Lead HR Business Partner

Location: New Orleans, LA (Hybrid)

About the Role

The Lead HR Business Partner is an advanced to mastery level position that provides support in aligning business objectives with employees and management in designated business units. This role partners across the HR function to deliver value-added service to management and employees, reflecting the business objectives of the organization. The Lead HR Business Partner supports and participates in the development, implementation, and continuous improvement of people programs to drive successful execution of business strategies.

This position provides advanced HR business partner functional support, manages a client-base independently, and serves as the face of HR for employees up to VP/GM-level leaders (non-officer leadership) and below. The role requires a proactive individual who can navigate ambiguity, lead with passion for people, and support workforce performance with minimal supervision. May provide guidance to entry or mid-level HR Business Partners.

Responsibilities

• Facilitate and lead discussions on people and talent-related programs within business units.
• Consult and mediate for employees up to VP/GM-level leaders (non-officer leadership) by providing HR guidance.
• Identify and communicate trends and metrics in partnership with HR, providing recommendations to drive desired business outcomes.
• Tell stories clearly and concisely using data, tailoring messages to the audience.
• Conduct organizational assessments, identify root causes of performance gaps, and design solutions aligned with business strategy.
• Maintain in-depth knowledge of labor relations and compliance requirements to reduce legal risks and ensure regulatory compliance; partner with the legal department as needed.
• Provide day-to-day leadership coaching and guidance for leaders up to VP/GM level (e.g., coaching, counseling, career development).
• Collaborate with leaders to improve work relationships, build morale, and increase productivity and retention.
• Translate and navigate HR policy guidance and interpretation.
• Deliver consultative support regarding talent and culture initiatives for respective business units.
• Compose clear, concise, and empathetic messages for delivering sensitive or challenging information.
• Identify training needs and coaching opportunities for business units and leaders using data and insights.
• Lead and implement change management initiatives within respective business units.
• Act as a liaison between the business and Centers of Excellence (CoE) departments to optimize program impact and change.
• Develop and facilitate presentations and proposals leveraging HR and people program data.
• Manage emotions, read and respond to others' emotions, build strong relationships, and navigate challenging situations with empathy.
• Advocate for and influence improvement strategies to enhance employee experiences and work environments.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in human resources or related field, or equivalent work experience.
• Five (5)+ years of HR or related experience with a degree, or seven (7)+ years without a degree.

Skills

• Business and Financial Acumen: Provide strategic HR recommendations grounded in financial and business analysis. Analyze workforce trends, forecast talent needs, and optimize resource allocation. Recommend organizational structure changes and coaching for high overtime employees.
• Change Management and Leadership: Lead change initiatives with strategic perspective and business alignment. Develop comprehensive change management strategies and implementation plans. Build and mobilize change networks across the organization.
• Communication and Stakeholder Engagement: Communicate strategically to influence organizational decisions. Build and maintain productive relationships with key business partners. Navigate complex stakeholder dynamics and proactively address concerns. Measure and adjust communication effectiveness based on data.
• Compliance and Controls: Provide compliance guidance aligned with business objectives. Develop and implement HR policies, procedures, and controls to mitigate risks. Conduct compliance assessments and recommend remediation strategies. Coach managers on compliance responsibilities.
• Project Management: Manage HR and business projects from initiation through closure. Manage scope, schedule, quality, resources, dependencies, and stakeholder expectations. Measure project success and capture lessons learned.
• Strategic Alignment and Vision: Provide HR guidance aligned with organizational vision and business strategy. Recognize emerging business trends and recommend HR responses. Build organizational capability and identify talent gaps. Coach leaders on strategic thinking and execution.
• Data Interpretation and Translation: Conduct data analysis to uncover patterns, trends, and root causes. Identify emerging data trends and recommend business responses. Build dashboards and analytics tools for decision-making. Partner with leaders to define data needs and priorities.
• Organizational Development: Provide guidance aligned with business strategy. Conduct organizational assessments and identify systemic and cultural issues. Develop organizational capability through coaching, training, and process improvement.
• Talent Management and Workforce Planning: Develop talent management and workforce planning strategies. Conduct workforce analytics to forecast talent needs and gaps. Partner with leaders to identify skill requirements and design talent acquisition, development, and retention strategies.
• Technology and AI Applications: Leverage advanced HR technology to solve complex business problems. Design workflow solutions to optimize HR processes. Extract, analyze, and interpret complex data from multiple systems. Design and implement AI-driven processes to automate multi-step HR workflows.

Schedule

Travel up to 25%.