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Forbes magazine named the University of Arizona on its inaugural list of America鈥檚 Best-in-State Employers.

The UA ranked 11th out of 72 top Arizona employers, second among Arizona-based employers and first in the education subcategory,.

鈥淲e鈥檙e a higher education environment where our mission is education and research, and that鈥檚 a mission that is attractive to various individuals and not just those whose primary functions are targeted in those areas,鈥� said Helena Rodrigues, interim chief human resources officer at the UA. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a range of different things that, for any individual employee, makes this a great place to work.鈥�

The university鈥檚 鈥渧ery diverse鈥� faculty and staff share a common attraction to the UA鈥檚 benefits and opportunities, Rodrigues said.

鈥淚 am thrilled that the University of Arizona has earned this recognition as one of the state鈥檚 best workplaces,鈥� said UA President Robert C. Robbins. 鈥淲ith more than 16,000 people in our workforce, we take immense pride in providing an outstanding professional environment where employees can expand their own potential while helping our students pursue success.鈥�

The UA embraces a collaborative environment across various departments and areas of research, Rodrigues said.

鈥淲hether you鈥檙e in Phoenix; whether you鈥檙e here in Tucson; whether you鈥檙e in Sierra Vista, for instance, I think that there is a great spirit of collaboration and teamwork,鈥� she said. 鈥淧eople are accessible, down to earth, and, at the end of the day, really committed to the university.鈥�

Anyone who has worked in higher education understands the challenge of working without immense financial resources, and UA faculty and staff face challenges attaining goals, Rodrigues said.

鈥淗ow we approach problem-solving, how we approach being innovative, is going to be different,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 required that we work well together in order to arrive at these good solutions with limited resources.鈥�

But people stay for the 鈥渋nclusive environment and culture鈥� of the UA.

Because it is impossible to know every side of an operation within such a large institution, faculty and staff understand the need for collaboration and communication with colleagues, Rodrigues said.

鈥淚t just becomes a part of how we do things,鈥� she said. 鈥溾�榃ho鈥檚 missing from the table? Whose perspective do we absolutely need to obtain in order to make sure this is successful?鈥� I think those are just really routine ways of thinking around here.鈥�

Rodrigues said she loves working in a university environment because of the diverse workforce and the broad range of expertise among the faculty and staff.

鈥淪peaking as someone working in human resources, as I might tackle a challenge that鈥檚 employee-related, I get to work with a range of individuals and watch this university do amazing things every day,鈥� she said. 鈥淣o two days are the same, and I get to work with really fantastic people and get to meet new people all the time.鈥�

Employees leaving the UA for new opportunities frequently recall the relationships they developed at the university as the thing they will miss most about working there, Rodrigues said.

鈥淚 mean, at the end of the day, I think people make a place,鈥� she said.

Rodrigues said she thinks diversity and inclusion are important in any workforce, and not just when seeking a new hire or filling a vacancy.

鈥淚t鈥檚 not just in those instances, although that presents an enormous opportunity to diversify your workforce,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 had talked earlier about the importance of being collaborative and the importance of relationships here, and, I think, for those to be true, we have to value different perspectives, different expertise, different backgrounds 鈥� be they educational, or professional, or both.鈥�

The an official Hispanic-Serving Institution by the U.S. Department of Education in 2018.

To solve the world鈥檚 biggest challenges and be the best innovators, the UA has to have the best talent, and that talent is , Rodrigues said.

鈥淲e have to be recruiting people who don鈥檛 have exactly the same background as us, who are going to challenge us, who are going to ask really good questions,鈥� she said. 鈥淵ou just never know where the next great idea is going to come from.鈥�

One area where the university has excelled is in leadership development both for those seeking leadership roles and those already in leadership who want to refine their skills, Rodrigues said.

鈥淲e have, for instance, an Academic Leadership Institute鈥� and we鈥檝e been very deliberate here that that鈥檚 not just faculty; that鈥檚 faculty and staff,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e have individuals who are in department head roles鈥� being part of a cohort and learning different leadership skills, or working on different leadership skills together over the course of a year.鈥�

The UA has developed similar programming for IT professionals, finance professionals and more, she said.

鈥淭hat is our way to really message to the university environment, to all employees, that in order for all of us to be successful we have to have really good leaders in place,鈥� Rodrigues said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e committed to doing that internally 鈥� to providing unique programming opportunities and development opportunities for our employees and for our leaders.鈥�

Other universities and colleges have modeled their programs after the UA, but there is always room for improvement, she said.

Aside from the students, the employees are the university鈥檚 greatest assets from a workplace perspective, Rodrigues said.

鈥淲hen they鈥檙e engaged, they鈥檙e their most productive, and when they鈥檙e their most productive and engaged, students have a good experience as a result of that,鈥� she said. 鈥淲hen we talk to employees about what keeps them engaged or what gets them engaged, it is having opportunities for growth.鈥�

Even individuals who are not seeking a promotion or a leadership role still want opportunities for growth and development, she said.

The UA is present in all 15 counties in Arizona and has a 鈥渃ommitment to each county鈥� in the state, Rodrigues said.

鈥淚 think that we strive, always, to be integrated with the community, because that makes us stronger as an institution,鈥� she said. 鈥淲e are always looking for more opportunities to be much more engaged in the community 鈥� from the smallest example, like having community members serve on a search committee, to and enterprises [such as] multi-million-dollar research with a community partner.鈥�

Partnerships are critical for the UA to meet its future goals, the most important of which is to offer the 鈥渧ery best experience鈥� for students, Rodrigues said. And today, that experience transcends both physical and online classrooms.

鈥淚t鈥檚 about the whole organization鈥� feeling a part of that student experience,鈥� she said.