University of Minnesota HR outlines 'One HR' strategy, Employee Development Center and AI framework

Ken Horstman, Vice President for Human Resources, told the Board of Regents’ Finance and Operations Committee on April 26 that the University is moving toward a coordinated "One HR" approach to create consistent employment practices across its decentralized campuses and units. Horstman said the Office of Human Resources has six priorities—building one HR community, advancing data and technology, developing services, supporting work culture, building leaders and improving employee support—and that those priorities guide work on hiring, pay and development.

Horstman said OHR has adopted a framework to govern the ethical use of artificial intelligence in HR, centered on equity, fairness and human accountability. "Whatever we do now has to be a step that significantly supports our faculty, staff, and students," he said, adding that the University’s PeopleSoft 9.2 system limits some AI integration and that a chatbot is likely to be piloted in the fall to help employees and job seekers.

The presentation highlighted several operational metrics. Horstman said more than 27,000 employees receive automated pay-change notifications required by state law and that the recruiting site logged over 850,000 visits in fiscal 2024–25. He reported roughly 9,000 students employed each semester and an average student wage of $15.94 an hour in fall 2025. Horstman also said job-family refinements are nearly complete (96% by the end of the fiscal year) and that 650 job competencies have been developed to inform hiring and development.

Horstman described the Employee Development Center (EDC), a talent-mobility platform launched with IT, as a way for employees to take internal short-term "gigs" to build skills without leaving their jobs. He said about half of IT employees with access have logged in and that 72% of posted gigs are virtual, enabling cross-campus collaboration. "This has really allowed for people on different campuses that don't even have to leave their location to work together," he said.

Regents pressed on implementation and risk. Regent Mohamed asked how the University is mitigating potential bias as it enables AI in HR and how legacy ERP systems might be affected; Horstman said the University follows AI guiding principles, consults an AI hub and shares lessons with Big Ten peers. Senior Director Brandon Sullivan, who authors the employee engagement survey, said the staff experience metric has improved by roughly 10 points over the past decade while faculty engagement trends are more mixed and often require college-level action.

Horstman tied the HR work to the workforce reinvestment resolution: initial 2024 investments included wage-floor increases and a $2 million recurring investment; he said a market-adjustment component for FY25 and FY26 represented nearly $30 million over two years. He closed by noting the office plans to roll the EDC beyond IT and HR and continue strategic HR planning systemwide.

The Committee did not take formal action on the HR strategy at the meeting; presenters will continue to refine the strategic plan and report back through the Elevate Extraordinary 2030 process.