Director of HR Business Partner

Job Description

Job Description

Description:

The Opportunity

Chemical Guys is a PE-backed (AEA Investors), $300M+ consumer automotive detailing brand headquartered in Torrance, CA, with approximately 270 employees across four entities: HQ/WHS, Detail Garage Stores, Fast5 Car Wash, and Auto Detailing Supplies. We are building our people function from the ground up under a first-ever CHRO, and this director-level role is one of the most consequential hires in that effort. 

As Director, HR Business Partner, you are the embedded strategic HR leader for Chemical Guys' core corporate functions: Sales, Marketing & Brand, Finance & Operations, and Information Technology. You own the people agenda for these client groups end to end, from employee relations and performance to retention and hiring quality. At the same time, you are the CHRO's primary builder and operator on the firmwide programs that will determine whether Chemical Guys' HR function scales with the business: our first compensation framework, a rebuilt onboarding experience, our first structured performance management process, and the cross-functional strategic projects the company needs to execute at the enterprise level. This is a director role built for someone who designs the program and then personally runs it. Beyond one direct report, you will not have a team to hand the hard parts to. You are still the one building most of this yourself. 

The right person for this role has operated at the director level or above in a mid-market or PE-backed company, has personally built and rolled out at least one major HR program from the ground up rather than simply administering one someone else designed, and is equally comfortable in a strategy conversation with the executive team and in the tactical work of writing the policy, running the calibration session, or fixing the process no one else owns.  

What you will do

Track 1 - HR Business Partner 

You are the senior-most embedded HR leader for four corporate functions. You know their businesses well enough to anticipate people problems before they surface, and you have the credibility and standing to push back with authority when something is not right, including with functional leaders more senior than you. 

Executive Partnership 

• Build trusted advisor relationships with the functional leaders of Sales, Marketing & Brand, Finance & Operations, and IT - understand their team dynamics, business goals, and talent gaps at depth 
• Advise on org design, role architecture, and spans of control as the business evolves, and bring independent recommendations, not just options 
• Surface and resolve people issues proactively - do not wait to be asked 
• Translate business strategy into people priorities for your client groups each quarter, and represent those priorities directly to functional leaders and the CHRO

Performance & Development 

• Lead the rollout of the new performance review process within your client groups, including calibration sessions and documentation 
• Coach managers on how to differentiate performance, have hard conversations, and build accountability 
• Identify high-potential employees within your portfolios and build development plans with their leaders 
• Partner with the CHRO to connect performance outcomes to compensation and succession decisions 

Employee Relations & Compliance 

• Own ER matters across your client groups: investigations, PIPs, accommodation requests, and separations - handled with speed, documentation, and legal soundness 
• Partner with employment counsel as needed; maintain working knowledge of California employment law 
• Ensure managers in your client groups are trained and consistent on policy and process 

Talent Acquisition Partnership 

• Directly manage the Recruiting Associate: set goals, coach performance, and hold the quality bar on day-to-day recruiting execution 
• Provide strategic direction for recruiting across your client groups and own the team's output 
• Own the final hiring recommendation for director-level and below roles in your client groups, partnering with the CHRO on VP-and-above decisions 
• Shape the hiring approach for senior roles: candidate profile, sourcing approach, interview structure, and offer recommendation 
• Partner with hiring managers to move requisitions efficiently without sacrificing quality 

Retention & Engagement 

• Run quarterly stay interviews across your client groups and synthesize insights for the CHRO and executive team 
• Proactively identify flight risks and work with leaders on targeted retention actions before people decide to leave 
• Monitor engagement signals and hold leaders accountable for acting on them 

Track 2 - Firmwide Program Support 

Beyond your client groups, you are the CHRO's primary execution partner and co-owner of the HR infrastructure Chemical Guys is building for all 270 employees across all four entities. The CHRO sets direction; you are accountable for making the programs real, on time, and adopted in the business. 

Compensation Framework Rollout 

• Support the rollout and adoption of Chemical Guys' first compensation philosophy, pay families, and pay bands across your client groups 
• Equip managers to hold credible comp conversations under the new structure 
• Support the annual comp review, merit cycle, and off-cycle adjustment process 
• Flag pay equity and band-fit issues that surface during rollout for CHRO review 

Onboarding Program Execution 

• Partner on the redesign of the onboarding experience and own its execution for the corporate population 
• Deliver a consistent 30-60-90 day experience for new hires in your client groups, including manager touchpoints and success milestones 
• Contribute to the manager onboarding toolkit and monitor 90-day retention and new hire engagement in your groups 

Performance Management Launch 

• Help launch Chemical Guys' first structured performance review cycle: rating framework, review cadence, calibration process, and manager training 
• Adapt goal-setting templates and KPI frameworks to your client groups 
• Train managers in your client groups to run effective reviews and meaningful performance conversations 

People & Culture Strategy Execution 

• Deeply understand the People & Culture Strategy and own execution of assigned workstreams - you should be able to represent any section of it credibly with your client groups and with the executive team 
• Take direct ownership of assigned strategy workstreams such as manager capability programs, engagement listening, or employer brand initiatives, managing them like a business owner: scope, timeline, budget, and outcome 
• Represent the HR function in cross-functional projects where people strategy is relevant, including initiatives with direct executive or board visibility 

Strategic & Cross-Functional Projects 

• Lead or co-lead CEO- and CHRO-sponsored initiatives that sit outside standard HR programs when people implications are central to the outcome 
• Bring structured project management discipline (scope, milestones, risk, communication) to multi-workstream initiatives with competing deadlines and executive visibility 
• Prepare materials and talking points for executive and board-level updates on assigned initiatives, in partnership with the CHRO 

Base salary range: $145,000 - $195,000, commensurate with experience and demonstrated scope of prior work. Target annual bonus of 20%. The right candidate will be compensated at the top of this range if they bring direct experience carrying comparable HRBP scope in a PE-backed or high-growth environment.

Department: HR

Reports To: CHRO

Direct Reports: 1

Job Type: Full Time

Location: Torrance, CA - Hybrid (4 days in-office)

Benefits: Medical, Dental, Vision, 401k match, voluntary Life and Disability insurance, FSA, PTO + 5 sick days, 6 holidays & employee discount.

Chemical Guys is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Qualifications:

Required

• 10+ years of progressive HR experience
• Minimum 5 years operating at the director level or equivalent scope
• Bachelor's degree
• Prior experience directly managing at least one direct report 
• Supported multiple client groups concurrently 
• Personally built and rolled out at least one major HR program from the ground up (comp, performance, or onboarding), not just administered one 
• Supported commercial / sales orgs 
• California employment law proficiency
• Strong ER and investigation fundamentals
• PE-backed or high-growth company experience

Preferred

• SHRM-CP/SCP or PHR/SPHR
• Experience with comp benchmarking tools and band design
• Familiarity with Paylocity or similar HRIS
• Bilingual English / Spanish
• Exposure to LMS platforms and rollout
• CPG, retail, or consumer brand background
• Experience presenting to executive teams, boards or PE ownership
• MBA or graduate HR degree