Associate Director, U.S. Employee Relations

About the role

The Associate Director, Employee Relations serves as the primary subject matter expert and trusted advisor for complex employee relations matters across the U.S. organization. This role partners closely with HR Business Partners, business leaders, Legal, Compliance, and HR Operations to ensure consistent, fair, and legally compliant outcomes while fostering a positive employee experience and supporting Galderma's values and culture.

Responsibilities

• Lead the intake, assessment, investigation, and resolution of complex employee relations matters, including employee complaints, workplace conflicts, misconduct allegations, policy violations, performance concerns, retaliation claims, and other sensitive employment issues.
• Serve as the primary escalation point for high-risk and complex employee relations cases, providing guidance on investigation strategy, risk assessment, and recommended actions.
• Conduct thorough, objective, and timely investigations, ensuring appropriate documentation, evidence gathering, interview processes, findings, and case closure.
• Partner with Legal, Compliance, Ethics, Security, and other functions, as appropriate, to manage matters involving significant legal, regulatory, reputational, or business risk.
• Facilitate resolution of workplace conflicts through coaching, mediation, and other informal resolution approaches whenever appropriate.
• Effectively de-escalate challenging employee situations while maintaining objectivity, fairness, and confidentiality.

Strategic HR Partnership

• Provide expert consultation and coaching to HR Business Partners and business leaders regarding employee relations matters, performance management, corrective actions, workplace accommodations, policy interpretation, and organizational effectiveness.
• Support leaders in navigating challenging employee situations while balancing business needs, legal requirements, and employee experience considerations.
• Support organizational transformations, restructurings, workforce reductions, and other business changes by assessing employee relations risks and recommending mitigation strategies.
• Partner with leaders to foster a respectful, inclusive, and high-performing workplace culture aligned with Galderma's values and leadership expectations.

Manager & Leadership Enablement

• Enable managers and leaders on effective people management practices, difficult conversations, conflict resolution, performance improvement, employee communications, and corrective action processes.
• Develop and deliver employee relations training programs, manager toolkits, and guidance materials to strengthen leadership capabilities and reduce organizational risk.
• Support HR Business Partners in building organizational capability and proactively addressing workplace concerns before escalation.

Data, Insights & Continuous Improvement

• Analyze employee relations trends, investigation outcomes, employee feedback, and workforce data to identify recurring themes, root causes, and opportunities for improvement.
• Develop actionable recommendations and preventative solutions that strengthen organizational effectiveness, employee engagement, and employee experience.
• Provide regular reporting and insights to HR leadership regarding employee relations trends, organizational risks, and workforce concerns.
• Drive continuous improvement of employee relations processes, investigation methodologies, manager resources, and training programs.

Collaboration & Culture

• Collaborate closely with HR Business Partners, HR Operations, Total Rewards, Legal, Compliance, and business leaders to ensure consistent and equitable employee outcomes.
• Partner across global and regional HR teams to promote consistency in employee relations practices and policy application.
• Lead or contribute to enterprise-wide employee relations initiatives, policy enhancements, and compliance projects.
• Contribute to a culture of accountability, inclusion, respect, and high performance by promoting fair, transparent, and consistent employment practices.
• Act as a trusted advisor and advocate for both employees and leaders while supporting Galderma's values and business objectives.