Vice President of People & Culture

About the Role

Our mission and core values are brought to life through our culture. At the YMCA of South Hampton Roads, we strive to live our cause of strengthening communities with purpose and intentionality every day. We are welcoming, genuine, hopeful, nurturing, and determined in our approach to fostering a thriving organizational culture.

Responsibilities

• Culture & Team Member Experience
  • Serve as a visible champion and culture driver, translating the YMCA's mission, values, and leadership expectations into meaningful experiences throughout the team member lifecycle.
  • Lead the YMCA's Culture Champions in partnership with the Senior Vice President and Vice President of Operations, creating a strong connection between employee voice, organizational culture, and action.
  • Use engagement data, employee listening, and organizational insights to identify trends, strengthen connection and belonging, and influence strategies that improve the team member experience.
  • Coach and influence leaders to recognize their role as culture carriers and create healthy, inclusive, and high-performing teams.
• Talent, Development & Organizational Readiness
  • Provide strategic leadership for the YMCA's integrated talent strategy, including Y University, performance and talent reviews, individual development planning, succession planning, career pathways, and leadership development.
  • Partner with the CPO, Executive Leadership Team, and Senior Director of Talent Management to identify leadership readiness, talent risks, critical roles, and future organizational capability needs.
  • Create an environment where development is an organizational expectation, connecting employee aspirations and potential with meaningful opportunities to grow, lead, and advance.
  • Ensure talent and development strategies produce measurable outcomes in leadership capability, internal mobility, retention, and organizational readiness.
  • Connect insights gathered through HR business partnership across the association to identify systemic trends, organizational risks, and opportunities requiring enterprise-level action.
  • Coach leaders through complex people decisions while strengthening their capability and accountability to lead teams effectively.
  • Ensure HR business partnership is connected to the YMCA's broader talent strategy so workforce planning, performance, development, succession, engagement, and retention are addressed as interconnected business priorities.
• Strategic HR & Workforce Partnership
  • Lead and strengthen the YMCA's HR business partnership model, coaching the Senior Directors of People Operations and serving as a trusted advisor to executive and senior leaders on complex workforce, leadership, employee relations, and organizational matters.
  • Maintain a strong connection to YMCA operations, using workforce data and organizational insight to anticipate people needs, identify emerging risks, and develop proactive solutions.
  • Partner with Operations on workforce and recruitment strategy, including anticipating seasonal needs, addressing hard-to-fill positions, strengthening leader recruiting capability, and identifying broader workforce trends.
  • Lead through organizational change with empathy, sound judgment, and a clear understanding of both the team member experience and the needs of the organization.
• People & Culture Leadership & Stewardship
  • Serve as the CPO's primary deputy, translating People & Culture strategy into coordinated priorities and execution across People Operations, Talent Management, Benefits & HRIS, and other people initiatives.
  • Lead, coach, and develop the People & Culture senior leadership team, creating clarity, accountability, collaboration, and a shared commitment to exceptional service.
  • Provide leadership oversight for employee benefits and HRIS and ensure the organization's people programs, systems, and practices remain effective, compliant, and responsive to organizational needs.
  • Oversee the People & Culture budget with strategic guidance from the CPO, aligning investments and resources with the organization's highest people priorities.
  • Represent People & Culture with executive leadership and across the association.

Requirements

• YMCA Cause Driven Leader Competencies: Change Leadership, Communication & Influence, Developing Self and Others, Fiscal Management, Functional Expertise.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Organizational Leadership, or related field and 7+ years of progressive human resources leadership experience; equivalent combinations of education and relevant experience may be considered.
• Demonstrated senior-level experience leading across multiple HR disciplines, including talent management, employee relations/HR business partnership, benefits, organizational development, and culture and engagement.
• Demonstrated experience advising senior leaders, leading organizational change, developing leaders and teams, and translating business priorities into effective people strategies.
• Working knowledge of applicable employment laws and regulations and demonstrated experience exercising sound judgment in complex and sensitive employee matters.
• Preferred Attributes:
  • Strategic, enterprise-minded leader who can move effectively between long-term strategy and execution.
  • Demonstrated ability to influence, coach, and build trusted partnerships with leaders at all levels of the organization.
  • Strong business and financial acumen, including experience managing departmental budgets and using data to evaluate organizational impact.
  • Exceptional judgment, discretion, communication, and decision-making skills.
  • Proven ability to lead through ambiguity and change while managing multiple organizational priorities.
  • SHRM-SCP, SPHR, or other advanced HR certification preferred.
  • YMCA Organizational Leader Certification preferred or obtainable within two years.

Working Conditions

This position operates in a professional office and community-based environment and regularly interacts with team members, leaders, board members, vendors, and other stakeholders. The role requires use of a computer and other standard office equipment, prolonged periods of sitting or standing, and the ability to communicate and exchange information effectively. Occasional travel and flexible hours, including evenings or weekends, may be required based on organizational needs. The YMCA of South Hampton Roads provides reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities to enable them to perform the essential functions of the position, consistent with applicable law.

Pay

Starting Salary Range: $90,000 - $115,000 annually. The salary range reflects the YMCA of South Hampton Roads’ good-faith determination of the minimum and maximum starting salary for this position.

Benefits

In addition to base compensation, the YMCA of South Hampton Roads offers a comprehensive benefits package to eligible employees, including:

• An employer-funded retirement contribution equal to 12% of eligible compensation.
• Health and welfare benefits.
• Paid time off.
• Other YMCA benefits.