Senior HR Specialist

Job Description

Job Description:\n\nSenior HR Specialist\nCompany: Keystone CPALocation: Reno, Nevada – On-SiteReports To: Owner/CEO or Designated Firm LeaderSchedule: Full-TimeCompensation: $78,000–$95,000 annually, depending on experience \nAbout Keystone CPA \nAt Keystone CPA, we pride ourselves on delivering integrated service solutions that make a difference for our growing client base. Our services, including accounting, tax, wealth advisory, and business brokerage, are designed to create value for both our clients and our team. As Keystone continues to grow, we are building the people, processes, and infrastructure necessary to support a high-performing professional-services organization. \nPosition Summary \nKeystone CPA is seeking an experienced, highly organized Senior HR Generalist to own and execute the firm's day-to-day Human Resources and employee lifecycle functions. The role carries clear accountability for timely completion, accurate documentation, and a consistent employee experience. \nThis is a hands-on role for an HR professional who enjoys creating structure, solving problems, supporting employees and managers, and making sure important people processes actually get completed. \nThe Senior HR Generalist will serve as a primary resource for employee HR matters and will own or coordinate onboarding, employee relations, performance-management processes, HR systems, policies, benefits, leave, employee records, offboarding, compliance, workforce administration, incentive-program administration, and employee experience. \nA significant component of this position is ensuring that new employees are fully prepared to join Keystone.\nThis individual will work closely with firm leadership, managers, the Chief Recruiting Officer, employees, and Keystone's third-party technology, benefits, HR, and professional advisers. \nThe ideal candidate is comfortable working in a growing, entrepreneurial professional-services environment where priorities can move quickly and successful HR requires excellent judgment, attention to detail, personal accountability, and persistent follow-through. \nKey Responsibilities \nHR Operations & Employee Support \n\n Serve as a primary point of contact for employees regarding day-to-day HR questions and concerns. \n Maintain accurate employee records, personnel files, and HR documentation. \n Administer and maintain HR processes and employee information within Paylocity. \n Coordinate employment-status changes, compensation changes, promotions, transfers, and other employee updates. \n Maintain HR calendars and ensure required activities are completed on schedule. \n Develop and improve practical HR processes, checklists, templates, and documentation as the firm continues to grow. \n Coordinate with firm leadership, managers, and third-party providers to ensure HR responsibilities are completed accurately and timely. \n Ensure HR processes, communications, documentation, and employee support are consistently administered across on-site, hybrid, and remote employees. \n\nWorkforce Administration & People Metrics \n\n Maintain a current staffing roster, organizational chart, employment-status information, and position data needed for leadership workforce planning. \n Prepare a concise monthly people-operations dashboard covering headcount, turnover, open-position handoffs, onboarding status, performance-review completion, manager 1:1 completion, material leave or employee-relations items, and overdue HR actions. \n Maintain an HR action log with accountable owners, due dates, and escalation status for unresolved people matters that require follow-through. \n Administer and track approved employee incentive programs, including KPIs, scorecards, and bonus metrics, in coordination with leadership. \n\nNew-Hire Preboarding & Onboarding \nOnce a candidate accepts an offer and transitions from recruiting into employment, the Senior HR Generalist will take primary responsibility for coordinating the employee's preboarding and onboarding experience, including follow-through and verification of completion across responsible managers, vendors, and functional owners. \nResponsibilities include: \n\n Coordinate new-hire paperwork, employment documentation, and preboarding requirements. \n Confirm required background checks have successfully cleared through Keystone's third-party background-check provider and communicate clearance/status with appropriate hiring-team members. \n Maintain comprehensive onboarding checklists and track each new hire through completion. \n Prepare and review new-hire welcome letters and communications. \n Develop and coordinate a detailed two-week onboarding and training agenda for each new employee in partnership with managers and appropriate subject-matter experts. \n Coordinate with managers, IT, operations, and outside vendors to confirm first-day readiness and clear ownership of required onboarding items. \n Coordinate laptops and other technology with Keystone's third-party IT providers. \n Confirm new-hire Outlook/email accounts and appropriate system access have been created prior to the employee's start date. \n Add new employees to appropriate recurring meetings, team huddles, firmwide meetings, holiday calendars, and other organizational communications. \n Ensure each new employee receives Keystone's approved professional virtual meeting background. \n Obtain employee bios and professional headshots as required. \n Coordinate updates to employee profiles, corporate banners, website information, and applicable professional/social-media links. \n Prepare and send Keystone new-hire swag packages. \n Coordinate office-specific onboarding needs, including keycards, parking passes or instructions, office signage, workspace readiness, and other physical-access requirements. \n Facilitate the HR portions of new-hire orientation. \n Ensure required policies, acknowledgments, forms, and employment documentation are completed. \n Assist employees with completing benefits enrollment through Keystone's third-party benefits provider and follow up on outstanding enrollment requirements. \n Confirm each new employee's annual hourly/work schedule is properly established in CCH Axcess or other applicable scheduling software. \n Conduct or coordinate appropriate new-hire check-ins following the employee's start date. \n The Senior HR Generalist is responsible for coordinating onboarding readiness and ensuring completion but is not expected to personally provide technical accounting or tax training, perform specialized IT configuration, or assign client work. Managers, IT, operations, and other functional owners remain responsible for completing tasks within their areas. \n\nEmployee Relations \n\n Serve as an approachable and trusted HR resource for employees and managers. \n Receive and appropriately document employee concerns. \n Assist managers with employee communication and workplace issues. \n Conduct or coordinate employee-relations inquiries when appropriate. \n Recognize matters requiring escalation to firm leadership, outside HR consultants, or employment counsel. \n Maintain appropriate confidentiality and thorough documentation. \n Promote consistent application of firm policies and employment practices. \n\nPerformance Management \n\n Administer Keystone's performance-review process, including new-hire performance check-ins and scheduled firmwide reviews. \n Maintain review calendars, communicate deadlines, track to completion. \n Maintain required documentation. \n Support managers in documenting employee performance concerns. \n Coordinate Performance Improvement Plans and corrective-action documentation as directed by leadership. \n\nManagers remain responsible for evaluating, coaching, and managing the performance of their employees. HR owns the process, administration, documentation, and follow-through. \nManager & Employee 1:1 Process \n\n Establish and maintain a process for managers to conduct meaningful employee 1:1 conversations at least quarterly. \n Provide practical tools, reminders, and discussion guides where appropriate. \n Track completion and follow up with managers when conversations are overdue. \n Support managers in maintaining consistent communication, accountability, and engagement with remote and hybrid employees, including timely 1:1s and follow-up on performance or communication concerns. \n Identify recurring engagement, communication, development, performance, or retention themes and provide leadership. \n Provide a concise quarterly summary of material patterns and recommended follow-up. \n\nBenefits, Leave & Employee Administration \n\n Serve as a primary employee contact regarding benefits and HR programs. \n Coordinate PTO, sick leave, and other leave administration. \n Maintain accurate employee information within Keystone's HRIS. \n Coordinate with payroll, benefits brokers, insurance providers, and other third-party vendors. \n Support annual benefits enrollment and employee communications. \n\nPolicies & Compliance \n\n Maintain Keystone's employee handbook and HR policies. \n Assist leadership with consistent policy administration. \n Monitor required employment documentation and compliance activities. \n Coordinate required notices, acknowledgments, and HR documentation. \n Maintain appropriate records relating to background checks and other employment requirements. \n Work with outside HR advisers or employment counsel when legal guidance is appropriate. \n\nEmployee Experience & Retention \n\n Help create a professional, organized, and welcoming employee experience from offer acceptance through ongoing employment. Managers and functional owners remain accountable for the employee experience within their areas. \n Conduct appropriate ongoing employee and check-ins. \n Identify patterns affecting employee experience, engagement, and retention. \n Support managers in improving employee communication and engagement. \n Monitor for engagement, communication, inclusion, and retention issues that may disproportionately affect remote or hybrid employees and escalate recurring patterns to leadership. \n Coordinate practical employee-recognition and engagement initiatives. \n\nEmployee Transitions & Offboarding \n\n Coordinate employee departures and offboarding. \n Maintain required separation documentation and administrative records. \n Coordinate with IT, payroll, benefits providers, managers, and other stakeholders regarding employee departures. \n Ensure appropriate system-access, equipment-return, and administrative processes are initiated and completed. \n Conduct or coordinate exit interviews and capture meaningful feedback. \n Identify recurring themes or trends and incorporate material exit findings into the people-operations dashboard and leadership discussions. \n\nSenior HR Generalist owns: \nPreboarding, Background-Check Clearance. Onboarding Coordination, Employee HR Support , HR Systems, Benefits & Leave, Performance-Process Administration, Employee Relations, Policies & Compliance, Employee Experience, and Offboarding. \nThe two roles will communicate closely when information materially affects recruiting, onboarding, employee experience, or retention while maintaining clear ownership of their respective functions. \nSuccess Measures \nSuccess in this role will be measured by reliable execution and closure of core people processes, not simply activity volume. Key measures include: \n\n 100% of new hires are first-day ready, with required preboarding, access, documentation, schedules, and ownership items completed or escalated before the start date. \n 100% of scheduled performance reviews and required performance documentation are completed by established deadlines. \n At least 90% of required manager-employee 1:1 conversations are completed and tracked. \n Employee files, HRIS records, status changes, and required HR documentation are accurate and timely. \n\nThe Person We're Looking For \nThis role is best suited for someone who is practical, approachable, highly organized, confident, resourceful, and persistent. \nKeystone needs an HR professional who notices the details and closes the loop. If a new employee starts Monday, this person wants to know by Friday that the critical onboarding items are complete, responsible managers and vendors know what they own, and the employee knows what to expect on the first day. \nAt the same time, this individual must be comfortable handling the human side of HR—: supporting an employee with a concern, helping a manager navigate a difficult conversation, administering a performance-review cycle, maintaining confidentiality, and recognizing when a situation needs to be escalated. \nThis is not primarily a high-level strategic HR leadership position. It is a hands-on ownership role for an experienced HR professional who enjoys making an organization run better and ensuring employees have a professional, organized experience. \nCompensation \nKeystone CPA anticipates a base salary of $78,000–$95,000 annually, depending on experience, qualifications, and demonstrated ability to independently manage the responsibilities of the position. \nEqual Employment Opportunity \nKeystone CPA is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive workplace for all employees and applicants. Employment decisions are made based on qualifications, merit, and business needs, without regard to race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. Requirements\nQualifications \n\n Approximately 5+ years of progressive Human Resources experience, preferably as an HR Generalist, Senior HR Generalist, HR Business Partner, People Operations Generalist, or similar hands-on role. \n Experience supporting employees and managers within a small to midsized, growing organization. \n Experience working in a professional-services, accounting, financial-services, legal, consulting, or similarly deadline-driven professional environment is strongly preferred. \n Experience in a startup, entrepreneurial, or rapidly scaling organization is highly desirable. \n Experience with remote/hybrid environments. \n Demonstrated experience with employee relations and performance-management documentation. \n Experience owning or coordinating comprehensive new-hire onboarding and employee lifecycle processes. \n Working knowledge of employment practices and HR compliance. \n Experience working with HRIS and payroll platforms; Paylocity experience is strongly preferred. \n Experience coordinating with outside benefits, IT, payroll, background-check, and other vendors. \n Experience with CCH Axcess or other accounting/professional-services practice-management software is a plus. \n Strong written and verbal communication skills. \n Exceptional organization, documentation, attention to detail, and follow-through. \n Ability to manage multiple new