January 2023
From Call Center to the HR Suite
Elsa Quijada, MOL, CPM, PHR, HR Deputy Director, City of Tucson, Tucson, Ariz.
Elsa Quijada’s introduction to HR wasn’t necessarily by design.
Working as a Spanish-speaking long-distance operator in a call center, Quijada was also working on her associate’s degree when she received a promotion to the position of HR administrative assistant in the organization’s staffing department.
Quijada, who now holds a master’s degree in organizational leadership from Northern Arizona University, advanced in her career as she advanced in her education, and she has held a variety of HR-focused roles in manufacturing, nonprofits and in the Army National Guard.
Quijada has spent the past 11-plus years with the City of Tucson, first as an HR manager, and now as HR deputy director for the city.
Elsa recently sat down with PSHRA editors to talk about her path to public sector HR, her current role and how she spends her time away from the (home) office.
PSHRA: You’ve spent more than 20 years in human resources. What led you to HR, and what led you to become an HR leader in the public sector?
I began my HR career just finishing my associate’s degree and receiving a promotion from being a Spanish long-distance operator to an HR administrative assistant in the staffing department of a 24-hour call center.
As I progressed with my education, so did the positions. I have served in human resources in manufacturing (which is my second-favorite sector of work), the nonprofit world and in call centers, and I also did HR work serving in the Army National Guard.
In addition to serving in the Army National Guard, I started my public service working with the Superior Court of Arizona. This is where I started to appreciate what it meant to serve in the government sector.
PSHRA: And how did you come to be in your current role as HR deputy director with the City of Tucson?
I believe what led me to continue to grow in this organization and continue growth as a leader, starting as manager, administrator and now an HR deputy director, is having credibility, having strong working relationships and an obvious passion for what I do! On a personal level, continuing to further my education in obtaining my master’s degree created additional opportunities for me.
PSHRA: From a professional standpoint, what’s been the silver lining to emerge from the pandemic for you; how has the upheaval of the last three years changed how you approach your job as an HR leader?
The pandemic truly tested our strength, not only as a department of more than 80 heroic HR professionals supporting more than 4,500 amazing and hard-working employees, but also operating as one city.
For me, the silver lining of the pandemic was the fact that the city made some hard but good decisions in ensuring we kept our employees safe, being able to adapt quickly to remote work, and continuing the unrelenting work that the pandemic created. However, the last three years have provided other insights as to how employees do want life/work balance, how prevalent burnout can be and how we cannot lose focus of enhancing the employee experience and work culture.
PSHRA: What are the biggest challenges currently facing you and your peers in public sector HR, and how are you and your HR team tackling those challenges?
Everyone’s challenge and issue is finding and keeping talent. What used to be attractive tools—pension plans, stability in employment—are no longer the desires of new generations. Shifting our organization so that we become nimble and are not left behind is how we are trying to tackle this issue. One example is our recruiting process. It can take up to six months to hire candidates into positions. We are constantly challenging ourselves, our processes and our rules to bring in candidates more efficiently.
PSHRA: On a personal note, what do you like to do in your free time, and how do you find time for your hobbies, and for maintaining a sense of work/life balance?
Free time for me can vary depending on the weekend. It can mean riding out in the desert, exploring local restaurants, spending time with my husband/older kids, binge-watching shows and spending time with our six fur babies. I also enjoy traveling and make an effort to take a trip at least two or three times a year, with a bucket goal of touching every state in the U.S. To maintain a sense of work/life balance, it was important for me to learn to disconnect. Once I close my door for the evening, I make every effort to not re-engage unless it is an emergency.
01 January 2023
Category
February 2023 Issue • HR News Article