Senior Director, People Business Partner & Global Employee Relations

Senior Director, Human Resources Business Partner (HRBP) & Global Employee Relations

Guardant Health is a leading precision oncology company focused on guarding wellness and giving every person more time free from cancer. Founded in 2012, Guardant is transforming patient care and accelerating new cancer therapies by providing critical insights into what drives disease through its advanced blood and tissue tests, real-world data and AI analytics. Guardant tests help improve outcomes across all stages of care, including screening to find cancer early, monitoring for recurrence in early-stage cancer, and treatment selection for patients with advanced cancer.

We are seeking a strategic, business-oriented Senior Director, Human Resources Business Partner (HRBP) & Global Employee Relations to serve as a trusted advisor to senior leaders across Business Development, Finance, Legal, and Public Affairs. A key responsibility will be to lead the vision and global strategy of our Employee Relations function in partnership with our Employee Relations Director. This combined role will partner closely with centers of expertise to deliver people strategies that enable business growth, organizational effectiveness, and a purpose-driven, high-performance culture. The ideal candidate is a proactive, business minded HR leader who leads with curiosity, collaboration, agility and wise compassion. They possess a proven track record of aligning talent strategies with business priorities, and delivering measurable outcomes in workforce planning, talent management, organizational design, leadership development, and employee relations.

Reporting to our Chief People Officer, this leader will partner closely with executive stakeholders to anticipate business needs, shape workforce strategies, support AI-enabled tools, workforce readiness and change management across their client groups and be the global Employee Relations escalation point. They will lead a small employee relations team and partner closely with our Legal team and the entire People Business Partner community to ensure a consistent, compliant, proactive and employee-centered approach to employee relations across the enterprise.

Key Responsibilities

• Strategic HR Business Partnership: Serve as the primary People Business Partner to executive leaders across Business Development, Finance, Legal, and Public Affairs. Develop and execute people strategies that support business objectives, organizational growth, and operational excellence. Provide thought leadership and counsel on organizational effectiveness, change management, team design, leadership effectiveness, and talent optimization.
• Workforce Planning and Talent Management: Own the workforce planning rhythm for supported functions, facilitating regular reviews of organizational needs, headcount plans, hiring forecasts, workforce risks, and capability gaps. Partner with Talent Acquisition to convert workforce plans into executable recruiting strategies, providing visibility into future hiring demand, prioritization, and talent market considerations.
• Employee Relations Center of Excellence: Senior Leadership Partner with our Director of Employee Relations to continue to design scalable programs, processes, and practices that promote the best possible employee experience while proactively mitigating organizational risk. Provide strategic oversight and guidance on complex employee relations matters, workplace investigations, performance issues, policy interpretation, and conflict resolution.
• Change Management & Organizational Effectiveness: Lead organizational change initiatives including business transformations, acquisitions, integrations, and workforce transitions. Partner closely with business leaders to design and implement change management strategies that improve adoption, engagement, and business outcomes.
• Leadership & Collaboration: Partner effectively across People Team Centers of Excellence, including Talent Acquisition, Total Rewards, Organizational Effectiveness, and People Operations, as well as Legal partners. Lead, mentor, and develop employee relations and HR team members. Foster strong cross-functional relationships and influence outcomes across all levels of the organization.

Qualifications

Required Experience supporting C-level leadership and corporate functions such as Finance, Legal, Business Development, Public Affairs, Corporate Affairs, or similar executive organizations. Proven success leading complex global employee relations programs, managing sensitive workplace matters and ensuring a proactive measurable, approach to systemic issues. Demonstrated expertise leading enterprise workforce planning processes, including headcount forecasting, talent demand planning, organizational modeling, and alignment of workforce investments with business and financial objectives. Proven track record in accelerating business growth by driving strategic business outcomes through people strategies. Experience leading organizational design, restructuring, integration, and executive team effectiveness initiatives. Strong knowledge of employment law, HR compliance, and employee relations leading practices. 12+ years of progressive HR experience, including significant HR Business Partner leadership experience supporting senior executives/C-suite leadership. Experience leading teams and helping team members be the best they can be. Ability to travel at a rate of ~15% to support executive leadership, global employee relations initiatives, and key business meetings.

Preferred SPHR, SHRM-SCP, or equivalent certification. Experience in highly regulated, publicly traded, healthcare, biotechnology, life sciences, or technology organizations. Experience supporting global organizations and cross-functional executive leadership teams.

Critical Competencies

Exceptional business acumen and strategic thinking Executive presence and influencing skills Workforce planning and organizational effectiveness expertise Talent management and succession planning leadership Employee relations and risk management expertise Strong judgment and decision-making capability Change leadership and transformation management Data-driven problem solving and analytics Relationship building and stakeholder management Demonstrated curiosity, sound judgment, and the ability to critically evaluate and responsibly leverage AI-enabled tools in accordance with company policies, ethical standards, and regulatory requirements. AI & Digital Fluency Demonstrate curiosity, sound judgment, and the ability to critically evaluate and responsibly leverage AI-enabled tools in accordance with company policies, ethical standards, and regulatory requirements to improve the efficiency, effectiveness, and quality of work.