In the world of higher education, it’s exhilarating to land a supervisory role, become a departmental chair or even submit a tenure package. But then? Many staff and faculty members aren’t sure where to turn.
That’s where Neelam Chand steps in. For more than 25 years, Chand has grown and applied broad expertise in HR. Whether she’s building policies and procedures to ensure staff members’ success or coaching faculty through leadership transitions, she’s committed to fostering connections, improving culture and thinking strategically.
Born and raised in Mumbai, India, Chand earned her bachelor’s in psychology from nearby St. Xavier’s College before setting her sights abroad. Inspired by friends who were applying to graduate programs in the U.S., she enrolled at Purdue University in Indianapolis, ultimately earning a master’s in industrial organizational psychology.
The decision set the tone for her future. With her degree in hand, Chand launched a now decades-long career in HR that led her from corporate work to non-for-profit settings and ultimately to higher education—and she’s thrived in the industry ever since.
She spent the majority of her career in Indianapolis, landing a job in 1999 with what was then Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI; now Indiana University Indianapolis).
As part of a decentralized model at the time, Chand gained broad experience ranging from staff HR processes to academic recruitment, and was later tapped to lead HR for both faculty and staff in the university’s Department of Medicine.
This role—housed at the largest medical school in the country—positioned Chand to make even bigger impacts. She helped lead the development of a central HR database, guided employees assuming countless new roles, and even helped create a supervisory training program despite having no budget. With both online and in-person modules, the series helped staff who aspired to become supervisors gain the skills they needed to do so, all with hands-on opportunities to practice new knowledge.
Most recently, she was recruited to the school of medicine dean’s office to work primarily in academic HR where she was heavily involved in chair-level searches, promotion and tenure review, and guiding departments on hiring faculty. She identified a need for training specific to academic HR and developed it from scratch, helping with faculty relations resources for faculty and staff alike. And then? The opportunity at CWRU came knocking.
“I found myself at the intersection of having 25 years of really solid HR experience and watching my daughters excel and graduate from college,” Chand said. “This role is an exciting opportunity to showcase all I’ve learned. CWRU has an incredible reputation and I believe I can contribute to the mission and strategy.”
Now, as Case Western Reserve University’s new senior associate vice president of human resources operations, Chand is tasked with providing executive-level leadership, management and direction to formulate strategies and execute priority projects for university-wide human resources-related initiatives. In other words? She’s here to help CWRU employees succeed and excel in an ever-evolving workplace.
“Every department is different,” Chand explained. “I want to bring ideas that allow for unique approaches.”
Just several weeks into her new role at Case Western Reserve, Chand is already on her way. Learn more about her in this week’s 5 questions.
1. Name a spot in Cleveland you haven’t checked out yet, but would like to see.
I may be new here, but I already love this city; the way I’ve been describing it to people back home is that if Indianapolis and Chicago were to get married and have a child, it would be Cleveland. Here we have the tremendous excitement of a vibrant city with arts, culture, lake views and great food, and I can’t wait to explore more. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame is high on my list because I’ve heard so many great things, but I hope to get to sporting events, too; probably a Cleveland Cavaliers game once the season starts!
2. Are you an early bird or a night owl?
I’m definitely an early bird. I always have been. I like to have my coffee and do some type of workout—if I can find a group fitness class the peer pressure helps my motivation!
3. What’s an interesting fact about you that most people don’t know?
I do a lot of virtual traveling! There are many shows on platforms such as YouTube TV and PBS where you can follow travel vloggers. I enjoy being able to talk intelligently about a country even without having been there myself, but I love to travel in real life, too. I just came back from a trip to Japan with my daughter.
4. From where do you draw your biggest inspiration?
Being an immigrant, a female and a mother of two girls gives me a unique perspective, and I use that to inspire my daughters. They’ve taught me that sometimes you have to pave the road for others like you. I believe in taking calculated risks and pushing the envelope just a little to stretch your goals, because if you don’t take that chance, you’ll never know. It’s what brought me to Cleveland!
5. What’s your favorite thing about Case Western Reserve?
I’ve only been here a few weeks so far, but I’m inspired by how innovative the university is. Moving from India to Indianapolis threw me into learning a different culture to the point where I now feel as though I’m from a hybrid culture, and I can tell this is going to be a similar experience. Joining a new university with its own customs and traditions is exciting to me as I grow professionally as well as personally.