New HR Director Outlines City Workforce Plans

Elk Grove City Manager Jason Behrmann said on May 18 that the city has hired Rosemary Rivas as its new human resources director, concluding a national recruitment process. Rivas is scheduled to start on June 1, according to the city. The appointment places a new department head over a human resources operation that supports nearly 500 city employees. The city said Rivas will join its executive leadership team as Elk Grove continues recruiting across departments. ### Who is Rosemary Rivas, and where is she coming from? Rosemary Rivas most recently served as human resources director for the City of Stockton, Elk Grove said in its announcement. The city said she has more than 15 years of public-sector experience. Before Stockton, Rivas held human resources and administrative roles with the Hayward Unified School District, according to the city. Elk Grove said she holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a human resources management certificate from the University of Phoenix. Jason Behrmann said in the city’s release that Rivas had built “a reputation as a collaborative and innovative leader” who values employee engagement and high-performing teams. He said her experience and leadership style fit Elk Grove’s commitment to public service and workplace culture. ### What job is she stepping into at City Hall? The Human Resources Director role in Elk Grove oversees the city’s human resources department and reports to the assistant city manager, according to the recruitment posting for the position. The posting described the director as a department head with responsibility across the city’s personnel functions. The city’s recruitment materials said the department has seven professional staff members and a $2.1 million budget. Those materials said the department’s work includes recruitment, selection and retention, classification and compensation, benefits, workers’ compensation, leave administration, employee relations, labor relations, training and organizational development, personnel rules and compliance. Elk Grove’s hiring announcement said Rivas will join the executive leadership team. That places the position inside broader city management discussions on staffing, policy and service delivery. ### What did Rivas say she plans to focus on? Rivas said in the city’s announcement that she wants to lead human resources “with integrity, compassion, and purpose” while supporting employees and helping create a city and community where people thrive. The statement did not lay out a detailed public work plan or numeric hiring target. The city’s recruitment posting for the job, however, emphasized recruitment, retention and organizational development as core functions of the department. It also said the role is intended to help modernize talent practices and build a resilient workforce. Those job materials framed the director’s assignment around both hiring and internal workforce systems. The posting said the department collaborates with all city departments on recruitment, retention, training, policy development and compliance. ### How large is Elk Grove’s workforce, and why does this hire matter? Elk Grove said it currently employs nearly 500 people serving the community. The city’s announcement did not cite a vacancy count, overtime figure or service benchmark tied to the leadership change. The recruitment posting described the human resources director as a key member of the executive leadership team in a city of about 182,000 people in the Sacramento region. The posting said the role would support operational excellence and citywide workforce resilience. That description ties the hire to day-to-day staffing systems rather than a single department. Human resources in Elk Grove manages hiring pipelines, employee relations, compensation administration and training programs that affect departments across city government, according to the posting. ### What happens next, and where can residents or applicants track it? June 1 is Rivas’s first scheduled day on the job, according to Elk Grove’s announcement. The city said people seeking more information about the human resources department or current job opportunities can use its jobs page. Elk Grove’s public announcement did not identify a future City Council vote tied to the appointment. The next visible step is Rivas’s start date, when she is expected to begin leading the department and working with the city’s executive team.