Chief People Officer - Americas

Company:

Oliver Wyman

Description:

We are seeking a talented individual to join our Human Capital team at Oliver Wyman, a Marsh business. This role will be based in New York City. This is a hybrid role that has a requirement of working at least three days a week in the office. 

As the Regional Chief People Officer (RCPO) for our Americas region, you will serve as a strategic advisor to the Americas Managing Partner and the Americas Leadership team, lead all regional Human Capital (HC) functions, drive the region's strategic people agenda, and be a member of the Global HC Leadership Team. The role requires an innovative, results-oriented, data-driven, and inclusive leader with a proven track record of building high-performing teams in professional services, advising senior executives, and translating strategy into action.

The RCPO will report jointly to the Global CPO and Americas Managing Partner, serve on the Americas Leadership Team, the Global HC Leadership Team, and the GLT HC Operating Committee, and collaborate closely with the region's Chief Operating Officer and Director of Finance. A core expectation is leading the firm's human and organizational response to AI — the ways it is reshaping how consulting work is done, how talent is developed and deployed, and how our culture must evolve to remain a destination for exceptional people.

We will count on you to:

• Develop and execute a forward-looking regional people strategy aligned to business objectives and explicitly responsive to AI's impact on the consulting workforce — including the skills and capabilities we recruit for, pyramid and leverage structures, the apprenticeship model, and talent mix decisions (consultants, specialists, contractors). Built in close partnership with global and regional leaders, grounded in data, and accompanied by clear KPIs.

• Shape and implement a modern, AI-enabled HC operating model, including:
  • Strategic business partnership — elevating HC as a commercially grounded advisory function that consistently advises and challenges the business on people topics across the region
  • A digital-first, AI-driven people service delivery model — automating administrative workflows, eliminating manual workarounds, and freeing HC capacity for higher-value strategic work
  • Clear governance around AI use in people decisions — recruiting, performance management, succession, and compensation — ensuring integrity of data informing senior leaders
  • Operational excellence in the basics (payroll, benefits, onboarding) and seamless collaboration across teams within HC and with other departments
• Lead the regional talent management and recruiting teams – directing Talent Managers and recruiters to deliver on the full talent lifecycle for the region's consulting, specialist, and support professional populations, including career development, staffing and deployment, and performance management, while ensuring the recruiting pipeline is strategically resourced and aligned to headcount and skill-mix priorities across markets.

• Lead the firm's human and organizational response to AI-enabled work — ensuring AI strengthens rather than erodes our culture and competitive advantage: assessing AI's impact on connection, belonging, and trust; defining how Oliver Wyman's culture and leadership norms must adapt as consulting work changes; evolving the apprenticeship and development model; and ensuring employees experience AI as something done with them, not to them.

• Steward the Partner and leadership pipeline — driving executive succession planning and Partner lifecycle management including development, performance, compensation, and accountability. Serve as a primary advisor to regional leadership on succession readiness, high-potential identification, and leadership bench strength across the business.

• Lead the regional HC team, including:

• • Managing a large and diverse group of HC professionals across all of the region's markets, holding the team to high standards for impact and excellence while prioritizing work-life sustainability

• • Upskilling the team for an AI-enabled environment — building business acumen, strategic thought leadership, data fluency, and AI literacy across all HC functions

• • Breaking down silos, upholding Oliver Wyman's Values, and role modeling the mindsets and behaviors we want all colleagues to espouse

• • Managing a multi-million-dollar budget and overseeing annual strategic planning, forecasting, and budgeting for the regional HC function

• Serve as the strategic voice of Americas HC — acting as trusted business partner, advisor, and challenger to regional leadership; providing thought leadership in key governance forums (Human Capital Leadership Team, Americas Operating Committee, Regional Talent Council); advising on workforce planning, hiring, promotions, exits, and complex employee relations matters; communicating regularly with colleagues about the talent strategy; and representing Oliver Wyman externally to strengthen our employer brand.

What you need to have:

• Commercial and strategic mindset: Proven ability to partner directly with senior business leaders — including Managing Partners and Operating Committee members — on people strategy as a driver of commercial outcomes, not just HC delivery. Exceptional ability to shape, influence and drive strategic initiatives at the executive level in a highly matrixed organization.

• Cross-functional HC expertise: Deep understanding of all HC functions — talent acquisition and management, learning and development, compensation and benefits, employee relations, inclusion and culture, and HC operations.

• AI workforce strategy and future talent design: Growing ability to translate AI's impact on work into concrete talent decisions — including pyramid and leverage redesign, capability architecture, skills evolution, and talent mix choices. Fluency with AI tools and their people implications is essential; engineering expertise is not required.

• Partner lifecycle and executive succession: Significant experience managing the full Partner or senior executive lifecycle — performance, compensation, development, succession planning, and accountability — in a partnership-based or professional services environment.

• Data and analytics leadership: Ability to build people analytics as a strategic, real-time capability in partnership with OW's Data Analytics teams. Comfort defining governance around AI use in talent decisions and ensuring integrity of data informing senior leader choices.

• Change management and operational expertise: Significant experience leading large-scale organizational transformation, operating model design, culture change, and process improvement — with the ability to translate strategy into action and roll up sleeves when required.

• Professional services background: Experience in the professional services sector, ideally in consulting, is strongly preferred. Should have meaningful understanding of how top-tier firms approach HC-related issues and/or a strong network of HC peers at peer organizations.

• Cross-functional relationship building & collaborative mindset: Proven ability to foster relationships across roles, seniority levels, and geographies (cross-cultural experience is a must); expertise in navigating complex stakeholder interests while keeping firm-wide strategy at the forefront.

• People-centered, high-impact leadership: Proven track record of caring passionately about people and their development; ability to galvanize and unite teams toward clear outcomes; genuine role model for our values with high emotional intelligence, authenticity, and empathy.

What makes you stand out:

• A clear, aligned, and forward-looking people strategy that supports business performance and firm priorities
• Strong leadership depth and succession readiness across the Americas Leadership Team, partner population, and critical roles
• A workforce prepared for future capability needs, market change, and evolving client demands
• A culture that consistently reinforces performance excellence, accountability, inclusion, and colleague engagement
• A trusted, high-impact human capital function that operates with efficiency, clarity, and enterprise credibility
• Strong partnership with Marsh enterprise leaders and Centers of Excellence

Why join our team: 

• We help you be your best through professional development opportunities, interesting work and supportive leaders

• We foster a vibrant and inclusive culture where you can work with talented colleagues to create new solutions and have an impact on colleagues, clients and communities

• Our scale enables us to provide a range of career opportunities, as well as benefits and rewards to enhance your well-being

The applicable base salary range for this role is $300,000 to $350,000.

The base pay offered will be determined on factors such as experience, skills, training, location, certifications, education, and any applicable minimum wage requirements. Decisions will be determined on a case-by-case basis. In addition to the base salary, this position may be eligible for performance-based incentives.

We are excited to offer a competitive total rewards package which includes health and welfare benefits, tuition assistance, 401K savings and other retirement programs as well as employee assistance programs.

Oliver Wyman is a business of Marsh (NYSE: MRSH), a global leader in risk, reinsurance and capital, people and investments, and management consulting, advising clients in 130 countries. With annual revenue of over $27 billion and more than 95,000 colleagues, Marsh helps build the confidence to thrive through the power of perspective. For more information, visit oliverwyman.com, or follow us on LinkedIn and X. Marsh is committed to embracing a diverse, inclusive and flexible work environment. We aim to attract and retain the best people and embrace diversity of age background, disability, ethnic origin, family duties, gender orientation or expression, marital status, nationality, parental status, personal or social status, political affiliation, race, religion and beliefs, sex/gender, sexual orientation or expression, skin color, veteran status (including protected veterans), or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. If you have a need that requires accommodation, please let us know by contacting [email protected] is committed to hybrid work, which includes the flexibility of working remotely and the collaboration, connections and professional development benefits of working together in the office. All Marsh colleagues are expected to be in their local office or working onsite with clients at least three days per week. Office-based teams will identify at least one “anchor day” per week on which their full team will be together in person.