After decades serving in the human resources department at Boston College, Leo Sullivan, vice president for human resources, will be stepping down this spring to assume his new position as senior advisor to the president.
Nationally renowned as an architect of human resource policy and for his involvement in restructuring much of the business model currently employed by the University, Sullivan’s service to Boston College has been marked by his commitment to BC employees and to growing the department.
“Leo has had such a profound influence on the life and culture of Boston College,” said University President William P. Leahy in a statement to the Office of News and Public Affairs. “He has provided pastoral care, wisdom, and sensitivity throughout his decades of service. I am pleased he has agreed to continue his service to the University in this new capacity.”
One of Sullivan’s most successful contributions within the field began in 1996, when he and then-Executive Vice President Frank B. Campanella initiated a University-wide undertaking called Project Delta.
An unprecedented cost-cutting project designed to reduce rising tuition fees, Delta resulted in accumulated savings of $10 million by 2002 and led to the creation of BC’s information system, Agora, among other innovative business structures-all without losing any employees.
“Whatever systems and procedures we need to put in place to be sure comprehensive communication takes place we will do,” Sullivan said of Delta in the April 25, 1996 issue of The Chronicle.
Although the project was closed on June 6, 2000, much of the policies birthed from Delta still exist today.
“Leo’s decades-long contributions to Boston College and our employees have been invaluable,” said Executive Vice President Patrick Keating in a statement to the Office of News and Public Affairs. “What Leo has done for the University will not be replicated, but this new role is a perfect way for him to assist in and ensure a smooth transition for his eventual replacement.”
Before joining BC’s two-person human resources department at the beginning of his career with the University, Sullivan earned his master’s degree from BC and his undergraduate degree from Northeastern University. The human resources staff now consists of over 50 members who specialize in nine areas within the department.
Sullivan is confident that the administration will exercise a high degree of scrutiny when considering prospective applicants and appreciates the opportunities afforded to him through his former position.
“I am very grateful to Boston College,” he said in a statement to the Office of News of Public Affairs. “It has been a privilege to be a part of this community, and I am looking forward to my new role with great enthusiasm.”
The administration has recently compiled an executive search team in an effort to fill Sullivan’s former position-the search is estimated to take about four to five months with a vice president to be selected near June 1. The search is not limited to internal hiring and is focused on evaluating all possible candidates.
