Compensation Overview

Title: People & Culture Business Partner, Professional Programs
Department: People & Culture
Report to: VP of People & Culture  
Compensation: $85,400-97,600
FLSA: Exempt

LOCATION/HOURS 

This is a full-time, hybrid position based out of our New York City office. It is expected that some duties will be performed on-site at least 2-days a week, and some remotely, with the understanding that government and public health guidelines will help determine the extent to which it is safe to carry out in-person and onsite activities.

All candidates must be within commutable distance of SEO’s offices at 55 Exchange Place, New York, NY 10005, upon hire.

ABOUT SEO 

For more than 60 years, SEO has created a more equitable society by closing the educational and career opportunity gap for ambitious Black, Hispanic/Latinx, and Native American young people. All are welcome to apply to our programs.  

POSITION OVERVIEW

The People & Culture Business Partner (PCBP) will collaborate with a multi-disciplined People & Culture team to support the assigned Professional program teams to create an optimal employee experience that attracts, develops, and retains talent in service of SEO’s mission, vision, and values. By cultivating strong, trusting internal client relationships and serving as strategic advisor and expert HR liaison to the Professional Program team leaders, the PCBP will help drive talent strategy and initiatives. Key responsibilities include consultation and support in talent management and development, total rewards, talent acquisition, DEIB, and employee relations.

In collaboration with the VP of People & Culture, the PCBP will also be responsible for devising and implementing the learning & development strategy for 400 person, and growing, national team. Moreover, the PBCP will partner with other operations teams and people leaders to develop, implement, communicate, and evaluate People & Culture initiatives based on critical needs.

RESPONSIBILITIES

HR Generalist and Business Partnership

• Employee Relations & HR Policies – Serve as primary point of contact for people managers in responding to ER concerns in a timely manner. Facilitate and mediate difficult conversations. Conduct ER investigations and make recommendations based on findings as needed. Escalate ER issues to Operations leadership and Professional program leadership as appropriate. Collaborate with People & Culture team leadership and Legal Counsel to address complex or highly sensitive ER issues. Maintain an expert understanding of the Employee Handbook and SEO policies to coach, guide, and support staff while holding all team members accountable for conduct and compliance.
• Performance & Development – Partner with the Professional program leadership and People & Culture colleagues to manage the performance and development review cycle and milestones throughout the year. Liaise between the people managers and People and Culture team to develop and deliver content for learning in support of organizational priorities, Professional program participant needs, and individual/team development.
• Compensation & Benefits – Partner with the Total Rewards team to execute annual compensation review with the Professional program leadership and perform ad hoc analyses throughout the year. Collaborate with the Total Rewards team to drive high participation in annual benefits open enrollment processes and connect staff to key resources.
• Recruitment, Onboarding & Retention – Support the Talent Acquisition team to ensure a conscious, deliberate approach to attracting and retaining top talent. Partner with the Talent Acquisition team to ensure that the selection processes (e.g., conducting interviews, supporting new hiring managers, etc.) and onboarding processes (e.g., ensuring timely submission of new hire paperwork, supporting New Hire Orientation, etc.) are implemented. Execute retention strategies to minimize attrition, particularly in the Professional program’s critical roles and specialty skillsets.
• Employee Engagement – Respond to employee engagement indicators in collaboration with People & Culture colleagues and work with the Professional program leadership to develop action plans to address areas of concern for staff. Communicate with staff regarding People & Culture initiatives and assist in the change management. Support employee recognition, milestones, and accolades for the Professional programs.
• HRIS and People Analytics -- Assist in the execution of periodic data integrity audits and HRIS data clean-up as well as the maintenance of accurate employee documents and databases for the Professional programs.
• Learning & Development – In collaboration with the VP of People & Culture, develop a learning and development strategy and support all L&D efforts across the organization. Track and leverage people analytics to evaluate and make recommendations for individual and team development across the organization. Provide expert thought leadership, partner with program and ops team leaders and People & Culture leadership team on learning strategies, emerging skills, competencies, and alignment across talent retention, talent attraction, and performance & development. Design and deliver training and toolkits, particularly for compliance, new hire onboarding, and first line manager development.
• Lead or participate in special projects or taskforces in support of Professional program needs and People & Culture team priorities.
• Cross-train and provide backup as well as thought partnership to different People & Culture centers of excellence (e.g., talent acquisition, total rewards, talent management and development, DEIB) as needed.

EDUCATION AND WORK EXPERIENCE

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent working experience. A master’s in Business, Human Resources, Organizational Psychology, Public Policy, or Education is preferred.
• Minimum 5 years in an HR Generalist, or 2 years in HR Business Partner role with evidence of progressive responsibility and autonomy. Direct experience within a nonprofit organization is desired.
• HR certification is required. Must have formal training and working knowledge of the current and changing labor laws and employment best practices within the United States, and experience conducting ER investigations and overseeing employees in NY and CA.
• Knowledge and experience with designing and executing DEIB practices that support employees of all identities, including but not limited to neurodiversity, disability status, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, religion, etc.
• Direct experience navigating and managing employee information in HR systems is required (we use Paylocity and Greenhouse!), as well as technical proficiency in MS Office, cloud-based applications like Box, and project management tools like Monday.com. Salesforce, HubSpot, chat platforms, and other employee communications and engagement tools are a plus.
• Strong analytical and reporting skills, including advanced Excel.
• Evidence of working within communities reflective of SEO’s participant population and the combined lived and learned experience to apply an inclusive lens to work and relationships.
  
  

COMPETENCIES & SKILLS

• Talent Management: A proven track record of leading teams to high performance. Must have well-developed people management skills with a keen ability to lead across difference and apply consultative skills to determine professional development needs for team members at every level.
• Change Management: Lead the people side of change by shepherding the change management process through facilitation, clear communication, and effective interventions to reach team and organizational objectives; react to and manage change over time.
• Passion: A deep connection to and curiosity for SEO’s mission, vision, and core values.
• Empathy & Inclusion: High emotional intelligence that centers inclusive leadership and collaboration, coupled with the combined lived and learned experiences to build authentic relationships effectively, and develop race- and culture-intentional people programs and processes.
• Communication: Expert written and extemporaneous communications skills. Must be comfortable addressing and engaging with diverse audiences through different mediums, including in-person, email, messaging, and phone calls.
• Judgment & Decision Making: Practiced skills in leveraging available information to make effective decisions with limited time while planning for contingencies and persisting towards solutions that best serve SEO’s people and programs. A reputation for soliciting feedback, taking accountability for errors, and internalizing constructive feedback for continuous reflection and improvement.
• Conflict Resolution: An ability to resolve disagreements that arise from differing perspectives, opinions, intentions, and facilitate difficult conversations to drive towards mutually agreeable and favorable outcomes for all parties.
• Project Management: An affinity for strategic planning with the ability to break down issues into component pieces, build project work plans, manage timelines, lead cross-functional working teams, evaluate for continuous improvement, and navigate ambiguity all along the way.
  
  

COMPENSATION & BENEFITS 

SEO offers a competitive compensation package and comprehensive benefits plan including low-cost health, vision, and dental options, a generous holiday schedule and PTO policies, disability coverage, fully paid time off for new parents, and employer contributions to health reimbursement and retirement accounts. We are constantly working to improve our benefits each year based on the needs of our employees. We value wellness and strive to consistently use a DEIB lens to put people first and foremost.

The compensation listed in this posting reflects what SEO believes it will pay for this position at the time of this posting. Consistent with applicable law, compensation will be determined based on the skills, qualifications, and experience of the applicant along with the requirements of the position, and SEO reserves the right to modify this pay range at any time. 

EEOC Policy

At SEO we are committed to cultivating a team that embodies the backgrounds and experiences of the constituencies we serve and the communities we live in, and a workplace that reflects the impact we make in the world. Candidates from all communities – including people of color, women, members of the LGBTQIA+ Community, veterans, and people with disabilities are strongly encouraged to apply.

Equal Employment Opportunity is not just the law, it is our commitment.

Sponsors for Educational Opportunity is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer – M/F/D/V. We will consider all qualified applicants for employment regardless of race, color, ethnicity, religion, sex, gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, age, marital status, veteran status, pregnancy, parental status, genetic information or characteristics, or any other legally protected status.

If you need accommodation while applying for a role with SEO, due to a disability, please email SEO Talent.