Manuel Cuevas-Trisán will assume a new BU leadership role that will align current efforts to strengthen inclusive workplace policies and community-building. Photo courtesy of Harvard University

New Appointment

Manuel Cuevas-Trisán Will Be BU’s First Senior Vice President for People, Belonging, and Culture

Veteran administrator has led workplace culture efforts in higher education and private industry

Manuel Cuevas-Trisán, a 25-year administrative leader in higher education and global industry, has been named Boston University’s inaugural senior vice president for people, belonging, and culture, effective July 1.

In his new role, Cuevas-Trisán, currently Harvard University’s vice president for human resources, will help strengthen and align efforts underway to promote inclusive workplaces and community-building, BU President Melissa Gilliam wrote in a letter Thursday announcing the appointment. 

“Working closely with me and colleagues throughout the University—including faculty, staff, students, and administrative leadership—he will focus on investing in our people, enhancing the employee experience, and helping to build a culture where all members of our community are included and able to fully participate in the life of our campus,” Gilliam wrote. 

Specifically, Cuevas-Trisán will align efforts being made by BU Human Resources, Community & Inclusion’s units for Diversity & Inclusion and LGBTQIA+ Center for Faculty & Staff, the Equal Opportunity Office, and the Office of the Ombuds. 

The new position aligns with a key pillar in BU’s Strategic Framework “Charting our Future,” which calls for a “World-Class Community of Talent” through investing in student success, faculty and staff, and fostering leadership growth and development across the university. It also connects with the framework’s emphasis on convergence—collaboration in research efforts as well as other aspects of the University community.

“BU’s commitment to becoming a global leader in convergent research resonates deeply with me,” Cuevas-Trisán says. “More than ever, breakthroughs in knowledge are the direct result of collaboration between disciplines. In my work leading talent strategies and workplace culture initiatives, my orientation is similarly cross-disciplinary.

“Every leader I met during my interviews, including President Gilliam, shares the belief that to achieve its ambitions, BU needs human-centered strategies and systems that harness the ingenuity and creativity of the entire community. Staff are as critical a part of these strategies as the University’s faculty and students. In this newly created, cabinet-level division, I am energized by the prospect of charting the path towards a workplace culture that encourages experimentation, dynamism, and new ways of working.”

 “Manuel has demonstrated an ability to lead through complexity,” Gilliam wrote, “while keeping a clear focus on people, culture, and organizational effectiveness, qualities that will be especially important as we continue to evolve as an institution.… With a background that includes both human resources leadership and employment law, Manuel brings a thoughtful and well-rounded approach to navigating organizational and workforce challenges.”

At Harvard, Cuevas-Trisán has promoted an inclusive workplace and sense of community, in addition to his core human resources duties, which included modernizing hiring, advancing data-informed workforce planning, and supporting evolving work models that better serve the needs of diverse employees.

During his career, he also served as vice president and chief human resources officer at Northwestern University, where he promoted inclusive hiring, pay transparency, and leadership development. He also spent two-plus decades at Motorola Solutions, the safety and security technology company, including as its chief human resources officer. 

He has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Notre Dame, a master’s degree in executive coaching and leadership from the Universitat de Barcelona/OBS Business School, and a JD from the University of Puerto Rico School of Law. 

Asked about his to-do list in his new job, Cuevas-Trisán says, “The first order of business will be to listen and learn…to get to know my new team and colleagues, peers in the administration, deans, faculty, and to understand the current state and how shared governance manifests in decisions small and large. I intend to identify unmet needs and investment opportunities. I also want to learn more about BU: its rich history, its ties and contributions to the city of Boston, and to its cultural, scientific, artistic institutions.

“BU is well positioned to leverage its global reach, evolve its research partnerships, and lean into its commitment to service in ways that attract and retain world-class educators, researchers, students, and staff.”