Johns Hopkins University announced today the promotion of human resources leader and expert Meredith Stewart to the role of vice president and chief human resources officer, overseeing the university's central and divisional HR functions. Stewart's appointment is effective immediately.
Image caption: Meredith Stewart
Currently Hopkins' interim vice president for human resources, Stewart joined the university in 2016 as its inaugural executive director for total rewards. Since then, she has played a central role in designing, expanding, and strengthening HR programs that directly serve JHU's employees. In her various positions at Hopkins, her work has consistently reflected a customer-service mindset, data-informed thinking, and an ability to navigate complex institutional challenges with empathy and creativity. She also took the helm in crucial moments to serve as both interim vice president for human resources (2021–2022) and interim executive director for talent acquisition (2022–2023), returning to the interim vice president for human resources role in 2023.
Among Stewart's many accomplishments are several initiatives that have significantly enhanced the employee experience, particularly in supporting work-life integration. As head of total rewards, she led the development of a new birth-recovery and parental-leave benefit, expanded child care vouchers, introduced a scholarship program for JHU-affiliated child care centers, and streamlined the university's medical plan offerings and retirement plan.
In her interim role, Stewart has advanced two of the university's most important recent investments in staff development and engagement. Career Architecture, though initiated before her interim appointment, gained significant momentum and clarity under her leadership. Stewart brought structure, urgency, and a universitywide focus to the work, helping move it from concept to near completion with an aggressive and inclusive implementation timeline. She also led the creation and launch of the Center for Staff Life Design, which supports staff in aligning their personal and professional aspirations with the evolving needs of the university community.
"Meredith's commitment to supporting our community and to realizing our strategic vision—plus her proven track record leading a large team distributed across the institution—have proved incredibly valuable to Hopkins, and they will remain so as she steps into this role at an important moment for the university," said Laurent Heller, executive vice president for finance and administration. "Meredith has already demonstrated the expertise and vision we need in our HR leader, so I'm ecstatic that she has agreed to continue working magic for us in the permanent role, where I'm confident she'll excel."
Stewart came to Hopkins after serving as vice president of total rewards at the Algeco Scotsman Group, a global business services company. Before that, she spent 10 years at T. Rowe Price in compensation and benefits roles of increasing responsibility, eventually becoming vice president for global compensation and benefits.
A native of Lynchburg, Virginia, Stewart began her human resources career as a compensation consultant at Mercer Human Resources Consulting in New York. Previously, she also spent three years teaching middle school math and social studies in Virginia and one year teaching with the Japan Exchange and Teaching Program in Ota, Japan. Stewart holds an MBA and a BA from the College of William and Mary.
"I'm honored to take on this role long term and excited to continue building on everything we've accomplished these last few years," Stewart said. "The HR team is a talented group of folks dedicated to making Johns Hopkins the best it can be for our people, and I know that together, our team can continue shaping a supportive culture and a workplace that serves our incredible workforce."
Reporting to the executive vice president for finance and administration, the chief human resources officer's portfolio includes defining and guiding organizational culture and people strategies, cultivating employee engagement, and building the infrastructure to support the university's employees and their work. As chief human resources officer, Stewart will continue building and updating the university's HR functions, leading both central and divisional human resources teams as they pursue the priorities outlined in the Ten for One strategic vision strategic vision by supporting President Ron Daniels' focus on the people who fuel Johns Hopkins University—in particular, attracting and retaining top talent and making the institution a national employer of choice.
Posted in University News
