Meet Your Neighbors

Learning and Development

As an academic institution, UC Davis has a dedicated commitment to education; not only for its students, but also for the employees that make up its workforce.

At the heart of that commitment is our department neighbor of Learning & Development.

Learning and Development is a department comprised of two different teams supporting UC Davis Campus and UC Davis Health separately, but with a shared mission and vision:

Mission: “Developing and engaging our talented workforce by connecting them to high-quality programs, services, and resources designed to foster continuous learning and professional growth which advances performance across the university.”

Vision: “Learning and Development strives to provide innovative resources, content and tools that are relevant, inclusive, and accessible to all types of learners. By providing exceptional and equitable opportunities, we will strengthen the university.”

Let’s get to know the team that makes up this fantastic department!

UC Davis Learning and Development

  • Annalisa Teixeira, PhD, PCC – Manager, Training & Development
  • Brandee Mead – LMS Administrator
  • Laura Rogers – Learning and Development Analyst
  • Carmen Soriano – Learning and Development Analyst
  • Maria Villagrana – Program Assistant
  • Andrea Weiss – Career Counselor

UC Davis Learning and Development is located at the UC Davis campus and supports the further education of faculty and staff by providing innovative, high-quality programs, resources and services. They offer courses, programs and certificate series on nearly 300 topics, as well as confidential career counseling, a resource library, online toolkits and management consultation regarding learning and performance support.

UC Davis Health Learning and Development

  • Aaron Trammell – Training Director
  • Jocelyn Newman – Senior Training Analyst
  • JoAnna Van Brocklin – Training Analyst
  • Kimberly DeVaughn – Training Analyst
  • Gloria Bacani – Program Assistant
  • Hollie Oates – Program Assistant

UC Davis Health Learning and Development is located at UC Davis Health and offers professional development and enrichment opportunities for Health employees. By expanding your skills, knowledge and ability, you contribute to the success of your career and well-being. Training and Development’s proactive attitude to the learning needs of staff promotes a nourishing environment for continuing education, career planning and personal growth. They support UC Davis Health's most important asset — you!

To explore the course catalog and take advantage of the many educational resources this fantastic department neighbor has to offer, visit their website here.

Earlier Meet Your Neighbor profiles

  • Spring 2022: Workforce Strategies (WFS)

  • UC Davis has long been known for its efforts to improve employee health and wellbeing, and our neighbor, Workforce Strategies, leads these efforts. 

    Workforce Strategies serves UC Davis and UC Davis Health. They have a diverse portfolio that ranges from systems administration to workforce planning, all with the goal to align people, processes and technology. 

    Meet their teams:

    Workforce Optimization team

    The Workforce Optimization team manages projects and programs that align people, processes and technology on both the Davis and Sacramento campuses. Projects often involve partnership with teams within Human Resources and other university offices. Key recent projects include: Upgrade and expansion of PeopleAdmin (staff position descriptions and classifications), Expanded Catastrophic Leave Sharing Program, Established the Temporary Opportunities for Work (TOW) in response to COVID-19, Launched Staff Experience Survey and Exit Surveys. The team consists of:

    Jacob Miller, Manager

    Stacey Bianco, Business Systems Analyst

    Randa Wilbur, Organizational Change Management Lead

    Vacant, Business Systems Analyst

    A few of their key efforts have included the initiation of the Staff Exit Survey, the Staff Experience Survey, and the Catastrophic Leave Sharing Program.

    In July 2020, Human Resources implemented exit surveys of staff employees departing from employment at UC Davis and UC Davis Health. It was an effort to promote workplace excellence and to gather information that would lead to data-driven improvements that can be implemented across the Davis campus. 

    Jacob C. Miller said launching the Staff Exit Survey has brought him “real joy”. He described these efforts being made as “just another way to improve staff experience.”

    The Staff Experience Survey is a data-driven effort to make UC Davis a better place to work. Not only this, but HR contributes $2 is contributed to the Staff Emergency Fund for each survey completed by April 11, and $1 for each survey completed thereafter. You can read about the previous survey progress here.

    The Catastrophic Leave Sharing Program allows employees to help their colleagues, by letting them donate vacation leave to a general pool for employees in need. More information on the program can be found here. 

    Human Resources Applications Team 

    The HR Applications (ucpath@ucdavis.edu) team serves as the local system administrators for the UCPath Human Resources modules (Talent Acquisition Management (TAM), ePerformance, Benefits, Absence Management, Workforce Administration.

    The HR Applications Team that serves both Davis and Sacramento campuses:

    Susan McCutcheon, Manager

    Kristina De Leon, Business Systems Analyst

    Dedra Hamilton, Business Systems Analyst

    Justin Johnsen, Information Systems Analyst

    Matt Matuszak, Human Resources Generalist

    Valerie Orick, Business Systems Analyst

    Human Resources Information Systems team 

    The HRIS team has recently shifted its focus to develop and maintain dashboards and other tools to support people analytics for both Davis and Sacramento campuses. The team consists of: 

    Bill Gregory, Manager

    Archana Hedaoo, Information Systems Analyst

    Laura Robison, Information Systems Analyst

    Karena Samuel, Information Systems Analyst

    Workforce Strategies oversees a lot of resources including  UCPath, a resource planning system. Their HR application teams serve as the local system administrators for the UCPath Human Resources modules (Talent Acquisition Management (TAM), ePerformance, Benefits, Absence Management, and Workforce Administration).

    More information about Workforce Strategies can be found here. 

  • March, 2021: Academic & Staff Assistance Program (ASAP)

  • Academic & Staff Assistance Program (ASAP)

    By Ann Foley | March, 2021

    One of the benefits of working for a large university is the wealth of services and information that we have available to us – and a wonderful example of this is the Academic and Staff Assistance Program.  (You'll often hear the program referred to by its acronym, ASAP, which is pronounced ay-sap.)

    Safety Net People with Heart

    ASAP is like a safety net for all of us at UC Davis. 

    Whether the problem is work-related or personal, administrative or individual, career or relationship focused, ASAP will help with recognizing the issues at hand and finding a resolution.  In addition to helping you with your own issues, they can also support you related to others in your work or life world.  If you are concerned about a colleague, co-worker, friend, subordinate or work group, they can help you. And their goal is to help at the earliest possible moment.

    ASAP services are available to all employees of UC Davis, UC Davis Health and UC ANR – as well as to their adult family members.  Services are provided by the ASAP teams on the Davis and Health campuses – each group has in-house psychologists, marriage and family therapists, licensed clinical social workers and administrative staff – and when needed they can also help you find other resources at UC Davis or in the broader community.  Currently, counseling is being provided remotely but when in-person services resume, there are counseling offices available in both Davis and Sacramento .

    ASAP provides the following services:

    Counseling

    No-cost individual counseling and referral assistance in areas such as those listed below.  ASAP employs a brief-counseling model of typically five sessions or fewer.

    CONFIDENTIALITY

    ASAP services are strictly confidential and your need for privacy is respected.

    No information about your participation is released to anyone without your written consent except when legally mandated.

    No information from ASAP appears in any departmental, central or personnel file.

  • Feb, 2021: Organizational Excellence

  •  The Organizational Excellence Story

    By Barrett McBride | February, 2021

    Our story began in 2009, when the words “change” and “management” were not often seen together on campus. Coaching happened on the football field,  not in the office. Organization Development was jokingly referred to as an oxymoron.

    Organizational Excellence by the Numbers

    Consultant team members with advanced degrees: 100% 
    Consultant team members who are ICF-certified coaches: 100% 
    Average years of experience: 20       
    Number of assessments we are certified to administer: 18       
    Number of 360° assessments we offer: 5

    Check out our blog and learn more at hr.ucdavis.edu/departments/oe

    Today, we are privileged to connect with many clients on both the Davis and Sacramento campuses. Our International Coach Federation-Certified Coaches are sought for their proven executive leader and physician leader coaching expertise. Our Prosci-certified change management practitioners and instructors conduct multiple training programs each year and regularly provide change management consulting services to academic, clinical and administrative units.

    Each of our consultants is a seasoned organization development practitioner. We design and facilitate custom leadership develop programs. We facilitate team development retreats. We assist units with organizational design, restructuring, strategic planning and conflict resolution.

    As Covid-19 and social justice have moved to the forefront of the collective consciousness, our talented consultants have knowledgeably expanded our service to collaborate in design, presentation and facilitation of enterprise-wide and custom programs on topics including anti-racism, diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging, resilience, leading in virtual environments, and more.  

    We Believe…
    Embracing diversity, equity and inclusivity inspires authenticity and belonging.
    The potential exists in everyone for growth and transformation.
    A lifelong practice of deepening our own knowledge expands our ability to see possibility all around us.

    Our Beliefs Inspire Us To…
    Draw on our talents, skills, and knowledge to promote a community honoring diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging.
    Address the growing need to prepare UC Davis leaders for a multi-generational diverse workforce.
    Create a safe space for learning with compassion.
    Continuously invest in our own development in order to support the expanding needs of our clients.
    Bring cutting edge knowledge and research to our work to ensure that leaders of today are capable of serving the needs of tomorrow.

    Click here to see profiles of OE team members.

  • Nov, 2020: Leadership Recruitment & Diversity Services

  • Leadership Recruitment & Diversity Services

    Meet the Leadership Recruitment & Diversity Services team!  Read on to learn about this team's work and to learn more about the people that drive it and their commitment to the team's mission. 

    By Ellen Jordan  | November, 2020

    The Leadership Recruitment & Diversity Services unit was formed in November of 2019 with the goal of advancing the university’s mission of cultivating a diverse, world-class workforce. We are committed to ensuring our workforce reflects the students, patients and community we serve by embedding equitable practices into all our efforts and constantly evolving to incorporate innovation and creativity in everything we do.

    What we do:
    > Full-cycle recruitment support to source and match talented, diverse candidates with leadership opportunities (Manager 2, 3 and 4 positions) and critical/hard-to-fill positions at UC Davis and UC Davis Health.
    > Provide comprehensive support across HR on topics related to diversity, equity and inclusion.
    > Advocate for inclusive practices with a focus on attracting diverse talent that will inspire creativity and innovation.
    > Demystify the recruitment process for all applicants and address barriers that hinder applicants from being fairly considered.
    > Work closely with the community to build employment pipelines that are strong, genuine, and strategic by attending, sponsoring and leading multiple outreach events open to the public throughout the year.
    > Form strategic partnerships with senior leaders, departments and current employees to provide data-driven workforce consultation to identify actionable recruitment strategies.

    We are committed to both leading UC Davis in cultivating a diverse workforce and being an exemplar in how to operationalize these effort

    Lyndon Huling, Manager of the Leadership Recruitment & Diversity Services team.

    Lyndon has a doctoral degree from UC Davis in Educational Leadership and received his MA in Education Administration from University of the Pacific. Lyndon started his career at UC Davis in 2013, where he served as a member of the university leadership team that supports student activism, the protection of free speech and civic engagement on campus. In 2018 he joined Human Resources as the Senior Talent Acquisition Partner for Sourcing, Diversity and Outreach, and in 2019 became the manager for the newly created Leadership Recruitment & Diversity Services department. In addition to his roles at the university, Lyndon provides leadership through engagement with various committees and initiatives. During his tenure at UC Davis, he’s served as the Secretary for Staff Assembly, Chair of the Staff Diversity Administrative Advisory Committee, vice chair of the African American Faculty and Staff Association and as a member of the Staff Advisory Committee on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion. In his spare time, Lyndon likes to go on mini adventures and spend time with friends and family.

    Why was this team created in 2019? The Leadership Recruitment and Diversity Services unit was created out of necessity. The university strives to cultivate a diverse, world-class workforce that reflects the students, patients, and communities we serve. In order to achieve these goals, we need dedicated leaders who can focus on strategies to embed diversity, equity and inclusion into our recruitment efforts across the organization. While our team specializes in senior leadership roles, we understand that we can make improvements at all levels within HR. Leading this team is rewarding, and we’re positioning UC Davis as innovators in this space. We aspire to set best practices not only within the UC system, but across higher education
     

    Ellen Jordan, Senior Talent Acquisition Partner

    Ellen received her bachelor’s degree as a double major in Political Science and Environmental Studies from Miami University. She started her professional career in frontline fundraising and national recruitment within the nonprofit sector. After running campaign offices in four different states, Ellen took a step back from her 80-hour work weeks (no, really!) and spent several years as an Executive Recruiter in the private sector servicing the Central Valley and Northern California. Ellen started at UC Davis in 2017 as the Development Recruiter in the Development & Alumni Relations department where she handled PSS and MSP recruitments for frontline fundraisers at UC Davis and UC Davis Health. In November 2019, Ellen joined the newly created Leadership Recruitment & Diversity team within HR. Since 2018, Ellen has been the chair or co-chair of the ProShare networking program for staff of all levels on both campuses and a member of the Staff Brewing Competition planning committee. On a personal note, she enjoys traveling, camping, hiking, yoga and meditation, and loves her two cats, George Michael and Jeff Goldblum.

    Why she loves this work: Recruiting has been the primary aspect of every job I have had over my professional career, but I was attracted to this opportunity because of the work around diversity services. Being able to have data-driven discussions with our clients on how to diversify their workforce, as well as outreach within the community is what really drove me to this role. Diversity, equity and inclusion have always been center to the work I do and getting the chance to really operationalize that within HR allows me to use that passion even further in the workplace.

    Mario Eguizabal, Senior Talent Acquisition Partner on the Leadership Recruitment

    Mario is a certified Professional in Human Resources (PHR) and has a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from JF Kennedy University. Mario started his career with UC Davis Health in 2009 as an Administrative Specialist with the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing at UC Davis. From that role, he took a Human Resources Analyst position with HR Administration, then moved on to become a Nurse Residency Program Recruiter. In November 2019, Mario became one of two Sr. Talent Acquisition Partners in Leadership Recruitment and Diversity Services. In his spare time, he enjoys spending time with family and traveling.

    What we do: Leadership Recruitment and Diversity Services is tasked with finding and connecting diverse top talent with career opportunities that empowers the employee to outburst in creativity, innovation and passion; thus, weaving themselves in the fiber of UC Davis’ culture.

     

  • Oct, 2020: Employee & Labor Relations

  • Employee & Labor Relations (ELR)

    By Liz Garza, JD.  Employee & Labor Relations  | October, 2020

    Have you ever heard the saying “a busy bee has no time for sorrow”? Well in ELR, we are busier than bees and believe me when I say, ELR has no time for sorrow. 

    ELR boasts 31 employees with impressively diverse backgrounds and expertise in policy, law, conflict resolution, and all the delicate issues that arise during the employer/ employee relationship in an academic and healthcare environment. With a wealth of experience under our belts, we help managers, supervisors, and employees navigate through the stickiest of workplace issues such as: Accommodations, Grievances, Arbitrations, Performance Management, Discipline, Investigations, and Policy and Procedure and Collective Bargaining Agreement Interpretations.

    We are composed of Grievance Coordinators, Employee Relations Consultants, Labor Relations Consultants, Vocational Rehabilitation Counselors, an Investigator. ELR is fearlessly lead by Managers, Supervisors, and an Executive Director.

    While our work is complex and labor intensive (no pun intended), we also enjoy finding a glimmer of fun in everything we do.  From Ax Throwing socials to Lunch and Learns, we enjoy building each other up because we believe maintaining a great employee morale in ELR positively impacts our stakeholders.

    When COVID-19 forced us out of the office, we didn’t skip a beat. We fired up our laptops in our makeshift home offices and continued to seamlessly support our stakeholders through the uncertainties that we faced, and continue to face. We transitioned to virtual spirit days; virtual show and tell; and we continued to celebrate each other’s achievements on our virtual “Shout-Out Board.” We established a Book Club/ Pod Club where we share professional development books and pod casts. We have learned to value our weekly development time and our development discussion huddles - a time we use to share nuggets of professional treasures we have learned.

    We love to say thank you and openly express gratitude to our co-workers. And just for one small humble brag- we won the Halloween Door Decorating Contest in 2019 as the ELR Pirates.

    Our Culture: We recently asked ELR to describe our work culture in One Word. Here are some of the responses:  Collaborative, Compassionate, Quirky, Genuine, Helpful, Inclusive, Safe, Thoughtful, Welcoming, Fun, Cohesive.

    How we Fulfill Our Service Commitments:
    Communication: ELR has daily huddles; weekly collaborative meetings with stakeholders and sister departments; we have taken measures to significantly enhance communication with unions; we have added Weekly Supervisor/Manager Office Hours where we train managers/ supervisors in best practices, just cause, latest developments in policy, and general management techniques.
    Clarity: ELR has a number of Process Improvement projects in the works- to name a few: improving employee onboarding, emergency response, Skelly training and protocol updates, improving the ELR website, ELR newsletter/blog, and improving workplace flexibilities.
    Consistency: ELR has a number of initiatives that help improve consistency, including: Office hours with Supervisors/ Managers which improves consistency in application of policy and in resolution of issues/cases, heightened collaboration between roles within ELR, increased collaboration between Health ELR and Campus ELR through joint meetings.
    Speed: ELR is diligently working to improve deliverables to our stakeholders through timely responses and resolutions to cases.  We use Aggie Service to manage our cases and document important workplace issues.

    To learn more about our unit, please visit our webpages at
    hr.ucdavis.edu/departments/elr
    hr.ucdavis.edu/departments/elr/dms