Human Resources Director
Pure Earth seeks a dynamic, experienced and entrepreneurial professional to serve as its Human Resources Director and lead the organization’s efforts to recruit, assess, grow, and retain high performing, diverse talent and foster an equitable and positive organizational culture. This position is a member of the Executive Management and Program Leadership Teams.
ABOUT PURE EARTH
Pure Earth is a leading international not-for-profit organization dedicated to solving pollution problems that affect public health (www.pureearth.org). The organization focuses on reducing exposures to toxic chemical pollutants resulting from industrial, commercial, or informal/artisanal activities. Pure Earth identifies and cleans up severely polluted places, advises governments and development agencies on related issues, and conducts groundbreaking research on pollution and its devastating impacts on public health and economic development. In addition to our field work, Pure Earth recently spearheaded two landmark reports that have advanced the global dialogue around pollution: a joint report with UNICEF on children’s exposures to lead titled The Toxic Truth: Children’s Exposure to Lead Pollution Undermines a Generation of Future Potential; and the Lancet Commission on Pollution and Health – one of the most cited works from the world-renowned medical journal, The Lancet. Pure Earth recently completed a 10-year strategic plan to assess how the organization can have maximum impact in the next decade. Key recommendations include focusing on lead and mercury pollution in a select number of countries and building the capacity of those country offices. To that end, Pure Earth is launching a five-year, $40 million campaign, Project R.E.A.L.M.E., which will impact more than 100 million children in 12 countries, and will double the annual operating budget. The Human Resources Director will play an integral role to ensure a smooth and sustainable expansion of both the headquarters and country offices.
POSITION SCOPE
The ideal candidate will bring 5 or more years of experience leading human resources-related functions serving domestic and international staff, including in talent management, recruitment, compensation and benefits, and organizational development improvement practices. An understanding of the opportunities and challenges inherent to an ambitious and growing organization is critical. The selected candidate will demonstrate both a commitment to building and maintaining an inclusive organizational culture in a dynamic environment and the ability to coach, mentor and advise colleagues on best in class talent management and employment engagement practices. This role is both strategic and tactical and supports all Pure Earth’s employees.
The Human Resource Director leads and guides HR operations and strategy for hiring, training, and retaining talent that will support Pure Earth’s mission, values and strategy. The Director is responsible for building the employee experience; performance management and professional development; and evaluating, setting, and enforcing HR policies, procedures and best practices globally. With the support of the executive team, the HR Director will foster a workplace environment and culture of diversity, equity and inclusivity
The Human Resources Director will report directly to the CEO and can expect to engage in the following responsibilities, all of which require balanced consideration of headquarters and international field office relations.
JOB RESPONSIBILITIES
Employee Relations
The Human Resources Director will act as the main point of contact for staff on HR-related issues. S/he will provide counseling and coaching to managers and employees regarding day-to-day interactions and interpretation of HR-related policies, processes and practices. Additionally, s/he will partner with Pure Earth’s retained professional employer organization (PEO) to administer benefits and other programs, and legal counsel to remediate problems that arise. Pure Earth’s goal is to make each employee’s interactions with Human Resources as smooth, seamless and caring as possible.
Talent Management
The Human Resources Director will lead the assessment and continued development of practices, processes, policies, and systems to support best practices in management, recruitment, employee well-being, etc. Work in partnership with senior colleagues to strengthen a culture of feedback and learning and collaborate with other departments to coordinate staff development agendas and training. Coordinate and design professional development opportunities, management training, and other skill building and education activities. Facilitate a best-in-class performance management and review process for the organization. Oversee the design, implementation, and evaluation of a comprehensive staff learning and development curriculum for every level within the organization.
Recruitment
The Human Resources Director will oversee an effective recruitment and onboarding process with a focus on diversity and inclusion that consistently identifies and secures talented individuals committed to the organization’s mission and core values and successfully integrates new employees. Evaluate and introduce improvements to processes and procedures along the employee life cycle from recruitment to onboarding, and train and support hiring managers and hiring teams throughout the recruiting and interview process to ensure a diverse candidate pool, equitable hiring practices, and consistency across the organization. Review and enhance Pure Earth’s performance management process, ensuring fair and timely performance assessments for all staff as well as the integration of the performance management process with unit work plans, the Pure Earth strategic plan, and its compensation structure.
Organizational Culture
In collaboration with the Executive team, the Human Resources Director will keep an ongoing focus on an organizational culture that ensures a safe, diverse, inclusive and professionally rewarding environment. Partner with senior staff to establish and cultivate policies, practices, and norms supporting that orientation. The Human Resources Director will also provide guidance on how to manage organizational change, associated with growth including rolling out new administrative systems and programmatic protocols.
Compensation and Benefits
The Human Resources Director will oversee the execution of a competitive and equitable compensation and benefits program, oversee compensation and promotion practices and philosophy to ensure salary benchmarking, transparency, and equity. Oversee employee benefits administration, including management of external vendor (payroll, PEO) relationships and performance. Track benefits trends and new developments, conduct and/or facilitate cost analysis, and ensure compliance with government regulations.
HR Administration
The Human Resources Director will:
• Maintain HR documentation and records, including processing onboarding and off-boarding paperwork, recording changes in job classifications, salary increases, etc.
• Own and manage internal HR policies and processes, such as paid time off, leave programs and compliance policies, etc.
• Oversee legal compliance with employment laws at a federal, state, and local level, from interpreting legislation and making internal recommendations to driving their implementation.
• Periodically review HR policies, manuals and handbooks and revise/update the Policies as appropriate.
• Oversee the consistent and compliant execution of contracts and payments for consultants, etc.
• Identify and handle employee relations issues quickly and decisively while exercising strong judgment and discretion and partnering with other stakeholders as appropriate.
• Manage all employee leaves, worker’s compensation claims, and unemployment claims.
QUALIFICATIONS
• Bachelor’s degree; 8-10 years of progressively responsive HR experience in a similarly complex organization, including a minimum of 3 years of experience at director level; PHR/SHRM-CP preferred.
• Experience supporting teams that span US and international offices.
• Experience working with organizations undergoing rapid expansion.
• Demonstrated success in fostering an inclusive, equitable working environment and creating diverse, high-performing teams.
• Knowledge of all aspects of HR including talent acquisition and retention, HR risk and compliance, performance management, compensation and benefits, employee relations, organizational development, workforce planning, employee learning and development, conflict resolution, coaching and facilitation.
• A high level of emotional intelligence and ability to thoughtfully and accurately assess and resolve employee relations matters.
• An understanding of, sensitivity to and respect for diverse racial, socio-economic, ethnic, academic, religious and cultural backgrounds as well as identities.
• A collaborative, collegial style and a proven track record and commitment to mentoring and coaching staff and building internal leadership. A management style that fosters respect, teamwork and innovative approaches.
• Highly organized and flexible; able to multi-task and manage a high-volume workload; excellent time management skills.
• Strong interpersonal and communications skills and the ability to understand and handle sensitive and confidential information.
• Excellent writing, analytical, and oral communication skills.
• Fluency in oral and written English required; additional languages are a plus.
• Position is based in New York City.
Salary commensurate with experience.
Candidates must possess authorization to work in the U.S.
EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYMENT
It is the policy of Pure Earth to provide equal opportunity for all qualified persons and not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, religion, sex, gender or gender identity, age, national origin, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation or any other protected status.
WORK ENVIRONMENT
This is a full-time position. Work is performed at a desk in an office environment, with the exception of travel. Pure Earth’s office is located at 475 Riverside Drive, Suite 860, New York City. Applicants must live in, or within commuting distance of the New York City office, or be willing to relocate at her or his own expense.
HOW TO APPLY
Please email a resume, cover letter, and writing sample as a single attachment to [email protected]. Do not apply through an online job aggregator, as such applications will not be reviewed. Please indicate “HR Director” in the subject line.
The start date is flexible based on the selected candidate’s availability. Applications will be reviewed and considered as received. Only candidates selected for interviews will be contacted. No phone calls will be accepted.