Assistant Director, Employee Relations - 991328

We are excited that you are considering joining Nova Southeastern University!

Nova Southeastern University (NSU) was founded in 1964, and is a not-for-profit, independent university with a reputation for academic excellence and innovation. Nova Southeastern University offers competitive salaries, a comprehensive benefits package including tuition waiver, retirement plan, excellent medical and dental plans and much more. NSU cares about the health and welfare of its students, faculty, staff, and campus visitors and is a tobacco-free university.

We appreciate your support in making NSU the preeminent place to live, work, study and grow. Thank you for your interest in a career with Nova Southeastern University.

 

Primary Purpose:

Leads the team as the day-to-day operator and quality bar, owning investigative excellence, program governance, and people development. Runs the ER operating system with consistent processes, audit-ready documentation, fair outcomes, and data-driven prevention. Coaches managers through the toughest issues, ensures legal and contractual compliance, and translates case trends into actionable culture and capability improvements.

 

Job Category: Exempt

Hiring Range:  Commensurate with experience

Pay Basis:  Annually

Subject to Grant Funding? No  

Essential Job Functions: 

1. Plans, directs, supervises, and coordinates work activities of subordinates and staff, including hiring, coaching, evaluating, and terminating.
2. Triages and assigns cases by risk/complexity; sets investigative strategy and timelines.
3. Sponsors complex investigations, such as discrimination, harassment, retaliation, leadership conduct, and ethics.
4. Conducts QA reviews of case files, letters, and summaries for neutrality, completeness, and legal sufficiency.
5. Ensures procedural fairness, chain of custody, and documentation standards across all cases.
6. Provides expert consultation on corrective actions.
7. Guides leaders on performance management, documentation discipline, and conflict de-escalation.
8. Coaches leadership on tone, due process, and communications during sensitive actions.
9. Owns and updates ER policies, toolkits, templates, and guidance (with Legal/Compliance).
10. Standardizes playbooks for investigations, discipline, reorgs/RIFs, and conflict resolution.
11. Leads policy harmonization, socializes updates, and ensures adoption.
12. Ensures adherence to employment law (Title VII, ADA, FMLA, FLSA, etc.), faculty contract timelines, and records retention.
13. Liaises with Legal and outside counsel on litigation holds, subpoenas, and fact development.
14. Owns ER dashboards (volume, cycle time, themes, outcomes, repeat incidents).
15. Translates trends into prevention strategies (training, policy clarity, operational fixes).
16. Presents quarterly insights to HR leadership; recommends targeted interventions.
17. Designs/delivers manager training: Investigations 101, Documentation Discipline, Respectful Workplace, Conflict Tools.
18. Partners with colleagues on culture and accountability initiatives.
19. Publishes briefing notes/FAQs that turn complex policy into plain-language guidance.
20. Provides ER leadership on reorganizations/RIFs, restructures, and high-visibility transitions.
21. Ensures consistent, humane, and compliant processes with clear comms and documentation.
22. Stewards the ER case system and audits data quality.
23. Runs retrospectives; removes friction, automates workflows, and elevates user experience.
24. Maintains trusted relationships with Provost/Deans/VPs (or equivalent) and other stakeholders.
25. Crafts executive-ready memos and briefings that are clear, neutral, and decision-oriented.
26. Completes special projects as assigned.
27. Performs other duties as assigned or required.

Job Requirements: 

Required Knowledge, Skills, & Abilities: 

Knowledge:
1. Advanced ER principles, investigations, and documentation ethics.
2. Knowledge of employment laws.
3. Case systems/HRIS analytics and data privacy/retention standards.

Skills:
1. Emotional intelligence, diplomacy, and active listening in high-stakes contexts.
2. Facilitation, mediation, and conflict resolution; skilled at de-escalation.
3. Executive-caliber writing, framing, and briefings; crisp, neutral, and empathetic.
4. Risk assessment and pattern recognition; turns data into action.
5. People leadership and coaching; builds judgment, resilience, and consistency in others.
6. Program and change management; designs scalable processes and drives adoption.
7. Excellent time management and task prioritization sk