Chief Human Resources Officer

Reports to: CEO 

Department: Administration

Classification: Full-Time, Exempt

Supervises: HR Director, HR Specialists, Coordinators, and Generalists

Position Summary

Guided by the corporate mission, vision, and values, the Chief Human Resource Officer (CHRO) serves as the organization’s strategic people leader and trusted advisor to executive leadership. This role is responsible for designing and executing comprehensive talent strategies that attract, develop, and retain high-performing employees across all locations. The CHRO drives organizational culture, employee engagement, and leadership development to ensure the company continues to deliver the highest quality care to the communities we serve.

The position oversees all aspects of human resources and payroll operations, including total rewards, compliance, and risk management, while partnering closely with Finance on benefits cost management and pension oversight. This is a hands-on leadership role that blends strategic vision with operational excellence in a mission-driven, non-profit healthcare environment.

Essential Functions

• Develop and lead the execution of a forward-looking talent strategy focused on recruitment, retention, and succession planning to support high-quality clinical and support services.

• Travel regularly to multiple agency locations and external events (job fairs, community partnerships, etc.) to build relationships and support HR initiatives.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership & Organizational Development

• Partner with the Executive Leadership Team on succession planning, change management, and organizational effectiveness initiatives.

• Design, implement, and continuously improve the Leadership Development Training program with measurable outcomes.

• Champion diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging initiatives that reflect the communities we serve.

• Foster a positive, strength-based, mission-driven culture that supports employee well-being and high performance.

Talent Acquisition & Retention

• Lead full-cycle recruitment strategies, including candidate sourcing, interviewing, and selection processes.

• Maintain and grow a strong online and social-media presence to attract top talent and build relationships with recruiting partners, colleges, and professional networks.

• Track recruitment metrics and implement innovative approaches to reduce time-to-fill, especially for clinical and hard-to-fill roles.

Total Rewards & Employee Experience

• Administer and continuously optimize employee health, welfare, and pension plans, including open enrollment coordination and ongoing communication.

• Act as the primary liaison between employees and benefit providers; resolve complex benefit issues and ensure positive employee relations.

• Partner with the Finance Department to reconcile benefit billing, identify cost-saving opportunities, and ensure fiscal responsibility.

Compliance, Risk Management & HR Operations

• Ensure full compliance with all federal, state, and local employment laws (DOL, ACA, I-9, W-2, background checks, etc.).

• Maintain accurate employee records, HRIS/ATS databases, and payroll systems.

• Conduct routine audits of payroll, benefits, and HR programs; recommend and implement corrective actions.

• Oversee the processing of employee terminations and support performance review processes.

• Identify and implement expense-reduction and cost-savings measures in benefits and recruitment.

• Compile and analyze HR data for monthly/quarterly reporting and executive decision-making.

• Stay current on labor laws and proactively advise leadership on compliance matters.

Team Leadership

• Provide direct supervision, coaching, and professional development to the HR Director and full HR team.

• Train all new direct reports and foster a high-performing, collaborative HR department.

Additional Duties

• Represent HR on internal committees (Staff Development, Wellness, and others).

• Communicate suggestions, concerns, or issues to supervisor in a timely and professional manner.

• Perform other duties as assigned by executive leadership.

What Success Looks Like

.  Increased effectiveness of employee development programs and training, succession planning

.  Increased employee retention rates

.  Reduced employment compliance risk

.  Enhance cultural parameters – authentic conversations, empowerment, job satisfaction

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Management, or a closely related field required.

• Master’s degree in Human Resources, Management, or related field strongly preferred.

• Minimum of 10+years of progressive HR experience, including at least 5 years in a leadership/supervisory capacity.

• Experience in non-profit and/or healthcare field strongly preferred.

• SPHR, SHRM-SCP, or equivalent senior-level HR certification strongly preferred.

• Demonstrated experience with payroll, benefits administration (including pension plans), and full-cycle recruitment.

• Valid New York State Driver’s License and willingness/ability to travel to multiple organization sites, in upstate NY.

Required Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills with the ability to influence and build relationships at all levels.

• Proven ability to work effectively with culturally diverse staff, community partners, and external agencies.

• Strong problem-solving, multi-tasking, and time-management skills; ability to remain calm and decisive under pressure.

• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) and modern HRIS/ATS platforms.

• Commitment to confidentiality, ethical practice, and a strength-based, customer-service approach to employee relations.

• Passion for the mission and a genuine desire to support the people who deliver care and services.

Please send resume in the strictest of confidence to View email address on click.appcast.io