Director of HR & Culture

About SSWEF
Southern Service Workers Education Fund Inc. (SSWEF) is a worker organization building power with low-wage workers across the South. We organize alongside workers and community partners to advance economic justice. Our programs and campaigns combine deep organizing, worker leadership development, and community solidarity to win real improvements in workers’ lives while building a broader coalition in the South.

About the role - Director of HR & Culture
SSWEF is seeking an experienced Director of HR & Culture to serve as our sole internal people leader during a critical phase of organizational growth. Reporting directly to the Managing Director, this leader will bring our outsourced HR functions in-house, balancing technical compliance, benefits, and foundational policy with intentional culture-building and talent development. You will design scalable HR systems, clarify internal roles and responsibilities across a 30-person team, and ensure our staff and leadership are positioned to thrive as the organization expands.

Key Responsibilities

• Strategic Leadership & Organizational Design
  • Leadership Team Partnership: Serve as a core member of the Leadership Team, collaborating with executive leadership to align people strategy, workforce planning, and HR budgeting with organizational goals and multi-entity priorities.
  • Infrastructure & Transitions: Transition outsourced HR support into robust internal systems; design and maintain the scalable infrastructure needed for a growing team.
  • Culture & Values Alignment: Uphold and operationalize SSWEF’s commitment to justice and multiracial worker solidarity across all internal practices, policies, and staff interactions.
  • Workplace Culture & Belonging: Design and execute initiatives that strengthen employee morale, foster cross-team connection in a semi-remote environment, and cultivate a culture of continuous learning and mutual support.
• Talent Acquisition & Onboarding
  • Full-Lifecycle Recruiting: Lead end-to-end recruitment efforts across all departments, partnering with hiring managers to define staffing needs, scope clear job descriptions, and attract values-aligned talent.
  • New Teammember Onboarding: Build and manage an onboarding and orientation program that equips new hires with the tools, context, and relationships necessary to thrive from day one.
• Performance Management & Staff Development
  • Performance Systems: Design and lead a performance review framework, coaching managers on goal-setting, expectations, and consistent feedback.
  • Role Alignment & Retention: Facilitate 1:1 role reviews, workforce planning, and internal transitions to ensure staff are placed in roles matching their strengths with clear lanes of accountability.
  • Employee Relations & Resolution: Serve as the primary lead for internal conflict resolution and workplace investigations, ensuring fair, prompt, and documented outcomes while safeguarding organizational integrity.
• Systems & Compliance
  • PEO & Vendor Management: Act as the primary liaison to SSWEF’s PEO, managing platform administration, employee inquiries, and external vendor partnerships.
  • Compensation Strategy: Maintain and refine SSWEF’s compensation framework, benchmarking roles against North Carolina hubs and national nonprofit data.
  • Benefits Administration: Oversee staff benefits programs, including employer-paid healthcare and 401(k) plans, ensuring smooth enrollment and ongoing support.
  • Policy & Compliance: Establish, update, and enforce internal HR policies, employee handbooks, and compliance standards across all operating jurisdictions.

What You’ll Need

• HR Leadership & Experience: Proven track record in human resources management—ideally in a standalone or director-level capacity within a complex nonprofit, union, or movement environment.
• Strategic & Systems-Building Mindset: Ability to shift between high-level organizational planning and hands-on, operational systems building.
• Multi-Entity & PEO Familiarity: Working knowledge of the operational and compliance nuances involved in managing multi-entity structures and PEO relationships.
• Equity-Centered Practice: Demonstrated experience embedding racial equity and justice across HR systems, policies, and internal staff support.
• Compliance & Employment Law: Solid foundation in multi-state employment regulations, employee relations, and policy development.
• Clear, Adaptive Communication: Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to convey complex policies and build trust across a fully remote, multi-disciplinary team.

Who You Are:

• An Effective Collaborator. You've successfully worked across cultural lines on a dispersed team, and you have the ability to operate in complex situations. You can easily gain trust from team members and are known for supporting them to ensure they are set up for success. You're not afraid to ask questions.
• Flexible. You can manage a diverse set of team needs and aren't afraid to step outside your job description or comfort zone to help the team reach its goals. You're comfortable with shifting schedules and don't expect every day to go "as planned."
• Highly Ethical. You will be asked to make sensitive and critical judgment calls, and as such, you are known for your integrity; you take that reputation seriously. You always choose to make the right decision versus the easy decision. You know what information is sensitive, and you will protect it accordingly. 
• Equity-Driven. You have experience centering diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in organizational practices. You bring sensitivity to issues of privilege, class, and race and are dedicated to incorporating principles of social justice into decision-making and strategic initiatives.
• Creative & Self-teaching. You offer creative solutions and take the initiative to research solutions to challenges as they arise. Learning new tools and approaches is important to you, and you enjoy using new technology or platforms.

Compensation & Benefits
The starting compensation for this position is a non-negotiable annual salary of $110,000. We are not able to negotiate salary with anyone in order for us to ensure equity across all candidates.

Our comprehensive benefits package includes:

• 100% Employer-covered health, dental, and vision for individual and family. 
• 18 days of Paid Time Off (PTO) each calendar year  and winter breaks for collective rest and restoration.
• 401(k) with a 7% direct contribution and a 3% employer match of employee contributions.

Location & Schedule

• Office Location: This role is based at our Durham office (2634 Durham-Chapel Hill Blvd, Durham, NC 27707).
• In-Office Schedule: Monday through Thursday. Because the Director of People, Culture, and HR anchors team connection and organizational health, regular on-site presence is core to the role.
• Remote & Flexibility: Fridays are remote. We also understand that life requires flexibility; working from home occasionally to manage personal appointments, family needs, or unique circumstances is completely acceptable.

The Application Process
SSWEF has engaged Equitable Hiring Group to support this hiring process. To apply, please complete the short form to the right. 

Please submit your application by Thursday, September 17th. Our simple process makes it easy to apply early!

To ensure an equitable review, we ask that you remove the names of the schools you attended (both undergraduate and graduate) from your resume. Please retain the degree itself. For example, instead of "Greendale Community College - B.A. Economics," simply list "B.A. Economics."

This evaluation process will follow practices shown to reduce bias in decision-making and may be different from other application processes you have experienced.

The overall evaluation process will look to follow this anticipated timeline:

• Mid-September: Selected candidates will be asked to complete a short-answer questionnaire. 
• Late September: Selected candidates will participate in a video interview with SSWEF staff. 
• Late September: Selected candidates will be asked to complete a paid, timed trial project. 
• Late September: Selected candidates will participate in a video panel interview with multiple team members. 
• Early October: Finalist candidates will come for an in-person interview and tour our office. 
• Mid-October: Offer extended.
• Early November: Anticipated Start Date

If you have any questions about the opportunity, please email View email address on equitablehiringgroup.applytojob.com.