This fall Elisa Hodge joined the City of Kaukauna as its new Human Resources (HR) Director. Hodge will help the city as it looks to expand its staff to continue offering programs and services to the rapidly growing community.
The city has seen monumental growth in recent years. Since 2023, Kaukauna has added over 162 acres of land, issued 205 single-family home permits, and welcomed the construction of a 180-unit apartment structure in Commerce Crossing. This, combined with its industrial growth, makes the City of Kaukauna one of the fastest growing cities in the Fox Valley.
As the HR Director, Hodge is responsible for managing the city’s human resources, labor relations, safety activities, and ensuring compliance with state and federal laws and regulations. This includes managing employee pay, benefits programs, and recruiting and onboarding new staff members.
“There’s a lot of opportunity for employees to grow in their careers here at the city,” said Hodge. “This is an organization that works to empower their teams and has a vision to strengthen the services they offer their community. I’m looking forward to being a part of it.”
Hodge has a bachelor’s degree in business management and is a certified human resources professional by both the Society of Human Resources and the HR Certification Institute. She has worked in human resource management for several well-known businesses such as Bemis Company and Kohler Company. Most recently, Hodge was the HR Programs Director for the national retailer Batteries Plus.
“Elisa is a very skilled HR professional. Since starting in August, she’s already helped several departments become fully staffed,” said Mayor Tony Penterman. “With the speed at which we’re growing as a city, we need our staffing efforts to keep up so we can provide top-tier programs, services, and resources to our community. Elisa will be key to our success.”
