Director of U.S. People, Animal Protection Nonprofit

WHO WE ARE

The Humane League (THL) is a global nonprofit ending the abuse of animals raised for food. THL fosters a high-energy culture of teamwork and mission-driven problem solving, and we have earned recognition as Top Charity from Animal Charity Evaluators for all of their rating periods. Over the past few years, we’ve grown to a staff of 100+ talented individuals dispersed across the country and around the world. At THL, how animals are treated in the food system is at the forefront of our everyday work. As such, many of our staff are vegan by personal choice, and all of our THL-hosted events offer fully vegan menus. We welcome all mission-aligned candidates to apply, no matter where you are in your journey to end the abuse of animals raised for food.

YOUR OPPORTUNITY

The Humane League’s (THL) People team seeks a new Director of U.S. People. At THL we're dedicated to providing an exceptional employee experience, supporting our team seamlessly at every stage, striving to remove barriers, and equipping our organization with the tools needed to develop and flourish. We're seeking someone who shares our vision and commitment to a culture of excellence. The Director of U.S. People will be responsible for creating feedback loops and open communication channels between staff and leadership to foster a positive culture. They will lead effective initiatives and embed THL’s values into People policies and procedures. The Director of U.S. People is newly tailored to overcome previous challenges in the scope of the role (making it U.S. specific only) and it will be important to prioritize team building as a result of recent turnover. This position will work collaboratively with the Director of Global People. Join us in creating an inclusive workplace where everyone feels empowered to do their best work.

As Director of U.S. People, you will play a pivotal role in shaping and enhancing the workplace experience for THL’s U.S.-based employees, while ensuring compliance with applicable legal requirements, and fostering a culture consistent with THL’s values. The successful candidate must have experience leading a team of direct reports at a multi-state, national organization and will use that experience to lead our 6-person team. You also must have previously managed and mentored staff, and worked with external providers such as PEOs and benefits administrators to maximize the services they provide to your organization. You should enjoy leading a team to support the employment relationship, from recruitment to retention, and driving initiatives to optimize organizational performance and effectiveness. You will use your experience to oversee the design, development, implementation, and maintenance of THL’s policies, procedures, and initiatives to ensure the organization has a strong team that is well-trained, motivated, and productive. You should also be process-oriented, love to inspire change within an organization, and thrive in a dynamic setting.

This is a full-time, remote position, reporting directly to the Chief Operating Officer. This position may require domestic travel, equivalent to approximately 2-4 trips per year averaging a week in duration.

We will be holding a webinar on Tuesday, June 25th, 2024 at 5:00 pm PDT/6:00 pm MDT/7:00 pm CDT/8:00 pm EDT for you to find out more about the role and ask any questions you may have. The webinar will be hosted by Katie Scholer, Chief Operating Officer, LaKeisha Arndt, Talent Acquisition Manager, and Vicky Bond, President. If you’re interested, please register here. As a webinar, you’ll only be able to see the presenter and not others watching. The webinar will be recorded and available here on our careers page job posting by Wednesday, June 26th. If you register for the webinar, you will receive a copy of the recording once it's been completed. 

This position will close on Friday, July 12th, 2024 at 1:00pm PDT/2:00pm MDT/3:00pm CDT/4:00pm EDT. Late applications will not be accepted; if you are experiencing technical issues, please contact careers@thehumaneleague.org prior to the deadline. Please submit applications and all supporting documents in English. All application questions and materials need to be submitted here through the application submission below, we do not accept applications through our careers email.

CORE RESPONSIBILITIES

Your responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Build an effective U.S. people operation using your knowledge and experience of federal, state, and local legal requirements in the United States.

• Lead and inspire a team accountable for the U.S. employee experience throughout the employment relationship, by providing vision, leadership, coaching, training, and accountability.  

• Work in partnership with members of the People team to collect data to continue to enhance processes and propose ways to enhance staff experience.

• Serve as a trusted advisor and escalation point for complex issues, including compensation, benefits, performance management, and employee relations matters. 

• Provide guidance and support to managers and employees to resolve conflicts fairly and equitably.

• Lead performance management and performance improvement process. Collaborate with and train managers in performance-related systems and support managers to ensure THL has a high-performing staff.

• Collaborate with the relevant stakeholders to develop and maintain benchmarks for benefits and compensation. Work with the People team to evaluate existing benefits packages and make recommendations for enhancements to remain competitive in the talent market.

• Serve as the architect of THL’s talent pipeline by overseeing the attraction, retention, and development of talent while fostering employee engagement in all of these efforts. 

• Counsel, coach, and train THL leadership and management on people and culture matters to ensure we are thinking about our needs in an open-minded, inclusive way that will build and sustain a healthy and diverse organization. 

• In collaboration with the Legal team, and any potential PEO, ensure THL complies with federal, state, and local requirements, e.g., sick and family leave, OSHA, Title VII, wage and hour requirements, ERISA, etc.

• Collaborate with internal stakeholders to embed THL’s values into all aspects of Global and U.S. People operations, from recruitment to employee development to the end of the employee/employer relationship.

• Strategize and collaborate with cross-functional teams, including Finance, Legal, and IT, to align People Operations initiatives with broader organizational objectives and priorities.

• Identify opportunities to streamline People Operations processes and enhance operational efficiency. Implement best practices and tools to automate routine tasks, reduce administrative burden, and improve the overall employee experience. 

• Effectively manage their team’s budget to ensure optimal allocation of resources in support of organizational goals and priorities.

• Perform other duties as assigned.

REQUIRED SKILLS

• Minimum of 7+ years of progressive experience within a comprehensive people operations leadership role encompassing all facets of the human resource function including talent acquisition, learning and development, employee relations, performance management, compensation and benefits, employee engagement, and compliance, including experience with PEOs.

• Proven ability to lead, inspire, and develop teams, providing vision, coaching, training, and accountability to ensure high performance and engagement.

• Thorough understanding of federal, state, and local employment laws, EEO, OSHA, and other regulatory requirements. Ability to implement legal advice while ensuring compliance and confidentiality.

• Demonstrated expertise in navigating complex issues, identifying root causes, and developing effective solutions. Strong conflict resolution skills to address employee relations matters constructively. 

• Ability to think strategically and align initiatives with organizational goals and priorities, ensuring a holistic approach to talent management and development.

• A systems-based mindset with the ability to drive and manage change initiatives effectively, including process improvements, automation, and organizational transformations.

• Commitment to creating an inclusive and equitable workplace environment. Ability to embed THL’s values into all aspects of people operations.

• Excellent collaborative and interpersonal skills, with the ability to communicate effectively across diverse cultural and geographic contexts.

Once your application has been reviewed, you will be notified via email with further details on the status of your application. If a candidate is moved forward, the interview process will be as follows:

• Phone Interview (via phone call)

• Work Simulation Exercise (completed remotely)

• First Interview (via video call)

• Final Interview (via video call) 

• Reference Check

Each stage is expected to last a week or two on average. For full details of our recruitment process please review this document.

Compensation and Benefits

The compensation range for this role is $102,195 - $124,906 USD. At The Humane League, we believe in maintaining a fair and equitable work environment for all employees. As part of our commitment to transparency and equity, we recently implemented a job architecture framework, which levels all of our roles according to size and complexity, as well as a compensation step system, which allows us to account for an individual's total years of related experience when determining their compensation. In addition, we have adopted a no negotiation policy for salaries. To determine a job's level, we carefully consider a variety of factors, including a job's size and complexity, required experience, knowledge, and/or skills, internal comparability, and market data. To determine final compensation, experience will be measured by considering prior work in jobs or activities that are related to the role at THL. These new practices are aligned with our organizational values and will help us ensure we maintain clear, consistent, transparent, and equitable HR processes.

Employees enjoy full medical coverage, optional dental and vision packages, a 401(k) retirement plan, pet care & Rx discount plans, working from home, up to 16 weeks of paid parental leave for eligible employees, paid holidays, flexible vacation time, professional development, and the supportive environment at The Humane League!

Equal Employment Opportunity

The Humane League is committed to creating a diverse environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. Women, people of color, people with disabilities, and veterans are strongly encouraged to apply. In compliance with laws and in furtherance of our commitment to fostering an environment that welcomes and embraces diversity, all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, age, or veteran status.

Accommodations

The Humane League is committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities. We trust individuals to self-identify and ask for the accommodations they need. An example of an accommodation might be extra time to complete a work simulation exercise, among many others. If you need a reasonable accommodation because of a disability for any part of the employment process, please complete this form to let us know the nature of your request and your contact information.

AI Policy

We value original work and thought in the application process; with that being said, please refrain from using artificial intelligence to generate your responses. By submitting this application you agree to comply with this. Violations of this policy may result in being dismissed from the hiring process. If you need a reasonable accommodation to this policy, please see above for more information.