"Executive Director, Strategic Initiatives"

Job Description

The Executive Director, Strategic Initiatives reports to the Vice President of Human Resources (VPHR) and serves as a high-trust advisor, operational strategist, and integral member of the Human Resources Senior Leadership Team (SLT). The Executive Director ensures the VPHR's attention remains focused on the most strategic priorities by anticipating needs, resolving issues, and enabling effective decision-making. Operating with significant autonomy, discretion, and emotional intelligence, the Executive Director will help to align organizational messaging and ensure effective communication of the organization's services and programs to the community, while managing a wide variety of operational, administrative, and communications matters.

About the Role

The Executive Director will engage with internal and external community members, including faculty, staff, students, senior University leaders, and industry HR professionals to help drive HR priorities and goals across a complex, decentralized institution. Within HR, the Executive Director will serve as a thought partner to other HR leaders and employees and foster a culture of excellence in stakeholder engagement.

Key Outcomes

• Execution Excellence: Translate strategy into coordinated action by connecting workstreams, tracking progress, and ensuring follow-through on institutional goals.
• Operational Triage: Identify and address emerging issues or misalignments across the HR division before they escalate, enabling the VPHR to stay focused on high-impact work.
• Leadership Continuity: Serve as a trusted delegate for the VPHR, empowered to make decisions, resolve issues, and may represent the VPHR's voice and intent in meetings and communications.
• Stakeholder Engagement: Build trust-based relationships with diverse stakeholders through political acumen, high emotional intelligence, effective communication strategies, and consistent delivery.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Communications

• Ensure consistency and accuracy in the approach and distribution of HR communications.
• Prepare the VPHR for high-stakes engagements with concise briefings, decision points, and key messages, and coordinate internal and external communications from the office of the VPHR.
• Supervise HR communications team to guide the development of an HR communications strategy, ensure a thoughtful and comprehensive approach to communications to support the Penn HR brand, and coordinate with other members of the HR leadership team to ensure consistent messaging to all constituents.
• Develop/maintain a multi-year plan to ensure HR communications are aligned with the HR brand and provide the appropriate level of support to key HR initiatives and HR functional areas.
• Manage the VPHR Stakeholder Engagement Plan and ensure proactive, authentic engagement.

Strategic Leadership

• Serve as a strategic thought partner to the VPHR in shaping HR priorities and plans, and may represent the VPHR at meetings, making informed decisions aligned with the VPHR's goals and values.
• Act as an "honest broker," providing objective analysis and multiple perspectives on complex issues.
• Proactively identify critical issues for the VPHR's review, while independently managing day-to-day challenges as they emerge with appropriate tact and diplomacy in highly sensitive and confidential matters.
• Support the development and implementation of a strategic plan for Penn HR.
• Partner with HR functional areas and project teams/workstreams to develop and implement strategy, deliver tactical results, provide data and critical analysis, and develop and deliver executive summaries and briefings to the VPHR.
• Model and encourage cross-team collaboration, fostering productive and collaborative relationships between key internal customers and Penn HR.
• Work closely with other University leaders and staff supporting senior leadership to ensure coordination and alignment of the University's strategic priorities.
• Advise on reputational, relational, and political risks.

Workforce Strategy & Organizational Development

• Stay abreast of relevant industry trends and participate in leading practices discussions with national peer groups. Identify opportunities to highlight Penn HR activities locally, regionally, and nationally.
• Assist the VPHR in determining and managing top priorities to maximize the efficiency and effectiveness of their work, meeting regularly to establish the key priorities for the week, semester, and year to set the calendar of events.
• May lead major cross-functional and cross-school strategic initiatives, as assigned by the VPHR.
• Work with the VPHR and SLT on planning, policy development, and problem resolution; ensure implementation plans are effectively developed, communicated, and executed.
• Work with SLT to ensure appropriate follow-up and tracking of business and the execution of a wide range of projects consistent with Penn HR's priorities.

Stakeholder Relationship Management

• Maintain strong relationships with senior leaders, faculty, staff, and external partners.
• Serve as liaison for stakeholder concerns, resolving issues with diplomacy and pragmatism.
• May represent the VPHR's perspective in politically sensitive or high-stakes discussions.

Staff Oversight

• Provide day-to-day direction and oversight to the VPHR Executive Assistant, project managers, and support staff.
• Work with the VPHR Executive Assistant to develop and manage the content and logistics of key activities and initiatives. This includes agenda development, initiative and decision tracking, efficient/productive meeting logistics, and ensuring follow-up on action items and hand-offs or delegation as needed.
• Provide coaching, performance feedback, and professional development opportunities.
• Assess staffing needs and lead hiring processes.
• Build office capacity through process improvement and a culture of high performance.

Qualifications Required

• Bachelor's degree in human resources, business administration, or related field.
• Minimum of 10 years of progressively responsible experience in operations, project management, or leadership roles.
• Strong business acumen with analytical, organizational, and communication skills.
• Knowledge of functional HR areas.
• Strong interpersonal, communication, and conflict-resolution skills.
• Proficiency in ERP systems (e.g., Workday) and data-informed decision-making.
• Ability to manage sensitive and confidential information with discretion.
• Proven ability to work collaboratively across diverse teams and stakeholders.

Preferred

• Master's degree in a related field.
• 10+ years of professional experience, ideally in higher education or similarly complex organizations.
• Experience leading transformation initiatives.

Pay Range

$164,500.00 - $230,500.00 Annual Rate