submitted using the following form: https://forms.office.com/r/mj0RD9qG87. The Chancellor and Strategic Leadership Team (SLT) will review, assess, and determine whether or not requested positions should be filled based on the specific criteria for exceptions.

It is strongly recommended that before making a request for an exception, consideration should be given to the following factors:

  • Does the position involve a critical and essential function that cannot be performed with the existing staff resources of the organization?
  • Does the position involve a health or safety requirement?
  • Has the department exhausted all other alternatives to redeploy staff to cover the work?
  • Can the department reassign staff to manage temporary or cyclical changes in workflow to meet the current need?
  • What are the consequences of deferring the vacant position for the next 90 days and beyond?

Q: What about position searches currently in progress?

A: Positions for which an offer of employment has been made and accepted will be honored. Positions not yet filled, whether posted or not, require that justification for hiring is submitted through the appropriate Vice Chancellor for consideration by the Chancellor. No employment action or position posting should occur before an exception request is approved.

Q: Can temporary staff be hired to fill vacant positions?

A: With the approval of the Vice Chancellor or SLT-level budget manager, departments can hire temporary staff for critical functions in the short-term to continue operations while addressing internal staffing adjustments. Temps should not, however, be used to fill positions on an ongoing basis over the medium or long-term.

This process may create workload management challenges for departments. The Office of Human Resources can and will, upon request, provide assistance to departments in developing alternative staffing plans.