Staff Promotion Guidelines

Staff Promotion Cycle | Promotion | Criteria/Eligibility | Process Flow to Submit a Request

The complete Staff Promotion Policy can be found in the Employee Handbook.

Staff Promotion Cycle 

Staff promotions take place twice a year. Approved promotions go into effect January 1 and July 1. A Request for Staff Promotion form [PDF], a resume for employees hired prior to 2018, an updated position description, and an organizational chart are required to be submitted by the below deadlines to be considered during the promotion cycle. 

Promotion 

A promotion indicates an employee has experienced a significant change in the scope of work that they perform and often includes a larger scope of authority and additional responsibilities. 

• Promotions must meet or address an ongoing proven need within the College/Division/Department. 
• Departments submitting multiple promotional submissions per cycle will be subject to discussion and review in order to prioritize the submissions. 
• Sufficient funds must be available in the budget to cover the cost of the proposed promotion. If funds are not available, requests may need to be resubmitted during the next cycle when funds are available. 

Criteria/Eligibility 

• Employees need to be employed in their role for a minimum of twelve months before they can be eligible for a promotion into a different position. 
• When considering an employee’s experience and education, the employee must meet at least the minimum requirements for the new position for which they are being considered. 
• Employees need to be in good standing. Employees who within the last 12 months of employment in the employee’s current role have been formally counseled or disciplined including being placed on a performance improvement plan are not eligible for promotion. 

Process Flow to Submit Request 

Employee Initiates a Request For Promotion 

The direct supervisor is in support of the promotion 

The direct supervisor completes the Request for Staff Promotion form [PDF], provides an updated position description, resume, and organizational chart for review and discussion with the subsequent supervisor within the reporting line, up to the President’s Staff level. If the aforementioned individuals are in agreement, the direct supervisor submits the materials to Human Resources for final approval using the Staff Promotion Submission Form. 

If at any point in this process a denial is provided, the direct supervisor should then reach out to the Human Resources Compensation and Employee Relations teams to learn more and discuss the denial. After this discussion, both the request and denial are documented on the Request for Staff Promotion form and submitted to Human Resources using the Staff Promotion Submission Form. The direct supervisor should discuss the reasons for the denial with the employee, along with specific, actionable feedback as appropriate (ie, additional training, not performing current role at expected level, etc). 

The direct supervisor is not in support of the employee initiated promotion 

The direct supervisor shares the request with their direct supervisor, along with their denial, for discussion and review. The supervisors should then reach out to the Human Resources Compensation and Employee Relations teams to discuss the denial. After this discussion, the request and denial are documented on the Request for Staff Promotion form[PDF] and submitted to Human Resources using the Staff Promotion Submission Form. The direct supervisor then discusses with the requesting employee the reason for the denial, along with specific, actionable feedback (ie, additional training, not performing current role at expected level, etc). 

The Direct Supervisor Initiates a Promotion 

The direct supervisor discusses and reviews the request with their subsequent direct supervisor within the reporting line, up to the President’s Staff level. If the aforementioned individuals are in agreement, the direct supervisor of the employee completes the Request for Staff Promotion form [PDF], along with an updated position description, resume, and organizational chart, and submits the materials to Human Resources for final approval using the Staff Promotion Submission Form. 

If at any point in this process a denial is provided and the employee is aware of the proposed promotion, the direct supervisor should then reach out to Human Resources Compensation and Employee Relations teams to learn more and discuss the reasons for the denial. After this discussion, the request and denial are documented on the Request for Staff Promotion form and submitted to Human Resources using the Staff Promotion Submission Form. The direct supervisor should discuss the reasons for the denial with the employee, along with specific, actionable feedback, as appropriate (ie, additional training, not performing current role at expected level, etc).

After successful submission of all documentation, please reference above the above chart for specific dates and next steps.