Hill Wins Top Manager Award for 2003

 

Those that have hired her have said it was the best personnel decision they’ve ever made.

 

She has transformative powers: the ability to take a department’s structure, analyze it, break it apart, put it back together so that it provides better service, and still manage to make the staff members feel good about the changes.

 

That’s Kay Hill, administrative manager with the Department of Psychology, and winner of the University Managers Association (UMA) top honor, the 2003 Manager of the Award. The presentation was made at the group’s annual meeting on April 29 by last year’s winner, Ann Edwards.

 

Hill has been with the Department of Psychology for three years but has worked for the University for 20 years.

 

Her nominating materials describe her as a “truly exceptional professional, one whose outstanding administrative and interpersonal skills and extraordinary work ethic have helped transform the ways in which we as a department are able to function.” Before she set out to modify the psychology department’s administrative structure, she had the sensitivity to first learn the traditions and “culture” of the organization, and only then began working to make changes with faculty and staff.

 

As part of her series of improvements, Hill has strengthen department’s accounting and grants management services and its instructional offerings, and she’s also proved her strength in a crisis.

 

In December 2002, a burst pipe in the attic of Davie Hall brought forth the “Davie Hall Flood” in which 200 gallons of water a minute ran unchecked for an hour. It left considerable damage, but with Hill’s effort the department was back up and running within a few days. She coordinated both the cleanup and requests for University and federal assistance.

 

Founded in 1983, the UMA has over 200 members. It purpose is to provide a forum for the exchange of information relevant to management in the University setting and to encourage productive interaction among members.

 

Selection of the manager of the year was based on University career accomplishments or a significant accomplishment within the past 12 months.

 

Only UMA members are eligible to receive the award, but any Carolina employee may make a nomination. For more information about the UMA, refer to www.unc.edu/staff/univmgr.