MOLLY E. HEILER

Selected as the Chief People Officer’s inaugural HR Business Partner to help establish the HRBP function, shape its operating model, and advise senior leaders on people strategies that strengthen organizational effectiveness, leadership capability, and workforce outcomes.

• Reporting to the Chief People Officer, support leaders responsible for a 3,800+ employee and contractor workforce across flagship and off-site locations.
• Serve as a trusted advisor to executive and operational leaders, translating organizational priorities and evolving workforce needs into proactive talent, employee relations, and organizational strategies.
• Partner with HR Centers of Excellence, Legal, Compliance, and senior leadership to navigate complex workforce matters and implement enterprise-wide people initiatives.
• Advise leaders on organizational effectiveness, workforce practices, and HR policy, identifying opportunities to strengthen governance, compliance, consistency, and employee experience.
• Coach leaders through complex employee relations matters, workplace investigations, performance management, corrective action, and policy interpretation, building manager capability and organizational accountability.
• Within the first year, established and implemented a Suspension Policy following an Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) visit, strengthened the Attendance Policy, and modernized the Employee Handbook to advance regulatory compliance, policy governance, consistency, and workforce accountability.

Hired to lead a long-established HR function, rebuilding trust with leaders, faculty, university partners, and 200+ staff while developing an HR team and strengthening people practices to support the Division's evolving organizational needs.

• Partnered with the Dean, Associate Deans, faculty, and administrative leaders to shape and execute people strategy, aligning talent, compensation, employee relations, workforce planning, and HR operations with divisional priorities in collaboration with University HR Centers of Excellence.
• Resolved longstanding payroll, hiring, and operational process challenges, implementing sustainable solutions that improved efficiency, accuracy, compliance, and stakeholder confidence.
• Designed and implemented standardized onboarding, orientation, and offboarding programs, replacing inconsistent practices with a cohesive employee lifecycle experience.
• Built and developed a high-performing HR team, coaching and mentoring the Assistant Director of HR & People Operations and HR Administrator & Payroll Specialist while establishing clear priorities, accountability, and service standards.
• Guided the Division through an executive leadership transition, providing guidance to leadership that maintained organizational continuity, supported employee engagement, and enabled effective change management.

Promoted to Senior Associate Director of HR & Administration, serving as a strategic partner to academic and administrative leaders while leading HR operations for faculty, staff, and students.

• Directed HR and administrative operations supporting faculty, staff, and students, aligning workforce practices, resources, and operations with institutional priorities.
• Managed a $20M compensation budget and $3M operating budget, leading annual compensation planning, merit reviews, workforce budgeting, and financial planning in partnership with leadership.
• Led multidisciplinary teams supporting the Dean’s Office, faculty administration, and academic events; coached and developed a 15-member team while improving operational effectiveness and service delivery.
• Designed and implemented onboarding, offboarding, exit interview, and new-hire feedback programs, replacing inconsistent practices with a more consistent employee experience and stronger organizational insight.
• Built leadership capability through coaching, mentoring, and talent development, preparing three direct reports for promotion into management roles.
• Strengthened talent acquisition and performance management practices through inclusive recruiting and bias-aware hiring practices, supporting a more equitable employee experience.
• Led the Dean’s Office through Dean transitions, overseeing onboarding, staffing, and day-to-day operations to ensure continuity during leadership changes.

Promoted to Associate Director, Administration, assuming leadership of the Dean’s Office administrative staff and a 12-member faculty assistant team supporting 100+ faculty.

• Led the Dean’s Office through multiple Dean transitions, coordinating onboarding, staffing, and day-to-day operations to ensure continuity during leadership changes.
• Developed team members by assigning ownership of key responsibilities, creating professional development opportunities, and supporting promotions into higher-level roles.
• Managed department budgets and resources, ensuring spending aligned with financial guidelines and department priorities.
• Partnered with senior leadership on operational planning, resource allocation, process improvement, and team effectiveness.
• Led complex cross-functional initiatives, including the Law School Program Review, coordinating faculty, administrators, and senior leaders to achieve institutional objectives.

Hired at the Dean's request to increase faculty grant activity, establishing a dedicated pre- and post-award support function for law faculty.

• Built grant administration processes spanning opportunity identification, application coordination, compliance, documentation, and post-award tracking.
• Conducted thorough reviews of grant proposals to ensure clarity and adherence to guidelines before submission.
• Managed grant reporting timelines, facilitating timely submissions and compliance with funder expectations.