Jason Hood, a veteran of more than 20 years in leading human resources teams, is the new Director of Human Resources for the City of Wichita. His first day with the city will be Monday, Feb. 27.
He comes to Wichita from Decatur, Illinois, where he has operated his own business, Jason Hood HR Consultants, for more than 11 years.
As Director of Human Resources, Hood will be responsible for directing, managing and integrating comprehensive human resources to develop a high-performance staff, develop strong employee morale and productivity and facilitate effective communication between management and represented employees and their bargaining organizations.
Hood replaces Chris Bezruki who retired as Director of HR in December of 2022.
“Mr. Hood has an extensive and varied background in human resources management. We look forward to his leadership and expertise to help us develop a workforce that provides public service at the highest level of performance,” said City Manager Robert Layton.
Hood holds a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Illinois College of Law, a Master of Business Administration from Millikin University Tabor School of Business and a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Wabash College.
He has consulted for and held a variety of human resources leadership positions in K-12 schools, higher education, Fortune 100 companies, city government and non-profit associations. He has experience with labor relations and negotiations.