See Human Resource Consultant Assistant 1

Serves as an assigned professional expert in one or more functional human resource areas; or supervises professional or other human resource staff members. Provides expert level analysis and consultation to management and staff regarding highly complex, multidimensional issues with strategic or long-range impact to organizations and programs.

Professional expert or supervisory level. Assignments require application of knowledge and expertise to make decisions on complicated and high-risk issues. Assesses agency policies and practices to recognize and mitigate bias and evaluate effectiveness of human resource programs and services in achieving workforce diversity, equitable and inclusive workplace and equal employment opportunity.

These assignments often require proactive intervention and have wide or precedent setting impact. Provides advice and consultation to organization management, lower-level professional staff and peers on highly complex human resource and business issues. Serving as a strategic business partner, analyzes, evaluates and provides solutions to the organization’s most sensitive, complex, or critical human resource issues. Provides advice and guidance and/or supervises professional or other staff members.

Develops and implements human resources practices and processes that promote equity and inclusion; serves as a role model and provides mentoring and/or training for respectful behavior for cultural differences in the workplace;

Supervises staff including interviewing and making hiring recommendations, conducting training, assigning and scheduling work, acting upon leave requests, conducting performance evaluations and recommending disciplinary action using principles of equity, access and inclusion;

Applies expert knowledge of the organization’s business operations, functions and services when providing guidance, advice, interpretation and counsel to agency management and others regarding applicable human resource rules, regulations, policies and procedures in areas such as classification, compensation, performance management, grievance resolution, internal diversity, equity, inclusion and equal employment opportunity, reasonable accommodation, organizational development, human resource information systems and layoff; articulates alignment of human resource strategies with organization-wide strategic goals and values; consults with and advises senior management on potential areas of organizational risk and non-compliance; offers and recommends solutions; informs leadership of new opportunities to align human resource strategies with organizational strategies;

Advocates for the implementation of evidence-based solutions; analyzes data from human resource information or other computerized recordkeeping systems supporting payroll, benefits, personnel files, position files, performance evaluations, employee training and development, public records disclosure, safety and health systems and other data functions; composes correspondence; monitors and measures outcomes of activities; prepares human resource business analysis and narrative reports regarding human resource activities; responds to public disclosure requests; applies and directs standards for maintaining confidentiality of employee data;

Supervises entry and integrity of workforce data; facilitates systematic collection of data; directs quality assurance audits; maintains knowledge of data collection and human resource metrics; identifies sources of relevant data for solving organizational problems; uses data to consult with management and supervisors and inform business decisions and recommendations;

Meets with administrators, supervisors and employees to assess human resource needs; plans, develops and implements strategies to promote effective client relations and to resolve problems based on policy and regulatory requirements using principles of equity, access and inclusion; provides advice and consultation that align with organizational values and ethics; consults on difficult, disappointing, or unpopular decisions; recuses self from actions with potential conflicts of interest;

Responds to sensitive, significant and/or crisis-based events; evaluates impact and ensures accurate reporting; uses discretion to communicate critical information to employees at all levels;

Processes or oversees processing of and makes determination on protected leave requests; trains and supervises others applying compliance provisions of protected leave;

Processes requests for reasonable accommodation for disability and/or religious bases; actively consults with employee and management; determines barriers to performing essential functions and identifies potential accommodation solutions;

Analyzes, proposes and drafts classifications and salary recommendations; reviews and allocates positions maintains allocation authority using employee-neutral criteria such as job duties and levels of responsibility; assists management with salary setting applying equal pay considerations; monitors and ensures internal equity of compensation decisions amongst customer groups; ensures criteria is applied consistently and equitably across the workforce; represents the agency in allocation appeals;

Analyzes organizational structure of customer units; develops and proposes alternative staffing configurations to enhance unit effectiveness; partners with customer groups for ongoing evaluation of organizations and programs for operational needs and priorities with strategic and long-term recommendations to management;

Understands talent needs of organization; assists management in forecasting workforce needs; employs strategies for sourcing, recruiting and evaluating qualified applicants; oversees and utilizes computerized systematic programs for talent acquisition activities; may participate in employee orientation or onboarding;

Consults with management on areas of workforce turnover; reviews employee exit survey and employee engagement survey responses; analyzes cause and effect; collaborates with management to develop and deploy an action plan to address issues;

Investigates, prepares documentation and recommends position on grievances, complaints and appeals; serves as representative in a variety of appeal or adjudicative forums;

Investigates and responds to complaints of harassment, sexual harassment, gender bias, failure to accommodate, retaliation, violence and/or discrimination of protected statuses in federal and state law based on race, creed, religion, color, national origin, families with children, sex, marital status, sexual orientation, age, military status or presence of disability; identifies potential violations of state and/or federal regulations; consults with management and makes recommendations; implements corrective actions in collaboration with management;

Investigates and responds to cases of reasonable suspicion; documents files, tracks employee compliance and monitoring;

Processes workplace safety and/or health related incidents and injuries; monitors and ensures accurate reporting; updates employee medical/health files; communicates critical information to injured employee, management and other third-party providers; research light duty and/or other return-to-work solutions;

Develops and deploys conflict resolution strategies and processes; hosts mediation to resolve conflict in the workplace; facilitates difficult interactions amongst employees and management; refers to management when needed; documents formal outcomes;

Participates in the collective bargaining process; applies understanding of needs and interests of all parties in negotiation discussions; identifies and recommends ideal solutions; adheres to bargaining-related process, laws and regulations; ensures equal access to information regarding changes in policy or labor agreements; supports interactions with union and other employee representatives; counsels management on operating within the provisions of labor agreements and organizational policies;

Develops and conducts presentations, training programs and workshops regarding human resource functions, management practices, rules or procedures; communicates mandatory training requirements; maintains human resource training and/or performance management systems; develops or assists with development of training and/or performance management policies; ensures resources and training opportunities are accessible and deployed consistently and equitably throughout the workforce;

Communicates human resource programs, practices and policies to both human resource and non-human resource employees; supports human resource and organizational initiatives; aligns human resource strategies with overall goals of the organization; understands relationship between human resource and agency core business functions;

Researches and analyzes proposed or pending changes in requirements, rules, laws, policies, collective bargaining agreements and program elements to determine impact on unit or organizational operations or human resource business functions; participates in planning and implementing new human resource programs, policies and procedures; applies principles of equity, access and inclusion in determining how those procedures will deploy fairly and consistently throughout the workforce; reviews, approves, or makes recommendations on requests for exceptions to policy;

Supports the organization’s strategic direction and long-term goals; works with management to identify and design change management initiatives and how human resource strategies can support business outcomes; determines human resource solutions for business needs; recommends ways to improve human resource programs or practices to fill service gaps in business requirements; implements process solutions;

Participates in and/or coordinates special projects, committees or task forces;

Performs related duties as required.

A Bachelor’s degree with focus on business, human resources, social or organizational behavioral sciences, or related field AND three years of broad-based professional human resource experience, including facilitating organizational development or change, and advising and consulting on human resource issues.


Equivalent education/experience.

New class: Adopted 6-10-99 effective 7-1-99 (replaces: HRDS 4, PA 4, PO 4, LR Spec, AA Prog Admin, C&P Spec, HRDS 5, PO 5).
Revise class. Revises class code (formerly 19105), deletes class series concept; adopted May 10, 2007, effective July 1, 2007; general revision deletes core competencies, adds typical work and revises desirable qualifications; effective July 1, 2007.
Base range salary adjustment adopted 6/13/2019, effective 7/1/2019.
Revised definition, distinguishing characteristics, and typical work and salary adjustment; adopted June 22, 2023, effective July 1, 2023.