Skip to content

Associate Director - People Strategy

Strategic operator supporting the HR COO in designing and executing people programs, digital enablement, and analytics at a fast-growing financial services firm. Requires 8+ years combining strategy, program management, and operations experience.

150k – 200kNew York, NYPeople OpsOnsite8+ YOE

About the role

Responsibilities

COO Office & Strategic Support

  • Serve as a strategic thought partner to the HR COO – supporting priority-setting, decision framing, and managing cross-functional relationships.
  • Manage the operating cadence of the HR function: governance forums, leadership updates, board and executive committee materials, and cross-functional coordination.
  • Prepare high-quality strategy documents, executive presentations, and business cases that communicate people strategy to senior leadership.
  • Track the function’s strategic commitments, surface risks, and ensure initiatives are progressing against plan.

People Program Design & Execution

  • Partner with the People, Programs and Rewards COE to drive new people programs throughout the organization, from scoping and stakeholder alignment through build, launch, and measurement.
  • Own program management across HR’s cross-functional initiatives: build project plans, manage workstreams, surface risks early, and drive decisions across competing priorities.
  • Translate people strategy into operational reality – defining the processes, workflows, and enabling technologies needed to bring programs to life at scale.

Digital Enablement of HR Processes

  • Serve as the bridge between HR strategy and HR technology: partner with the People Systems Director and People Analytics to ensure new programs are digitally enabled, automated where possible, and built on reliable data.
  • Act as the product owner between HR business owners and technical teams – defining functional and process requirements, prioritizing enhancements, and ensuring solutions meet actual user needs.
  • Identify opportunities to eliminate manual processes, improve the employee and manager experience, and leverage the HR tech stack more effectively across the employee lifecycle.
  • Champion a "design once, scale everywhere" mindset: build programs and processes that hold up as the firm grows.

Insight & Analytics

  • Partner with People Analytics to synthesize workforce data into strategic insights that inform program design, headcount decisions, and executive reporting.
  • Build business cases for people programs using both quantitative evidence and qualitative input from stakeholders.
  • Develop a consistent point of view on workforce trends, org health, and the effectiveness of people programs, and bring recommendations to the HR COO and leadership team.
  • Monitor program outcomes and use data to drive continuous improvement across the people function.

Requirements

Experience

  • 8+ years of experience in a role that combines strategy, program management, and operations – management consulting, chief of staff, HR strategy, or people operations leadership in a high-growth or institutional environment.
  • Proven track record of designing and executing complex, cross-functional programs from concept to operational scale.
  • Experience operating at the intersection of HR and technology: product manager, HR systems owner, or digital transformation lead.
  • Financial services or high-growth technology experience strongly preferred.
  • Experience supporting senior executives and navigating complex, multi-stakeholder environments.

Analytical & Functional

  • Strong analytical skills – comfortable building business cases, synthesizing workforce data, and communicating insights clearly to executive audiences.
  • Structured problem-solver: able to take ambiguous mandates and turn them into clear project plans, process designs, and measurable deliverables.
  • Ability to define process and functional requirements and work effectively with technical teams (Engineering, Systems, Analytics).
  • Familiarity with the HR systems landscape and the employee lifecycle.
  • Proficiency in tools for program management, data analysis, and executive communication (Excel, PowerPoint, and project management platforms).

Mindset

  • Strategic operator: equally comfortable developing a multi-year people strategy framework and managing the day-to-day execution of a complex program.
  • High agency and ownership mentality.
  • Builder mentality: energized by creating structure, process, and systems where they don’t yet exist.
  • Commercial mindset, and intellectually curious about how organizations scale and how people programs drive business performance.

Compensation & Benefits

  • Base Salary Range: $150,000 - $200,000
  • Company equity
  • 401k matching
  • Gender neutral parental leave
  • Full medical, dental and vision insurance
  • In-office (4 days per week): lunch stipends, fully stocked kitchens, happy hours

Skills

Program ManagementStrategy DevelopmentStakeholder ManagementBusiness Case DevelopmentHr TechnologyPeople AnalyticsProcess DesignExecutive CommunicationCross-Functional CollaborationProject Management Tools

Similar roles

People Ops jobs

Senior Director, Compensation

Leads global compensation strategy, job architecture, and programs at scale for a SaaS company. Advises senior leaders on competitive pay, equity, and talent retention; requires 15+ years expertise in compensation, ideally SaaS.

151k – 297kAustin, TX +4People OpsHybrid15+ YOEHRISBenchmarking

Senior Director, HR Business Partnering

Partners with CRO and sales leadership to shape people strategies, organizational design, and talent development for global revenue growth. Leads a team of HRBPs, drives high-performance culture, and executes transformations using data insights. Requires 12+ years HR experience.

151k – 297kAtlanta, GA +14People OpsHybrid12+ YOEPeople AnalyticsTalent Management

Director of PeopleOps

Build and scale PeopleOps function for growing AI startup, managing HR systems like Rippling, compliance, employee engagement, and manager coaching. Requires 6+ years experience in high-growth SaaS, strategic operations, and in-office NYC presence.

137k – 185kNew York, NYPeople OpsOn-site6+ YOEHRISPayroll

Director, Talent Development

Lead talent development strategy and programs including onboarding, performance management, and manager enablement. Partner with leadership to align talent initiatives with business goals at a high-growth company.

165k – 200kUnited StatesPeople OpsRemote8+ YOEHRISOnboarding

Director, Benefits

Sets company-wide benefits strategy, oversees leave/PTO programs and compliance for 20k+ employees, manages self-insured plans and 401(k), leads a team of four, and drives AI/automation initiatives. Requires 10+ years benefits experience and deep compliance expertise.

175k – 195kLos Angeles, CAPeople OpsOn-site10+ YOEAdaAca