Working @Tech
Job Families & Career Paths
We’re thrilled to introduce you to a dynamic career pathing system designed to empower and guide you on your professional journey at Georgia Tech.
Job Families & Career Paths Overview
Georgia Tech has a vested interest in attracting, retaining, and developing our workforce. As a result, we’re creating strategies to ensure our staff can grow their careers at the Institute.
In February 2022, we embarked on an exciting journey to enhance our work environment. We conducted a thorough review of our job structures and job architecture, resulting in key recommendations that include:
- establishing job families,
- a career system,
- standardization of job titles,
- updating titles and descriptions, and
- planned maintenance of this structure.
What does this mean for you?
Defined Career Goals
This initiative will help you map out your dream career at Georgia Tech. It provides a personalized roadmap to guide you toward your professional aspirations.
Strong Motivation
A well-defined career path is a powerful motivator. When you can see where you’re headed, it becomes easier to navigate the journey and find the motivation to grow within our amazing community.
Clear Direction
Our restructure provides a sense of direction, showing you the various routes for career progress. It’s all about creating opportunities for you to reach and surpass your career goals.
The goal of this initiative is to create comprehensive, modern compensation and career structures and processes.
We are working on updating and expanding our current JCCS model which currently supports 5 job structures: Administrative, Crafts & Skilled Trades, Development, Information Technology, and Science and Research Support; to 12 job structures that better align with the market. In addition to expanding the number of structures, we want to introduce structure-specific salary grading.
In our pilot group, we’ve developed a two-phase framework structure for implementation.
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Phase 1 is supported by identifying functional areas in each job structure, career levels for both individual contributors and people/process leaders, and updates to the job descriptions with competencies relevant to compete in the market.
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Phase 2 includes the implementation of a performance evaluation model that allows and promotes career growth.
We started rolling out this initiative, beginning with our Finance job family and the IT and HR job families are next in line.
Focus Areas
Job Families
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At least 12 meaningful job families to better align with market:
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Administrative; Athletics; Communications; Legal, Audit & Compliance; Institute Operations; Finance; Human Resources; Information Technology; Police & Safety Protection; Institute Affairs; Institutional Advancement; Research
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Within each Job Family, functional areas will be identified
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These are staff job families; we do intend to address faculty job families following separate but just as significant logic
Career Levels
May establish two career paths: Individual Contributors and People Leaders and career levels for each position
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Support
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Professional/Sr. Professional
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Manager (track)
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Director (track)
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Organization/Unit Leader (Executive Leadership)
Job Profiles
May establish standardization between job positions and descriptions (institute-wide)
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Consistent content, standards and up-to-date language
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Clarity over specific roles and responsibilities in career growth
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Differences in Job Posting vs Job Description
Roadmap for the Job Family Framework
This work started by defining the functional areas within each job family. Then, establishing level criteria and the various career levels. Lastly, auditing job titles and descriptions for alignment in a structure that is relevant to the strategic needs of each job family.
Functions
- Identify and Define the functional areas within the job family
- Slot existing roles into the various functions
- Determine basic knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) for function
- Define individual groupings of career positions
Career Levels
- Align with pre-determined career levels
- Establish level criteria (required and preferred education, experience, skills, technical certification, etc.)
- Identify gaps (lack of positions) in career levels
Job Titles and Descriptions
- Job Title and Description audit – Creation, clean up and elimination of duplicates (we are here)
- Market price based on levels and scope of duties
- Present Final Results to Institute Leadership (Updates)
- Change Management, Communication & Full Implementation – Lift and Shift (Updates)
Tools & Resources
The new and expanded content is available to support the job family introduction and implementation throughout the institute. Additional content will be published to this site to support multiple initiatives.
- Working @Tech Toolkit – This toolkit is available to assist you in navigating the new job classification and structure by clarifying the distinction between job architecture, job families, and job functions. The examples provided in this document are intended solely for internal discussion purposes.
- Working @Tech Excel Sheet – You can download this Excel sheet to use as a template to fill out the job titles and profiles for your unit.
- Job Families – Commonly Used Action Words
- Finance Position Title Crosswalk – GTHR has done some prelimary crosswalk considerations from our current positions to our future proposed positions. As you navigate through the job profile to provide feedback, and you are thinking of how current positions align in the future framework, please use this crosswalk as a starting place for position alignment.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who does this initiative apply to?
This initiative applies only to Georgia Tech staff members. Faculty positions are not within the scope of this project but will go through a separate but similar exercise to better align Faculty structures.
Will this initiative affect my pay? What will be done if market analysis shows that salaries need to be review or adjusted?
At the end of the initiative, unit leaders and Human Resources (HR) will have a complete view of market values for job types across the Institute. If positions are being compensated below market value, units will have the opportunity to work with HR to create action plans for adjusting salaries to meet market value. Please note that HR does not intend to decrease any salaries as a direct result of this initiative’s outcomes, even if data shows some positions are compensated above market value.
Please understand that funding for positions varies by unit. Understanding the value of positions across job families does not automatically grant every unit the funding it needs to meet market benchmarks. In the event a unit cannot reach the target compensation for a position, HR will work with that unit to create an action plan to reach market value over time.
Will staff receive clear guidance as to how to move forward in their careers?
Having a complete picture of job architecture grants HR the ability to offer managers and staff members visibility into how roles are classified and related to one another. Staff and managers will be given access to resources on career ladders and lattices, which show potential paths an employee can take to advance their careers through upward promotion or lateral movement. Staff can expect a new web resource to guide them through possible career tracks at Georgia Tech based on their current position.
It is important to recognize that not all staff members wish to be promoted to a higher-level position or become supervisors in the future. New job architecture and career development resources will allow for better visibility into lateral options staff members can pursue and will not only focus on managerial positions but also growing as individual contributors.
Career development activities will be a dual responsibility that involves both the employee and their supervisor. Supervisors will receive new resources to partner with their staff in identifying growth opportunities, and staff members will be responsible for discussing their career goals with their supervisors and carrying out development plans.
What is the desired outcome of this work?
The goal of this initiative is to create comprehensive, modern compensation and career structures and processes. With these new structures and processes, Georgia Tech will aim to attract top talent and retain staff members through better service, new career resources, and increased transparency.
Key areas of focus include:
- Offering visibility into career paths for staff members;
- Establishing a compensation philosophy, a formal framework that describes Georgia Tech’s overall approach to employee compensation;
- Updating job documentation to include consistent job titles and descriptions across the institute and the ability to define specific unit competencies on the job posting
- Defined Career Levels and Position Levels
- Updated JCCS and planned career pathing for staff
- Initial framework of a staff promotion model linked directly to performance evaluations
- Providing comprehensive, transparent, and streamlined compensation and career services to managers and their staff.
How will changes that result from this initiative be implemented?
At the end of this initiative, HR’s Compensation and Classification team will utilize new job architecture in the classification of jobs. Information gleaned from the market review will allow for a clearer understanding of a position’s value when a hiring manager is ready to make an offer. This information will also inform unit leaders of benchmarks for current salaries. The release of training resources and career development information will allow managers to begin more informed conversations with staff members who wish to advance in their careers.
Individual units will be responsible for making decisions based on market information. HR will partner with units in utilizing new information and structures.
What role will managers play in the implementation of the initiative?
Managers’ typical duties will not be disrupted by the results of this initiative. However, managers can expect to have increased visibility into compensation and career processes within HR. HR will partner with managers to streamline compensation elements of recruitment and retention, such as extending offers and conducting job reviews. Managers will also be key reviewers of new staff job profile and level assignments. Overall, this initiative aims to improve processes already in place while redesigning job architecture and evaluating the compensation of staff positions related to market value.
In addition, managers will have access to new resources designed to assist them in supporting their staff’s interest in career development. The redesigned job architecture will help managers and staff members become more informed about what other roles may be suited to their development interests, whether that means promoting upward or moving laterally. Managers will be given more support in how to begin and sustain development conversations with their staff members, as well as support staff members who are looking to advance their career.