Joya Hayes has 19 years of experience in human resources, training and organizational development, community-based programming, policy & procedure development and executive level planning.  As Human Resources Director, she also represents the Human Resources department for all formal negotiations with the Austin Police Department, the Emergency Medical Services department, and the Austin Fire department. She previously worked in executive positions providing support for city managers in Texas and Virginia. She is also a member of the National Forum for Black Public Administrators, the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), the International Public Management Association for Human Resource Professionals (IPMA-HR), and a board member for the Austin Area Heritage Council and Child Incorporated. She received a master's degree in public administration from Texas State University and a bachelor’s degree in mass communications from Huston-Tillotson University.