Between pivoting with the COVID-19 pandemic, confronting racial issues, making strides toward more equitable workplaces, and managing already hectic workloads, higher ed HR has had its hands full this year. Yet in the middle of it all, resilient HR pros continue to find ways to positively impact the higher education landscape. As 2020 comes to... View Article
On October 8, the Department of Labor (DOL) issued an interim final rule effective immediately, which raises the DOL prevailing wage levels under the four-tiered wage structure. The ruling will increase the DOL prevailing wage as follows: Level I from the 17th percentile to the 45th percentile Level II from the 34th percentile to the... View Article
Today, August 26, is the 100th anniversary of Women’s Equality Day. On this day in 1920, the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was adopted, giving American women the right to vote (although not all women were free to exercise that right). While the adoption of the amendment was a paramount victory for women in... View Article
Higher ed HR professionals play a central strategic role in shaping the organizational environment of their institution, but what can the data tell us about our HR teams? CUPA-HR’s latest research report, The Higher Ed HR Workforce, examines the people and positions that make up the higher ed HR workforce. The positions examined in the... View Article
According to findings from CUPA-HR’s Benefits in Higher Education Report — Paid Time Off, Tuition Reimbursement, and Retirement, associate’s institutions have some of the most generous retirement benefits in comparison to doctoral, masters or baccalaureate institutions. The 403(b) plan is the most popular retirement plan for both private institutions (where 92 percent offer it) and... View Article
As higher education leaders plan for possible delays in campus openings, the staff who service the infrastructure of the campus and maintain its upkeep may be most at risk of being furloughed or losing their jobs. According to the recently released CUPA-HR 2020 Staff in Higher Education Annual Report, it is critical to consider expected... View Article
A recent CUPA-HR research report provides a snapshot of health professions faculty, one of the fastest-growing disciplines in higher education. The report, Faculty in the Health Professions: Growth, Composition, and Salaries, indicates that the overall number of health professions faculty increased by 19 percent since 2014, compared to a 6 percent increase in the number... View Article
Professional leadership positions in higher education often serve as the pipeline to higher-level administrative positions. For this reason, it is crucial to examine representation among these positions. CUPA-HR’s recently released 2020 Professionals in Higher Education Annual Report surveyed 396 professional positions. Of those positions, 38 percent are leadership positions that require supervising others or directing... View Article
We recently shared a blog post highlighting three different ways to visualize data from CUPA-HR’s Data Visualization Challenge. Data visualizations can be used to inform and persuade when tough decisions must be made — something every institution is facing during the COVID-19 crisis. Transforming raw data into eye-catching visualizations can help campus leaders identify trends... View Article
As colleges and universities strive to create a more equitable and representative workforce, there has been increased emphasis on recognizing and exploring the pipeline that leads to leadership positions. The 2020 CUPA-HR Administrators in Higher Education Annual Report, released today, highlights data collected on the pipeline for three key positions: institution president/CEO, provost/chief academic officer... View Article
Many higher education institutions will face a tough road in the coming months. While the full impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is still unknown, it is almost certain that most higher education institutions will be confronted with the challenges of lower student enrollment and, with the resulting decrease in tuition revenue, reduced operating budgets. Many... View Article
Even as HR leaders across the country are helping their institutions navigate telework arrangements, paid leave and other COVID-19 challenges, they are looking ahead to what’s next. How will enrollment numbers and institutional budget be affected in the coming months, and what will the impact of those changes be on workforce planning? Never has data... View Article
This year, March 31 has been designated by the National Committee on Pay Equity as Equal Pay Day. The date illustrates the gap between salaries for men and women in the U.S. by showing how many days past year-end women who work full-time must work to earn what men earned in the previous year. CUPA-HR... View Article
Editor’s note: You may have missed this article when we published it last March. It’s been updated here with additional resources and related content. For more on using data strategically, drop by the Ask-Us-Anything event the CUPA-HR Data User Group this week, where higher ed HR professionals who are using CUPA-HR data to inform decisions... View Article
We’ve been speaking with HR practitioners at colleges and universities around the country to find out how they’re using data and analytics to drive decision-making on campus. Here, Don Lerew, HRIS and payroll manager at Messiah College in Pennsylvania, tells us how he uses data to help develop compensation strategies and ensure pay equity and... View Article
It’s hard to believe another year is in the books, and a new one is already underway! As you jump back into your work in this new year, we hope you’ll take some time to read about some of the great work your HR colleagues are doing at colleges and universities around the country. CUPA-HR’s... View Article
Did you know that 90 percent of information transmitted to the brain is visual? That visuals are processed 60,000 times faster than text? That the brain can get the sense of a visual in less than 1/10 of a second? That visuals and emotions are stored in the same part of the brain? For these... View Article
Performance reviews in the vast majority of organizations follow this trajectory: setting objectives, feedback, manager assessment and rating, consensus meeting, salary/bonus decisions. But does this process really work? Is it efficient? Is it consistent across the organization? Is it viewed as a value-add? Most employees would answer with a resounding “no.” So what’s the solution?... View Article
“If we have data, let’s look at data. If all we have are opinions, let’s go with mine.” – Jim Barksdale, former Netscape CEO And therein lies the problem of NOT using sound data to drive decision-making in business — everyone has an opinion, and everyone thinks his or hers is the right one. While many... View Article
Benchmark (v.): Evaluate, check, or measure (something) against a standard. One of the best strategies higher ed institutions can use to attract and retain talented, top-tier faculty is to offer competitive pay. And one of the best ways to ensure your institution is offering competitive pay is to benchmark that pay against other institutions. Benchmarking faculty... View Article