HR Director

The HR Director serves as the firm's senior human resources leader and a true strategic partner to firm leadership, someone who thinks at the organizational level while remaining hands-on in execution. This role is equally comfortable advising the Managing Partner on workforce strategy and sitting across from an employee navigating a difficult situation. The HR Director is responsible for building and sustaining a people-first culture, driving talent strategy, ensuring multi-state compliance, and leading a lean HR function with operational excellence. This is not a purely administrative role, it requires executive presence, sound business judgment, a coaching mindset, and the ability to translate people strategy into measurable organizational outcomes.

Key Responsibilities:

Strategic Leadership & People Strategy

• Serve as a proactive, visible strategic partner to the Principal Attorney, COO, and department heads, contributing to business planning conversations, not just executing decisions after they are made.
• Develop and continuously refine a firm-wide HR strategy aligned with organizational growth, culture, and operational priorities, then translate that strategy into clear, executable plans with measurable outcomes.
• Establish and report on HR metrics and KPIs including turnover, time-to-fill, engagement scores, compensation equity, and compliance posture to keep leadership informed and to continuously improve the HR function.
• Balance strategic thinking with a willingness to roll up sleeves; this role requires both big-picture vision and hands-on involvement in day-to-day HR operations when the work demands it.

Talent Acquisition & Workforce Planning

• Oversee the firm's full-cycle recruitment strategy across all levels including attorneys, business professionals, and support staff, ensuring a consistent, equitable, and high-caliber hiring experience.
• Partner with department heads and practice group leaders to conduct workforce planning, anticipate hiring needs, and build proactive talent pipelines rather than reacting to vacancies.
• Lead legal recruiting efforts including law school outreach, lateral associate recruitment, clerkship hiring, and summer associate program oversight.
• Establish structured interview frameworks, evaluation criteria, and hiring standards that support consistency, quality, and diversity across all recruitment activities.
• Direct and optimize the Rippling ATS and all recruitment operations, ensuring data integrity, reporting accuracy, and a streamlined candidate experience.
• Develop and manage relationships with external search firms and talent partners; negotiate terms and hold vendors accountable to performance standards.

Compensation, Pay Reviews & Total Rewards

• Design, evaluate, and administer the firm's total rewards strategy, including base compensation, incentive structures, benefits programming, and non-monetary recognition, ensuring the firm remains competitive and internally equitable.
• Partner with the Principal to conduct compensation review cycle. Conduct market benchmarking, develop pay adjustment recommendations, model financial scenarios with Finance, present findings to leadership, and communicate outcomes to employees with clarity and consistency.
• Conduct proactive pay equity analysis on a regular cadence, identifying and addressing compression, inequity, or outliers before they become retention or legal risks.
• Advise leadership on off-cycle pay adjustments, promotional increases, and counter-offer decisions with data-backed recommendations rather than reactive judgment calls.
• Oversee benefits program administration including health and welfare plans, retirement programs, leave policies, and voluntary benefits; manage broker and vendor relationships with accountability.
• Lead open enrollment planning, communications, and logistics from start to finish, ensuring employees have what they need to make informed elections.

Coaching, Performance Management & Talent Development

• Serve as a trusted coach to managers, partners, and senior staff, helping them develop as people leaders, navigate difficult conversations, deliver meaningful feedback, and build high-performing teams.
• Design and oversee the firm's performance management framework, including goal setting, mid-year check-ins, annual reviews, and calibration sessions; ensure the process is meaningful, consistent, and not just a compliance exercise.
• Guide managers through performance concerns with practical coaching on documentation, corrective conversations, and Performance Improvement Plans (PIPs), ensuring every step is fair, consistent, and legally sound.
• Partner with practice group leaders and department heads to identify high-potential employees, build succession plans for critical roles, and create individualized development pathways.
• Develop or source learning and development programming, including leadership development, manager effectiveness training, and skills-based learning tied to firm goals and individual growth plans.
• Foster a culture of continuous feedback and coaching that reinforces formal review cycles and builds management capability firm wide.

Employee Relations & Organizational Culture

• Serve as the firm's primary resource for complex, sensitive, and escalated employee relations matters including workplace investigations, conflict resolution, disciplinary actions, and separations, handling each with thoroughness, discretion, and sound judgment.
• Conduct or oversee workplace investigations with impartiality and rigorous documentation, ensuring outcomes are fair, consistent, and legally defensible.
• Advise managers and partners on performance concerns and corrective action with a coaching posture first, escalating to formal process when warranted.
• Cultivate a firm culture rooted in respect, accountability, inclusion, and professional growth; champion people initiatives that reinforce those values at every level.
• Lead engagement efforts including pulse surveys and feedback mechanisms; translate findings into actionable recommendations presented to leadership and follow through on them.
• Serve as a confidential, approachable resource for employees, navigating sensitive workplace concerns, creating an environment where people feel heard and supported.

Compliance, Risk Management & Policy

• Serve as the firm's subject matter expert on federal, state, and local employment law, including FMLA, ADA, Title VII, FLSA, WARN Act, and applicable state-specific statutes across all jurisdictions where the firm operates.
• Develop, implement, and maintain HR policies, procedures, and the employee handbook, ensuring all documentation is current, compliant, and applied consistently.
• Oversee all leave administration programs including FMLA, state-mandated leave, ADA accommodations, and military leave, ensuring proper compliance, communication, and recordkeeping.
• Monitor federal and state legislative developments, assess organizational impact, and drive timely policy or practice updates before deadlines, not after.
• Manage the firm's HR compliance calendar including required postings, mandatory training, reporting obligations, and audit readiness.
• Partner with outside counsel as needed on complex employment matters, litigation exposure, or regulatory inquiries.
• Lead internal HR audits covering I-9 documentation, personnel file integrity, and HRIS data accuracy.

HR Operations & Technology

• Own and optimize the firm's HRIS infrastructure (Rippling), ensuring data integrity, workflow efficiency, and adoption across HR, Finance, and operations, handling configuration and troubleshooting directly when needed rather than always deferring to a vendor.
• Oversee payroll operations in partnership with Finance, ensuring accuracy, timeliness, and compliance for all employee classifications.
• Develop and maintain HR Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), ensuring processes are documented, regularly reviewed, and consistently followed by the full HR team.
• Manage the HR department budget including headcount planning, vendor contracts, technology investments, and training expenditures.
• Identify and drive process improvements that reduce administrative burden, increase efficiency, and elevate the overall employee experience.

Leadership & Team Management

• Recruit, develop, coach, and retain HR team members, modeling the same standards of feedback, accountability, and growth expected of managers across the firm.
• Set clear expectations, provide regular and candid feedback, and conduct formal performance reviews for direct reports tied to meaningful development goals.
• Be present and accessible — not an executive who operates exclusively behind closed doors, but a hands-on leader who knows what is happening on the ground and acts accordingly.
• Represent the HR function in firm leadership meetings, strategic planning sessions, and cross-functional initiatives as a full participant, not just a presenter.

Required Qualifications

Required:

• Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, Organizational Development, or a related field; Master's degree preferred
• 7+ years of progressive HR experience with a minimum of 3–5 years in a senior HR leadership role
• Demonstrated expertise in employment law, multi-state compliance, compensation strategy, and HR best practices
• Proven experience as both a strategic partner to senior leadership and a hands-on operator capable of executing independently
• Track record leading complex employee relations matters, coaching managers, and driving performance management processes
• Experience in a professional services or law firm environment strongly preferred
• Proficiency with HRIS platforms, ATS systems, and HR reporting; experience with Rippling preferred
• Strong business acumen, executive presence, and the ability to influence without authority

Preferred:

• SPHR, SHRM-SCP, or equivalent senior HR certification
• Experience supporting legal recruiting, attorney development, or law firm HR operations
• Familiarity with legal industry compensation structures and attorney performance frameworks