Human Resources & Employee Experience Manager

Description

Position: Human Resources & Employee Experience Manager

Department: Office of the Head of School

Reports to: Head of School

Supervises: none

Status: 12-month exempt contract, Full-Time

Location: On-site, Downers Grove, Illinois

Position Summary

The Human Resources & Employee Experience Manager plays a central role in attracting, welcoming, supporting, engaging, and retaining the exceptional faculty and staff who advance the mission of The Avery Coonley School. Reporting directly to the Head of School, the Manager serves as the primary day-to-day human resources support for employees and supervisors and oversees key aspects of the employee lifecycle, including recruitment, hiring, onboarding, employee leave and benefits, retention, performance processes, documentation, policy administration, and offboarding. This is a highly relational and highly organized role. The successful candidate will combine exceptional emotional intelligence with disciplined follow-through and meticulous attention to detail. They will know where every search stands, ensure candidates and employees receive timely communication, follow up on commitments and concerns, maintain clear and accurate documentation, anticipate next steps, maintain high degrees of confidentiality, and help ensure that employee matters do not fall through the cracks. The manager will be approachable and trusted while also understanding the importance of boundaries, confidentiality, consistency, accountability, and sound judgment. They will be visible throughout the School, build strong relationships across departments and divisions, and develop a deep understanding of the people and culture of ACS. This is a hands-on, campus-based position. Regular and consistent on-site presence is essential to the success of the role.

Core Responsibilities

Recruitment & Talent Acquisition

• •Manage the full recruitment process for faculty and staff positions in partnership with the Head of School and hiring supervisors.
• •Develop and maintain organized recruitment plans, timelines, candidate pipelines, interview schedules, and search documentation for every open position.
• •Draft, update, and maintain accurate, compelling, and mission-aligned job descriptions and postings.
• •Post positions through appropriate school, professional, university, and external recruitment channels.
• •Identify new sources and partnerships that strengthen the school's candidate pipelines, particularly for hard-to-fill and anticipated positions.
• •Review applications and support hiring manager/associates in identifying qualified candidates.
• •Coordinate interview schedules, candidate communications, reference checks, and other components of the selection process.
• •Ensure every candidate receives timely, professional, and thoughtful communication throughout the process.
• •Maintain accurate records of candidate status and ensure hiring manager/associates complete necessary follow-up.
• •Support hiring manager/associates with structured interview practices, candidate evaluation, and consistent documentation.
• •Coordinate offers and employment documentation with the Head of School and appropriate school offices.
• •Track recruitment data and identify trends related to candidate sources, time to fill, acceptance rates, and recurring hiring challenges.
• •Build relationships with promising candidates even when an immediate vacancy may not exist, helping ACS develop a stronger long-term talent pipeline.

Onboarding & Employee Experience

• •Design, manage, and continually improve a thoughtful and welcoming onboarding experience for all new employees.
• •Ensure new employees receive timely information, complete required documentation, and understand key policies, expectations, systems, and resources before and during their arrival.
• •Administer Employee Navigator for employee onboarding, offboarding, benefit elections, open enrollment, and related employee communications.
• •Coordinate onboarding activities across departments so that each new employee experiences a consistent and well-organized transition to ACS.
• •Conduct or coordinate new employee orientation and provide ongoing support as employees become acclimated to the School.
• •Establish structured check-ins with new employees at meaningful intervals, including approximately 30, 60, and 90 days and later during the first year of employment.
• •Follow up on concerns, questions, or needs identified during onboarding and ensure appropriate individuals complete agreed-upon actions.
• •Gather feedback from new employees about their onboarding experience and use that information to improve systems and practices.
• •Help employees navigate school policies, processes, resources, and workplace expectations.
• •Ensure employee milestones and transitions are handled thoughtfully and consistently.

Employee Support, Relations & Follow-Through

• •Serve as an accessible, responsive, and confidential first point of contact for employees seeking guidance or support related to workplace matters.
• •Build trusting relationships across the School through regular presence, active listening, thoughtful communication, and reliable follow-through.
• •Respond to employee questions and concerns with empathy, discretion, professionalism, and appropriate urgency.
• •Help employees and supervisors navigate workplace concerns, interpersonal challenges, difficult conversations, and emerging issues.
• •Determine when an issue can be resolved through routine support and when it should be escalated to the Head of School or another appropriate leader.
• •Support supervisors in preparing for and documenting employee conversations related to expectations, feedback, attendance, performance, conduct, or other employment matters.
• •Maintain clear, factual, timely, and confidential documentation of significant employee matters and agree upon next steps.
• •Track follow-up commitments arising from employee or supervisor meetings and ensure actions are completed in a timely manner.
• •Assist with workplace investigations and information gathering as directed by the Head of School and, when appropriate, legal counsel.
• •Help ensure employees experience HR processes as fair, consistent, responsive, and respectful.

Retention, Engagement & Culture

• •Make employee retention an intentional and ongoing component of the school's people’s practices rather than something considered only when an employee resigns.
• •Develop regular opportunities to understand employee experience, engagement, concerns, and professional needs.
• •Conduct periodic employee check-ins or stay conversations, particularly with new employees and individuals in roles that are historically difficult to recruit or retain.
• •Identify employees who may require additional support or attention and ensure concerns are appropriately communicated and followed through.
• •Track retention and turnover trends and identify recurring themes, organizational concerns, or opportunities for improvement.
• •Conduct thoughtful exit interviews and maintain consistent documentation of the reasons employees leave.
• •Provide the Head of School with periodic summaries of meaningful retention and employee experience trends while protecting individual confidentiality.
• •Recommend practical improvements to onboarding, communication, recognition, professional support, workplace practices, and other areas affecting employee experience.
• •Help develop opportunities to recognize and celebrate faculty and staff contributions, milestones, and accomplishments.
• •Support efforts that strengthen connection, belonging, collaboration, and community across departments and divisions.
• •Seek opportunities to make ACS an increasingly attractive place for talented professionals to build meaningful and lasting careers.

Performance Management & Supervisor Support

• •Coordinate annual employee goal setting, evaluation, and performance-review processes in partnership with the Head of School and supervisors.
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