Director of HR Strategy & Operations

Department: People and Culture

Employment Type: Full Time

Location: Los Angeles HQ

Reporting To: Kim Seymour

Compensation: $150,000 - $170,000 / year

Description

Key Responsibilities

• Serve as a trusted strategic partner to the Chief People Officer and senior People leadership team, translating business objectives into clear, actionable HR priorities.
• Develop and execute an integrated People strategy roadmap with defined priorities, ownership, timelines, and measurable outcomes.
• Establish an effective operating cadence across the People organization, ensuring accountability, visibility, and follow-through on strategic initiatives.
• Partner with senior leadership on organizational design, resource allocation, workforce planning, and long-term People strategy.
• Identify operational challenges, competing priorities, and organizational risks, proactively recommending solutions.
• Prepare executive-level presentations, strategic recommendations, business cases, and materials for Board and leadership meetings.
• Support organizational changes, leadership transitions, business expansion, and other high-priority initiatives.

• Serve as a primary liaison between HR and Finance, ensuring alignment on workforce investments, financial planning, and headcount governance.
• Partner with Finance and FP&A to develop, manage, and monitor the People department's operating budget and broader workforce financial commitments.
• Oversee workforce budgeting, financial forecasting, and labor cost planning across corporate, retail, and international functions.
• Track actual workforce expenditures against approved budgets, identifying variances, financial risks, and opportunities for cost optimization.
• Develop comprehensive reporting on salary costs, benefits expenses, contractor spending, recruitment costs, and other people-related investments.
• Support annual budgeting, quarterly forecasting, and long-range workforce financial planning.
• Build financial models and scenario analyses to evaluate hiring investments, organizational changes, compensation adjustments, and resource allocation.
• Deliver regular executive reporting on workforce costs, budget performance, and key financial metrics.

• Partner closely with the VP of Global Talent, Finance, and business leaders to maintain a centralized and accurate global headcount tracker.
• Maintain visibility into all approved, open, filled, proposed, and backfill positions across the organization.
• Establish and manage consistent approval processes for new headcount, replacements, organizational changes, and incremental hiring requests.
• Monitor open requisitions, hiring progress, projected start dates, and associated compensation commitments.
• Reconcile approved headcount plans against HRIS data, recruiting activity, payroll records, organizational structures, and financial forecasts.
• Identify discrepancies between budgeted and actual headcount and proactively recommend corrective actions.
• Develop headcount reporting and scenario planning to support business expansion, hiring prioritization, and long-term workforce investments.
• Drive transparency, financial discipline, and accountability across the headcount approval process.

• Partner with Total Rewards, Finance, Legal, and external administrators to support the effective management of employee equity compensation programs.
• Coordinate equity planning cycles, grant recommendations, approvals, vesting schedules, and reporting requirements.
• Maintain accurate equity-related employee records and ensure alignment between HRIS, equity administration platforms, and Finance reporting.
• Support the preparation of equity allocation analyses, award histories, and executive decision materials.
• Establish clear governance, documentation, and approval processes to ensure equity awards are administered accurately and on schedule.
• Support employee equity communications and the ongoing administration of long-term incentive plans.
• Identify opportunities to improve and automate equity administration workflows, ideally leveraging Carta.

• Lead complex, cross-functional People initiatives from initial planning and stakeholder alignment through implementation and measurement.
• Develop project frameworks, timelines, milestones, and accountability measures to ensure successful delivery.
• Maintain oversight of the strategic HR project portfolio, managing dependencies, competing priorities, and execution risks.
• Partner with HR, Finance, Talent Acquisition, Legal, Technology, and business leadership to drive organizational initiatives.
• Support strategic workforce planning, organizational design, operational transformation, and new business initiatives.
• Establish scalable project management practices that improve efficiency and ensure measurable business outcomes.
• Drive change management, communication, and adoption of new processes and initiatives.

• Develop and continuously improve People dashboards, KPIs, and executive scorecards.
• Establish consistent reporting frameworks covering headcount, workforce costs, recruitment, retention, compensation, employee engagement, internal mobility, and organizational effectiveness.
• Translate complex workforce and financial data into meaningful insights and actionable business recommendations.
• Partner with Finance and HR leadership to establish consistent data definitions, validation processes, and reporting standards.
• Develop automated reporting processes that improve accuracy, efficiency, and accessibility.
• Prepare monthly, quarterly, and annual People business reviews, highlighting organizational performance, emerging trends, and opportunities for improvement.

• Evaluate and optimize HR technology, systems, and operational processes to support business growth.
• Partner with HRIS, IT, Finance, and other stakeholders to develop scalable reporting and workforce planning infrastructure.
• Identify opportunities to automate manual processes and implement technology-driven solutions that improve efficiency and accuracy.
• Establish standardized workflows, documentation, controls, and governance across HR operations.
• Support the implementation and adoption of new HR systems, planning tools, and reporting platforms.
• Ensure accurate, consistent, and reliable employee and workforce data across systems.

• Partner with the Chief People Officer and People leadership team to support initiatives that enhance employee experience, engagement, and organizational culture.
• Collaborate with Learning & Development on career progression frameworks, manager development, and employee growth initiatives.
• Analyze employee engagement data, workforce trends, and organizational feedback to identify improvement opportunities.
• Support initiatives that strengthen employee retention, internal mobility, community, and belonging.
• Ensure operational processes and People initiatives support both business performance and a positive employee experience.

• Establish appropriate controls and governance around workforce data, financial reporting, headcount approvals, and equity administration.
• Partner with Legal, Finance, and HR leadership to support compliance with relevant employment requirements and internal policies.
• Support HR compliance initiatives, including reporting related to leave management, accommodations, and employment obligations.
• Identify operational, financial, and compliance risks and recommend improvements.
• Maintain the highest levels of confidentiality and discretion when handling sensitive employee, compensation, equity, and business information.

Skills, Knowledge and Expertise

• Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Finance, Operations, or a related discipline.
• 8–10+ years of progressive experience in HR Operations, People Strategy, Business Operations, Finance, Management Consulting, or a related field.
• Demonstrated experience partnering with senior executives and driving complex, cross-functional initiatives.
• Strong financial acumen, with hands-on experience in budgeting, forecasting, workforce cost management, and financial reporting.
• Proven experience managing headcount planning, position control, workforce budgeting, and organizational reporting.
• Advanced Excel or Google Sheets skills, including financial modeling, scenario planning, data reconciliation, and complex reporting.
• Strong understanding of HR operations, organizational effectiveness, and employee lifecycle processes.
• Experience working closely with Finance, FP&A, Talent Acquisition, and executive leadership.
• Exceptional analytical capabilities and the ability to translate complex information into clear, actionable recommendations.
• Proven project management and change management experience in fast-paced, evolving environments.
• Experience developing executive presentations, business cases, and strategic reporting.
• Familiarity with HRIS, workforce planning, reporting, and project management systems.
• Excellent communication, stakeholder management, and organizational skills, with the ability to influence without direct authority.
• Strong judgment, discretion, attention to detail, and the ability to manage multiple priorities independently.
• Comfortable balancing strategic thinking with hands-on execution.

• SHRM-CP or SHRM-SCP certification.
• Experience within a high-growth, global consumer, fashion, retail, or apparel organization.
• Experience supporting both corporate and retail workforce planning across multiple markets.
• Experience with equity compensation programs, including grants, vesting schedules, equity reporting, and administration.
• Hands-on experience with Carta is strongly preferred.
• Familiarity with long-term incentive plans (LTIPs), stock options, restricted stock units (RSUs), or similar equity arrangements.
• Experience with HRIS platforms such as UKG, Workday, or SuccessFactors.
• Familiarity with Power BI, Tableau, Looker, or comparable reporting platforms.
• Experience implementing HR technology, workforce planning systems, or automated financial reporting solutions.
• Experience supporting international or multi-jurisdictional HR operations.

Benefits, Culture and Perks

• Up to 100% Company Paid Healthcare (medical, dental, vision) 
• Kind Body Fertility Benefits   
• 401(k) savings plan with up to 4% match 
• Unlimited PTO  
• Full Access to LinkedIn learning 
• Employee Discounts  

• Free weekly catered lunch at HQ – M/T/W/Th
• Dog-Friendly office on a Thursday and Friday
• Free Swag Giveaways  
• Annual Holiday Party 
• Annual Summer Party  
• Invitations to pop-ups and other company events  
• Complimentary daily office snacks and beverages