Director of HR Operations

Director of HR Operations

The Director of HR Operations will build and lead a scalable HR operations function that delivers consistent, responsive, and compliant support across the employee lifecycle. As a member of the HR Leadership Team, the incumbent will manage a team of HR Generalists and own employee performance, compliance, be a strategic partner to other HR Centers of Excellence (COEs) including Total Rewards, Learning, and Talent Acquisition. The role will also own HRIS strategy and governance, people metrics, executive and Board reporting, the strategic HR project portfolio, and the HR team budget. The ideal candidate is a builder and operator who can translate business priorities into practical and forward-looking systems, service standards, insights, and disciplined execution in a fast-paced, changing environment.

Location: Dallas, Texas or Toronto, Ontario

Reports to: Chief HR Officer

Key Relationships: Executive Leadership Team, Finance, Legal, IT, HR Business Partners, and HR Centers of Excellence

Direct Reports: HR Generalist Team, HR Manager, and HRIS Analyst

Primary Responsibilities

• Build, lead, coach, and develop a high-performing, modern HR operations team with clear roles, service standards, decision rights, and accountability.
• Design and launch an HR tools that leverage technology to support and provide answers to employees through disciplined intake, triage, escalation, and knowledge management.
• Own employee performance including employee-relations, investigations, manager guidance, documentation, escalation protocols, and trend analysis in partnership with Legal and the HR Business Partners.
• Lead HR compliance and policy administration, including required records, audits, controls, training, and consistent practices across applicable geographies.
• Own HRIS strategy, governance, data integrity, security, integrations, releases, vendors, and the roadmap for scalable employee and manager self-service.
• Establish HR metrics and dashboards that measure employee performance, workforce trends, operational effectiveness, risk, and progress against People priorities and do so in a way that is fully connected to Emburse's business strategy.
• Own and develop the HR Global Capabilities Center in India which will provide transactional support to the entire HR team and also support India team operations.
• Prepare clear, decision-oriented workforce reporting and insights for the executive team, Board of Directors, and other key stakeholders.
• Own the HR project portfolio and integrated plan from a strategic lens, aligning priorities, resources, dependencies, risks, milestones, and communications.
• Oversee the HR team budget and collaborate across the HR team on costs, spend, and forecast, in collaboration with the Finance & Accounting teams.
• Drive continuous improvement across employee-lifecycle processes through standardization, automation, AI-enabled workflows, change management, and strong cross-functional partnership.
• Partner closely with the HR COEs and HR Business Partners to provide guidance in key areas of expertise and to operationalize projects and programs across the enterprise.

Requirements & Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, or a related field.
• Seven or more years of progressive HR experience, including leadership of HR operations, shared services, or a comparable function.
• Demonstrated success building or scaling global HR operations, an HR help desk, or an employee-support center.
• Deep knowledge of employee relations, investigations, policy administration, employment compliance, and risk management.
• Experience owning an HRIS roadmap, data governance, integrations, security, reporting, and vendor management.
• Experience using UKG or other similar HRIS system required.
• Ability to define meaningful HR metrics and translate workforce data into concise executive and Board-level reporting.
• Strong program and portfolio-management experience, including prioritization, dependency management, and cross-functional execution.
• Financial acumen and experience managing budgets, forecasts, vendor contracts, and investment tradeoffs.
• Experience in a high-growth SaaS, technology, consulting, or Private Equity-backed environment preferred.
• Experience applying automation and AI to improve HR service delivery, data quality, employee experience, and productivity.

Characteristics & Attributes

• Builder's mindset with the ability to create structure, operating discipline, and scalable processes.
• Strategic operator who remains close to execution and follows through on commitments.
• Service-oriented leader with sound judgment who balances employee experience, business needs, and risk.
• Data-driven systems thinker and clear communicator who develops strong, accountable teams.