Oct 11, 2019

Marcia Buchholz – Managing Director, Human Resources for The University of British Columbia (UBC)

By PFM Search

PFM Executive Search is pleased to announce that Marcia Buchholz has recently accepted the role of Managing Director, Human Resources – Advisory Partnerships, Central Services and Professional Standards with The University of British Columbia (UBC).

Marcia was previously the Associate Vice-President, Human Resources, at the University of Calgary, where the HR team provided HR support to over 11,000 faculty and staff, and championed emerging and priority HR programs, policies and practices.

Since 2011, Marcia had guided the university’s people practices in employee programs, employee, labour and faculty relations, change management and business transformation with a commitment to building positive and respectful workplace cultures.

Marcia led U.Calgary’s transformation to a new HR shared services model, evolving HR operational business practices in advance of an enterprise-level systems renewal project (similar to UBC’s IRP/Workday project).

Marcia has a key focus on employee engagement and culture initiatives, creating the “Respect in the Workplace” initiative that led to a more engaged and supportive culture of work.

She was instrumental in the launch of the mental health strategy and initiatives for faculty and staff, including a WellBeing and WorkLife portfolio, which led to U.Calgary being the first Canadian university and first Canadian organization to receive the World at Work “Seal of Distinction” for flexible and supportive employee policies and programs.

Marcia has served as a senior HR professional across Canada in both post-secondary and the private sector for over 20 years, with such organizations as IBM Canada, Jayman, CIBC, EDS Canada, and Ceridian Canada. She has led large teams and has worked collaboratively with all stakeholders in these organizations.

Marcia has been a life-long learner and has also been actively involved in the development of the HR profession throughout her career and has been actively involved in organizations such as CAUBO and HRAUWC.

PFM Executive Search is recognized as a national leader in recruiting senior officials to progressive post-secondary institutions. Our firm is known for creating an inclusive and transparent facilitation procedure with stakeholders and partner groups, ensuring a fair and open selection process that brings forward a diverse slate of qualified candidates for senior academic and non-academic roles.