Act as a strategic partner to Best Buy's Exclusive Brands, Merchant, and Properties teams by embedding HR strategy into the day-to-day work of each team. Support key strategic priorities of each business unit. Drive effective organizational design, talent management, performance management, employee relations, and rewards initiatives.

Deploy and execute Human Resources and Leadership programs that focus on talent and the employee experience. Support programs that identify and fulfill talent needs, talent integration, and employeedevelopment to meet the overall HR strategy. • Partner with the HR Business Partners to identify support needs and execute solutionsrelated to systems, processes, and tools.• Responsible for creating the process to approach the work, monitoring progress,managing risk, escalating issues and managing expectations for successful completion ofprojects (delivered on-time, with quality, meeting and/or exceeding customerexpectations, within budget).• Project Management - Responsible for driving consistent project management for the HRannual programs (performance appraisal, talent assessment, goal setting, talentreview/pipeline, succession, org changes (PE/RIF/re-org), etc.) including ad hoc projectneeds.• Execute basic HR responsibilities related to the business partner role which includes, but are not limited to employee relations, leadership coaching, talent development, talentplanning support, re-organization support, and exit interviews.• Reporting and Analytics – partner with internal HR partners to gather and analyze data. Develop detailed reporting related to HR projects within assigned business teams. Collaborate with Finance and HR Business Partners on headcount reconciliation and/orjob code/cost center updates and changes. Analyze and synthesize data to providerecommendations on solutions.• Act as a SME of HR systems and processes.• Customer Relationships – Build strong relationships with team members, HR BusinessPartners, HR COE, HR Leadership, subject matter experts, support staff, etc.• Communication Management – Communicate progress, issues, opportunities, etc. toProject Stakeholders and team members.

• Investigate misconduct allegations and employee concerns. Develop and execute investigation plans, including reviewing employee information and data, identifying and interviewing witnesses, and gathering additional evidence as necessary. Document, review, and draft supporting documentation. • Providing strategic insight to implement both immediate resolution and long-term prevention plans. • Provide non-legal and workplace-related recommendations, insight, and coaching directly related to investigations in accordance with Company policy and practice to HR Generalists, Business Leaders, and employees for timely action and resolution of issues and incidents.• Analyze Employee Relations case trends. Recommend and develop individual market strategies to avoid Employee Relations and Labor Relations risk.• Assist with developing and presenting Employee Relations trainings.

Assisted Best Buy managers and employees in addressing a wide range of complex employee matters including discrimination, sexual harassment, workplace violence, and wage and hour issues. Provided counseling/guidance regarding employee concerns/issues and performance management. • Developed a strategy for investigating each case including: identifying and interviewing parties to include in the investigation; creating and gathering documentation; determining credible evidence and facts; seeking advice and escalating issues when appropriate; and collaborating with management to implement resolutions.• Researched and resolved employee and manager wage and hour concerns. Provided a single point of contact to ensure clear communication and consistency in resolving matters. • Handled 15-30 cases and prioritized activities to meet deadlines and quality standards. Utilized automated case management tools. • Maintained strict confidentiality throughout conversations, investigations, and while handling documentation. • Maintained up-to-date knowledge of policies, statutory requirements, and special handling procedures in all functional areas. • Provided case handling training for new Employee Relations Associates. Participated in training 5 associates, serving as primary trainer for 2 of them.• Served as the main point of contact to research past and present cases for legal team. Provided copies of any applicable cases to attorneys, as requested. Developed and implemented a complete overhaul of the legal research process. Authored a new SOP to document the process. • Continuously recommended areas of process and quality improvement. Four ideas approved; two fully implanted. One selected as the Idea of the Quarter.• Served on the employee engagement committee.

Responsible for helping deliver employee relations services for Best Buy personnel.• Received manager and employee requests and issues, identified problems, ensured proper documentation, conducted and documented interviews, determined credible evidence, and followed defined procedures to resolve correctly. • Conducted research for the Legal Department and process document preservation notices.• Served as Operational Excellence point of contact for the team. Conduct weekly compliance reviews.• Assisted in the processing of restructure and staff reduction events, including logging new events, generating and processing notification and severance agreements, processing payroll and benefits information, and addressing inquiries from managers and employees.• Identified process and procedure improvements and implement solutions to resolve. • Participated in employee engagement activities. Developed and administered the Buddy Program to improve the on-boarding experience of new employees.

Estee Lauder Counter Manager, Roseville, MN (2011) Managed the daily operations of the counter’s $800,000 per year business. • Planned and executed events to drive daily sales. • Used training tools and daily personal coaching to identify opportunities and develop the technical and sales expertise of four employees whom I supervised. • Set daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly goals for all members of the team and monitor progress and redirect efforts as necessary. • Directed the visual merchandising of the counter’s products and promotions. Estee Lauder Counter Manager, Maplewood, MN (2010 –2011)• Performed similar to above position, managing the counter’s $500,000 per year business and three beauty advisors. Reversed yearly sales trend from -15% to +11%.

• Managed the human resources process for new associates for the store: reviewed on-line applications, matched candidates’ skill sets to job requirements using the Taleo system, conducted interviews, and coordinated on-boarding paperwork and training processes utilizing the PeopleSoft program. • Scheduled current associates for training. • Managed the daily vault count and register cash flow for the store. • Tracked associate performance benchmarks using various software programs.

Serve as key member of a new corporate team, building and implementing an in-house Employee Relations team at Best Buy. • Investigate allegations including: developing and executing an investigative plan; documenting, reviewing, and drafting supporting documentation; and providing strategic insight, counsel, and influence to implement both immediate resolution and long-term prevention plans. Carry a case load of 50-70 cases.• Resolve employee issues across HR functions, including: payroll, benefits, staffing, and data management.• Analyze Employee Relations case trends and develop strategies to avoid Employee Relations and Labor Relations risk.• Assist with training new team members, orienting staff to past practices, and suggesting improvements to the newly acquired automated case management system. Currently working on cross-functional team to enable uploading of corrective action forms to the performance management system.• Developed and implemented an internal weekly meeting protocol; publish the team weekly newsletter. Lead the team social committee.• Participate in the Engagement Action Planning committee, with a specific focus on developing recommendations and tools to encourage team member professional development. Developed a 1:1 discussion template for the team.• Navigate the multiple software programs, including: ServiceNow, Pathway, Oracle, Workbrain, Kenexa, and all Microsoft Office programs.

Employee Relations Specialist, GS-0230-11, Denver, CO 1993 – 1994Provided technical human resources advice to supervisors, managers, and employees at Air Force bases in seven states on issues of employee performance evaluation and recognition, disciplinary actions, grievances, and appeals. • Tracked performance appraisal and award data for serviced organizations.• Documented and prepared disciplinary actions for issuance to employees. • Prepared case files for grievances and appeals sent to legal review boards.• Collaborated closely with Equal Employment Opportunity and legal counsel to ensure cases were legally sound. • Created and taught supervisory and employee orientation courses. • Wrote regional policy for accommodation of employees with disabilities.

Employee Relations Specialist, GS-0230-11, Fort Sam Houston, TX (1992 – 1993)Performed human resources duties similar to below position for 1400 civilian employees in the organization. • Assisted management with disciplinary actions, grievances, legal appeals, and various other human resources matters.

Personnel Management/Employee Relations Specialist, GS-0230-09/11, Nuernberg, Germany (1989 – 1992)In addition to performing similar human resources duties to below position, developed and presented customer service training, a supervisory development course, and an in-depth performance standards writing course. • Wrote and presented train-the-trainer customer service classes. • Rated job applicants against qualification criteria in the staffing department.• Developed and leveraged automated systems to streamline and more efficiently track applicants and pay inquiries. • As member of office work group, improved office procedures and environment. • Adapted and incorporated policies from four personnel offices into regional guidelines during consolidation. • Served on community-wide Army Community of Excellence and Army Family Action Plan work groups.

Completed four-month rotations in Recruitment and Placement, Classification, Benefit Services, Training, and Employee Relations divisions. • Wrote job descriptions and analyzed positions to determine classification and grade. • Reviewed applications and rated them against position requirements to establish a pool of qualified applicants. Extended to job offers to selectees. • Administered the transition from Honeywell to UNISYS computer system for the entire organization. • Revised and taught the New Employee Orientation Course for all incoming employees.