Berkshire County — Through a state Community Compact Efficiency and Regionalization grant, Springfield native Sophia Bletsos has been named the human resources director for five area towns: Great Barrington, Sheffield, New Marlborough, Monterey, and West Stockbridge.
According to Great Barrington Town Manager Mark Pruhenski, Bletsos will work primarily from the Great Barrington Town Hall.
According to her LinkedIn profile, Bletsos graduated from Springfield College with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in business administration and management in 2016.
In 2018 she graduated from Springfield College with a Master of Science Degree in industrial and organizational psychology.
From May 2019 to June of this year, she worked at Guido’s Fresh Marketplace in Pittsfield and Great Barrington as a human resources generalist.
“I originally went to school for business, but that felt like that aspect of an organization wasn’t heartfelt enough for me,” Bletsos told The Berkshire Edge. “I really feel like human resources are the heart and lifeblood of any organization. I guess that, since I have a caring nature, being a resource to employees is a fulfilling role for me, as well as knowing that I can advocate for people who sometimes do not have a chance to advocate for themselves in the workplace.”
Pruhenski explained that, as the human resources director, Bletsos will help with hiring employees, managing benefits for employees and retirees, and will handle personnel matters that arise for each town.
“I can’t imagine a private sector organization with hundreds of employees without a human resources director,” Pruhenski said. “This is a huge step forward for our towns.”
According to Pruhenski, Bletsos will be working 15 hours a week for Great Barrington, six hours a week each for Sheffield, New Marlborough, Monterey, and two hours a week for West Stockbridge.
Pruhenski said that her starting salary for the 35-hour-a-week position is $68,000 plus benefits, but will increase to $70,000 after her first three months.
He said that as part of the town’s Fiscal 2024 budget process, Great Barrington will be paying 43 percent of Bletsos’ salary and benefits, and the other four towns would split the remainder of her salary and benefit payments.
“This all feels equal parts exciting and scary,” Bletsos said. “Anybody in the human resources field knows that HR does so much for any kind of organization. It’s really a responsibility that shouldn’t be taken lightly, and just the fact that I’m not only responsible for one town, but five towns.”
Bletsos said that many human resource processes and projects overlap in each town.
“I’m happy to have accepted the job and I’m having a great time meeting all the residents,” she added.
