Stephen W. Dixon is a talented and seasoned executive with over 30 years of experience in human resource management including two years as a consultant with Abraham Aaron Consulting & Employee Services. He brings a wealth of expertise with particular strengths in areas of change management, employee engagement, customer service, recruitment & staffing, employee relations, labor relations, compensation & benefits, training & professional development, leadership development, organizational development, succession planning, employment law, performance improvement, facilities administration, strategic human resources planning.
Currently, Stephen is Vice President of Human Resources and Administration for CAMICO Mutual Insurance Company joining the company in October of 2000. In his 15 years at CAMICO, Stephen has been primarily responsible for the development and execution of the company’s corporate strategy and serving as an advisor to senior management on both business and organizational issues. Also, he has been responsible for playing a leadership role in significantly impacting how people interact within the company and fostering a culture that values employee engagement.
Specifically, Stephen redesigned the company’s performance management system using a forward-looking coaching approach by creating an ongoing dialogue about future performance and eliminating the traditional looking backwards format to rate or rank past performance. This approach has created a more meaningful conversation between the employee and manager which has led to improved employee engagement and increased employee retention from an average of 65% from 2000 to 2008 to an average of 90% over the last 7 years.
Additionally, upon his arrival at CAMICO Stephen focused on improving a work/life balance issue since the company had been struggling to create an environment where people can be successful in both their work and personal lives. The Alternate Work Schedule (AWS) is a benefit he created that helped the company achieve the often delicate balance of providing superior customer service along with recognizing the importance of a work/life balance for their employees. To this day, the AWS is considered one of the most valuable benefits by the employees and has helped define the company culture at CAMICO.
Stephen has held HR management positions at Hyatt Hotels Corporation, Pacific Gas & Electric Company, Bechtel Investments Advisors, and The Good Guys. While at The Good Guys, Stephen directed the activities of 13 staffing professionals supporting a total staff of 4800 field, corporate and store support employees. He implemented an on-line application screening process and redesigned the succession planning program & process that led to overall awareness to retention. Stephen managed the staff growth of the distribution center from 178 associates to 660 associates in a 4-year period while maintaining a non-union environment. He managed a budget of $1.4 million dollars and reduced expenses by 35% from the previous year to finish the fiscal year 2% under budget.
At PG&E as a Compensation Specialist, Stephen managed the reorganization of the 7,000-person newly created business unit ENCON combining the Engineering & General Construction divisions. Additionally he acquired hands on labor relations experience while managing the grievance procedures with the ESC (Engineers & Scientist) and the IBEW (International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers) labor unions as a Labor Relations Representative.
He earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Management from the University of Phoenix and a Master of Science in Human Resource Management from the Ageno School of Business at Golden Gate University in San Francisco.
In addition to his executive career, Stephen has been coaching high school football for 15 years and is currently the defensive coordinator & defensive backs coach at Aragon High School in San Mateo, CA. He also serves as a board member of the Aragon Athletic Boosters, a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization.