Vice President, People & Culture at Helen Keller International

• As we continue to grow and impact lives, we are seeking a dynamic and visionary Vice President of People & Culture to elevate employee performance and enhance overall career development and wellbeing. The Vice President of People & Culture will be a key leader in our organization, responsible for the workforce development and systems that deliver value for staff and our programs. This role is pivotal in enhancing the employee experience, developing talent management pathways, and promoting an inclusive, diverse, and empowering work environment.
• The Vice President will lead and guide others to strengthen our commitment to equity and inclusion and build organizational systems that promote learning, uplift our staff and develop our cadre of leaders. The Vice President will also build organizational alignment, processes, and capabilities to support all people functions of the organization. They create and drive our comprehensive plan to achieve strong People & Culture objectives and manage a team to evolve our human resource functions, celebrate our talent and nurture a caring, fun place to work. The Vice President, together with other leaders, will also build organization-wide commitment to employee engagement and a high-performing culture.

Functional Relationships

• The Vice President will report to the President & CEO at the start of their tenure and will work with the Executive Leadership Team as a consultant and advisor to design our organization of the future.
• The Vice-President will partner with the Executive Leadership Team to align People and Culture strategies with organizational goals and collaborate with country leaders to ensure that our global approach to the employee experience positions Helen Keller as a leader among international non-profits. They will be a key advisor to the CEO on people matters and maintain strong relationships across the organization, including with staff overseeing internal audit, safety and security and safeguarding.
• The Vice President will lead and mentor a dedicated team of HR professionals, fostering a culture of excellence and mutual support. They will build and maintain relationships with external experts in human resources to stay informed about best practices and innovations.
• The Vice President will work across the organization to create and nurture a people-centered culture where Helen Keller's commitment to the values of rigor, compassion, integrity and courage are integrated into all aspects of organizational operations. They will engage with the People & Culture Committee of the Board of Trustees to ensure oversight and governance of human resource functions, workforce planning and our organizational approach to the employee experience and the future of work.

Demonstrated experience and a successful track record of:

• Leading human resource planning, budgeting and workforce development; O leading and driving successful organizational change; evolving performance management approaches to align with strategic planning and competency-based frameworks; and leading teams to execute fundamental human resources functions.
• Demonstrated ability to effectively articulate decision points using relevant frameworks and data analysis
• A commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and experience implementing these concepts in a living, adapting organization.
• Ability to work effectively across cultures and with diverse groups as evidenced by excellent listening and communication skills, balanced and reasoned approaches to problems, ability to inspire trust and confidence, respect and understanding of backgrounds and cultures, and flexibility and openness to differing points of view.
• Knowledge of and experience in implementing change management initiatives using industry best practice to build trust and understanding among employees.
• The ability to make decisions in a dynamic environment, with an appreciation for how future needs may affect those decisions: a willingness to iterate a strategy and approach, with the ability to recognize the need to course-correct as necessary. Demonstrated understanding of the synergy between the programmatic, operational, and financial components of development initiatives.
• Knowledge of employee relations and a track record of supporting and evolving the full employee experience.
• Strong project management and communication skills with a track record of deploying them to execute organizational design and human resource strategy. Demonstrated ability to undertake high-level representation, including ability to make effective and persuasive speeches and presentations in English on complex topics to top management, public groups, and/or boards of directors.
• Excellent oral and written English required. Ability to read, analyze and interpret complex documents and to summarize information succinctly - both verbally and in writing-using an engaging style. French language skills are a strong advantage. Well-established and practiced organizational and planning skills.
• Lived experience working and living in the contexts where Helen Keller works strongly preferred.
• An ability to work in challenging and changing environments, to find solutions to emerging challenges, and maintain balance when under stress.
• Collaborative, flexible and solution oriented.
• Demonstrated knowledge of the application of information technology required to fulfill the job duties, such as HR Systems including Applicant Tracking Systems, Performance Management Systems, Learning & Development Systems and HRIS/payroll systems.
• Experience with the use of Artificial Intelligence applications to support human resources administration preferred.
• Ability and willingness to flex work hours to accommodate multiple time zones, as needed.