Director, Human Capital Partners
The Director, Human Capital Partner, serves as a highly strategic and forward-thinking advisor to AIR’s senior leaders and executives. Operating at the enterprise level, this role helps shape workforce strategy, drive organizational effectiveness, and ensure long-term talent sustainability.
The Director, Human Capital Partner, brings strong consulting capabilities, business acumen, and the ability to influence across a complex, matrixed environment. This role leads the Human Capital Partner (HCP) team as well as initiatives that support organization wide strategies, partnering with leaders to deliver innovative, data-informed solutions.
As the lead of the HCP team, the Director models effective consulting practices, and plays a key role in elevating the impact of AIR’s Human Capital function.
This position has the flexibility to work remotely within the United States (U.S.) or from one of AIR’s U.S. office locations. This does not include U.S. territories.
About AIR:
Founded in 1946 and headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, the American Institutes for Research (AIR) is a nonpartisan, not-for-profit organization that conducts behavioral and social science research and delivers technical assistance to address some of the most pressing challenges in the United States and globally. We generate evidence and apply data-driven solutions that expand opportunities and improve lives for all.
Responsibilities:
The Director, Human Capital Partner serves as a senior advisor and thought partner to program and functional leaders, aligning human capital strategies to organizational priorities, business risks, and growth opportunities. Responsibilities include:
Team Leadership & Capability Building
- Lead the HCP team by fostering a culture of authenticity, accountability, collaboration, and continuous growth.
- Model talent management best practices by actively engaging in long-term career planning, active development, and on-going feedback within the HCP team.
- Drive continuous improvement efforts within the HCP practice and contribute thought leadership within the HR function by driving innovation, standardizing practices, and modeling AIR’s values in every interaction.
Organizational Strategic Partnership
- Design and deliver strategic programs that address leadership development, people management, and employee engagement across functions and divisions.
- Guide senior leaders through complex challenges in change management, organizational design, workforce planning, leadership transitions, and cultural alignment.
- Build organizational resilience by helping leaders at all levels anticipate and prepare for future talent needs, structural shifts, and capability gaps.
- Align HCP approaches and strategies to organizational and HR strategic plans and objectives.
Executive Coaching & Influence
- Provide high-impact coaching to executives and senior leaders to elevate leadership effectiveness, navigate ambiguity, and lead with inclusivity and accountability.
- Build strong, trust-based relationships with business leaders and cross-functional teams that lead to improved outcomes within the talent space and across the business.
Succession Planning & Talent Strategy
- Lead the HCPs through the design and implementation of holistic talent and succession strategies, partnering with leaders to evaluate pipeline strength, identify readiness gaps, and inform development investments.
- Produce strategic deliverables such as organizational succession plans, workforce analytics summaries, and organizational health assessments that guide leadership decision-making.
- Partner with Talent Management and Learning & Development to ensure that development efforts align with enterprise capability needs and critical role succession.
Data-Driven Insights & Workforce Optimization
- Partner with the Analytics and HR Technology team to design and deliver meaningful data that allows leaders to anticipate challenges and identify trends to proactively manage engagement throughout the organization.
- Translate data into actionable recommendations that influence organizational and people strategies at scale.
- Collaborate with Compensation, Recruitment, and HR Systems to ensure integrated, equitable, and data-aligned human capital decisions.
Qualifications:
Education, Knowledge, and Experience
- Bachelor’s degree in human resources, Business, Organizational Development, Psychology, or related field required; Master’s degree strongly preferred.
- 10+ years of progressive HR experience, with at least 4 years partnering with senior leaders or executives.
- Demonstrated experience leading, coaching, and developing HR business partners or HR teams, including managing performance, setting goals, and fostering accountability.
- Proven track record of leading enterprise or division-level HR initiatives and delivering strategic outcomes.
- Experience developing and executing talent strategies, succession plans, and organizational design initiatives in complex, matrixed environments.
Skills
- Strong consulting skills with the ability to influence, guide, and partner with senior leaders.
- Strategic, data-savvy mindset with the ability to interpret workforce insights and align them to business needs.
- Ability to anticipate issues, identify root causes, and design systems-level solutions.
- Demonstrated ability to manage ambiguity and lead through change with composure and effectiveness.
- Integrity and sound judgment in handling sensitive employee and organizational information.
- Proactive, resourceful, and collaborative mindset with a strong orientation toward results and continuous improvement.
- Proficiency with Dayforce and advanced use of Microsoft 365 tools for analysis and presentations.
Disclosures: Applicants must be currently authorized to work in the U.S. on a full-time basis. Employment-based visa sponsorship (including H-1B sponsorship) is not available for this position. Depending on project work, qualified candidates may need to meet certain residency requirements.
American Institutes for Research is an equal employment opportunity/affirmative action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without discrimination on the basis of age, race, color, religion, sex, gender, gender identity/expression, sexual orientation, national origin, protected veteran status, or disability. AIR adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles and will therefore undergo reference and background checks. AIR maintains a drug-free work environment.
ACCESSIBILITY NOTICE: If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the employment process due to a physical or mental disability, please send an email to Taliba Boone at tboone@air.orgor call 202.403.5000.
Fraudulent Job Scams Warning & Disclaimer: AIR is aware of individuals falsely presenting themselves as AIR representatives. Fraudulent job scams seek to extract sensitive information or money from victims. To protect yourself, please be aware that AIR recruitment will only email you from an “@air.org” domain. Please take extra caution while examining the email address, for example jdoe@air.org is correct and jdoe@aircareers.org is not a legitimate AIR email address. If you are unsure of the legitimacy of a communication you have received, please reach out torecruitment@air.org. If you see a job scam, or lose money to one, report it to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) atReportFraud.ftc.gov. You can also report it to your state attorney general. Find out more about how to avoid scams atftc.gov/scams.
#LI-AS1 #LI-REMOTE
AIR’s Total Rewards Program, is designed to reward our staff competitively and motivate them to achieve our critical mission. This position offers the anticipated annual salary as listed. Salary offers are made based on internal equity within the institution and external equity with competitive markets. Please note this is the annual salary range for candidates that are based in the United States.
Anticipated Annual Salary Range
$155,000 - $200,000 USD
Create a Job Alert
Interested in building your career at American Institutes for Research? Get future opportunities sent straight to your email.
Apply for this job
*
indicates a required field
