Director, People and Culture

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Director, People and Culture

Full Time Assignee Tree House Humane Society, Chicago, IL, US

8 days ago Requisition ID: 1049

Salary Range: $98,242.00 To $115,434.00 Annually

JOB TITLE:

Director, People & Culture

DEPARTMENT:

People

REPORTS TO:

Chief Executive Officer

SUPERVISES:

Volunteer Program Manager. Provides leadership and work product oversight to the Administrative Coordinator (dotted-line), HR contractors, consultants, and vendors as necessary to support organizational objectives and operational initiatives.

CLASSIFICATION:

Exempt

Full-Time

GRADE:

10

HOURS PER WEEK:

37.5

APPLICATION DEADLINE

Applications received by September 09 will be prioritized in our review. Applications received after that may be reviewed based on volume and need.

EFFECTIVE DATE:

10/01/2026

SUMMARY

The Director of People & Culture serves as Tree House's senior HR leader, owning the people function across the full employee and volunteer lifecycle — recruiting, onboarding, performance, and development. This role partners with the Chief Executive Officer and Tree House leaders to strengthen people practices and ensure Tree House attracts, develops, and retains the staff and volunteers who carry out its mission.

The Director leads the full range of HR functions from recruiting and employee relations to performance management, compensation, and compliance, while supervising the Volunteer Program Manager. This role will focus on creating systems that scale with the organization's growth and bring strategic ownership to building the infrastructure for our most important investment - our team.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Serve as the organization’s primary HR leader, owning the strategic direction of the people function and acting as the main point of contact for HR matters.
• Partner with the Chief Executive Officer and organizational leadership to align HR strategy, staffing plans, and people practices with organizational priorities and mission goals.
• Build and further HR infrastructure, policies, and practices that support compliance and a positive employee experience at Tree House.
• Lead organizational efforts related to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB), including recruiting outreach, community partnerships, and internal practices.
• Serve as a trusted resource and advisor to managers and staff on employee relations matters, exercising sound judgment and discretion in handling sensitive personnel issues.
• Lead and continuously improve the organization’s performance management cycle, including manager training, scheduling, and administration.
• Coach and support managers in delivering feedback, conducting reviews, and managing performance concerns.
• Investigate and help resolve employee relations issues, partnering with the Chief Executive Officer or Counsel as appropriate.
• Own the end-to-end recruiting and hiring process across Tree House’s full career spectrum, from entry-level frontline roles to senior leadership positions.
• Develop intentional, relationship-driven outreach and recruiting strategies tailored to different role types, with particular attention to building a diverse and qualified applicant pool.
• Partner with hiring managers on job postings, candidate screening, interview processes, and offer development.
• Oversee new hire onboarding to ensure a consistent, engaging, and welcoming experience for all new staff.

Compensation, Benefits & Compliance

• Serve as the point of contact and partner with Tree House’s PEO to administer employee benefits, including enrollment and staff communication.
• Administer compensation programs, including salary grade structures, benchmarking, and pay equity review.
• In partnership with PEO, ensure HR practices and personnel files comply with applicable federal, state, and local employment laws.
• Partner with the Administration department to proactively manage and optimize HR technology, including ADP, to streamline operations and improve data accuracy and reporting.
• Supervise and develop the Volunteer Program Manager, providing strategic direction, coaching, and support for the volunteer program.
• Help align volunteer program practices with broader people and culture strategy, ensuring a consistent and positive experience across both staff and volunteers.

Leadership & Administration

• Provide functional leadership and direction to the Administrative Coordinator on HR-related administrative tasks, including payroll processing, recruiting and onboarding support, and personnel file administration.
• Maintain confidentiality and exercise sound judgment in handling sensitive personnel, organizational, and compliance-related information.
• Perform other duties as assigned in support of organizational priorities.

QUALIFICATIONS

Personal Qualifications

• Commitment to the mission, values, and goals of Tree House Humane Society.
• Foster a collaborative, solutions-oriented, and service-focused work environment that supports accountability, continuous improvement, and organizational effectiveness.
• Maintain confidentiality and exercise sound judgment in handling sensitive personnel, organizational, and compliance-related information.
• Strong communication, interpersonal, relationship-building, project management, organizational, analytical, and problem-solving skills.
• Demonstrated ability to collaborate and drive change alongside executive leadership, staff, vendors, consultants, and external stakeholders.
• Curiosity and identification of new, novel, or underlying challenges.
• Confidence in managing and coaching peer and high-level stakeholders.

Professional Qualifications

• Demonstrated success managing human resources, people operations, or related functions.
• Experience implementing and knowledge of best practices for the full employee lifecycle, including recruiting, onboarding, performance management, employee relations, and compensation administration.
• Experience building or maturing HR infrastructure, policies, and practices in a growing organization.
• Experience supervising, coaching, or mentoring staff and/or volunteers.

Preferred Qualifications

Education

• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Organizational Leadership, Business Administration, Nonprofit Management, or a related field; or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Experience working or volunteering within a nonprofit organization.
• PHR, SPHR, SHRM-CP, or SHRM-SCP certification preferred.

Skills and Expertise

• Seven (7) or more years of progressively responsible experience in human resources, with experience leading recruiting, employee relations, performance management, and compliance.
• Experience with diverse, high-volume recruiting across a wide range of role types and career levels.
• A digital mindset and experience with HRIS platforms and effective HR technology systems, such as ADP.
• Experience supervising staff.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS AND WORK ENVIRONMENT

• This position routinely uses standard office equipment and technology, including computers, mobile devices, telephones, printers, scanners, audiovisual equipment, and related technology systems.
• Employee is regularly required to communicate effectively in person, by telephone, video conferencing, and through written communication.
• Regularly required to sit, stand, walk, bend, reach, and move throughout office, shelter, clinic, and facility environments.
• Must be able to occasionally lift, carry, and move equipment, supplies, and materials weighing up to 25 pounds.
• Work is performed in an office environment located within an active animal shelter and veterinary clinic setting. Exposure to animals, animal allergens, cleaning products, and moderate noise levels should be expected.
• Occasional local travel, evening meetings, and weekend work may be required to support Board meetings, organizational events, technology implementations, emergency situations, or operational priorities.
• Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the position.

COMPETENCIES

Aligns HR strategy, policies, and people practices with organizational priorities and mission goals. Identifies opportunities to improve consistency, compliance, and the employee experience. Supports organizational growth through thoughtful, scalable HR systems and practices.

Communication & Relationship Building

Builds strong working relationships with staff, volunteers, managers, and leadership. Communicates clearly and effectively, handling sensitive matters with discretion and care. Facilitates trust and collaboration across the organization.

Recruiting & Talent Strategy

Enthusiastically develops intentional, differentiated recruiting strategies across a wide range of roles and career levels. Builds a diverse, qualified applicant pool through proactive outreach and relationship-building.

People Leadership & Coaching

Supervises and develops staff with empathy and clarity. Models for and coaches managers on performance management, employee relations, and team development. Uses sound judgment to navigate complex personnel situations and support organizational success.

The above is intended to describe the general content of and requirements for the performance of this job. It is not to be construed as an exhaustive statement of duties, responsibilities, or physical requirements. Nothing in this job description restricts management’s right to assign or reassign duties and responsibilities to this job at any time. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Tree House Humane Society is an equal opportunity employer and seeks to employ qualified individuals based on individual merit. Tree House Humane Society does not discriminate against any individual with respect to the terms and conditions of employment based on that individual’s race, sex, age, religion, color, national origin, disability, genetic information, marital status, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, housing status, or any other non-merit factor protected under state, local, or federal laws. Equal Employment Opportunity applies to all personnel actions such as recruiting, hiring, compensation, benefits, promotions, training, transfer, termination, and opportunities for training. Tree House Humane Society is committed to a fair and equitable workplace where everyone is a respected and valued member of the team.