Hr Business Partner, Performance & Culture

The Wharton Human Resources team supports the full employee lifecycle for over 900 staff. We have redesigned our team’s structure to expand our current services and better meet the needs of our employees. We are excited to announce the addition of two new roles to drive performance and culture at our school.

The Wharton Human Resources team is looking for a Performance & Culture Business Partner– an HR Generalist role-- to support our efforts to build a positive and inclusive workplace for all employees. At Wharton, we aim to deliver an engaging and positive employee-centric experience across the organization. As a member of our HR team, the Performance & Culture Business Partner acts as a main point of contact for our employees, fosters partnerships to support a high-performing culture, administers our employee experience programs, and develops tracking and reporting techniques to improve our service and planning processes so that we can continually adapt to meet the needs of our school.

Duties:

Reporting to the Director of HR, this newly created role serves as an agent for change within the organization and contributes to driving thoughtful workplace practices designed around evolving challenges. The scope of the HR Business Partner extends to oversight of all people-related delivery initiatives, ranging from specific one-time projects (e.g., recognition programs) to annual cyclical events such as performance reviews.

The HR Business Partner helps create and maintain a positive, rewarding, and engaging work environment through meaningful interactions, coaching, and programming. The ideal candidate will share our HR team's passion for people and creating a diverse, respectful and engaging environment.

Specific responsibilities include:

• Meet with individuals to understand and address employee complaints/concerns related to workplace dynamics and/or performance. Provide recommendations for appropriate follow up action and engage in productive outcomes. Conduct proactive check-ins with departments & managers.
• Interpret policies and best practices, while providing human-centered solutions. Coach and advise managers, providing robust support through all elements of the employee lifecycle.
• Create rapport with staff and faculty at all levels of the school, cultivating mutual trust and interacting daily to answer questions and facilitate issue resolution.
• Employee Relations: Manage, mediate, coach and resolve complex staff relations issues. Conduct investigations and mediations when necessary; follow up with appropriate next steps. Provide hands-on coaching for managers in performance management, performance evaluations & goal setting, retention issues, reorganizations/restructures, disciplinary actions, and terminations. Support staff in managing complex interpersonal conflicts. Conduct proactive check-ins. Understand employment law and assist employees in navigating these challenges accordingly. (50%+ of the role)
• Employ analytical thinking to identify areas of focus and design strategies to address accordingly
• Participate in the planning and execution of meaningful internal connection events, which may include speaker events, trainings, meetings, luncheons, celebrations, etc.
• Identify opportunities that enable staff to prioritize their well-being and development.
• Contribute to creating employee listening strategies to drive and measure employee experience, including engagement surveys and employee voice sessions. Continually monitor internal feedback from employees to identify gaps, friction points, and inconsistencies impacting their workplace experience.
• Co-create and implement programming in line with Wharton’s commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging principles.
• Manage (and when appropriate, redesign) employee experience programs including but not limited to development/ training, staff committees, engagement, recognition, and employee retention. Employ out-of-the-box creative thinking to redesign and deliver positive employee experiences

Qualifications:

A bachelor’s degree and 5-7 years of experience in Employee Relations/Employee Experience, DEI, or other relevant Human Resources experience is required or equivalent combination of education and experience.

Additional qualifications include:

• Management experience (preferred)
• Survey design, management, analytics & improvement plans implementation skills
• Demonstrated proficiency in MS Office. Openness to learning and using various tech platforms (e.g., Workday, Qualtrics, Trello, Canva, Slack)
• Open-minded, creative, and imaginative. Be excited by non-traditional and creative approaches to enhancing employee connection and collaboration
• Empathetic and emotionally intelligent with a genuine passion for working with people and helping them succeed
• HR Generalist experience. Strong administrative background with a solid knowledge of human resource practices is strongly required.
• Excellent written, verbal, and visual communication and interpersonal skills
• Experience conducting workplace investigations and implementing appropriate next steps for accountability and repair.
• Strategic mindset - comfortable thinking one week, one month, or one year ahead of where the team is now
• Proven project management ability and track record in developing, driving, and delivering programs and initiatives
• Experience in developing and executing DEIB programs. Strong racial literacy skills. Ability to manage sensitive cultural situations with discretion and diplomacy. Adept at handling a variety of sensitive matters in a professional, mature, and confidential manner
• Ability to leverage systems thinking and design thinking to solve employee problems. Committed to continuous improvement
• Experience managing employee relations issues (i.e. performance management, inappropriate workplace conduct, interpersonal conflicts).
• Experience with managing/coordinating elements of the employee lifecycle (e.g. goal setting, retention, development) and supporting people operations
• Ability to build relationships and trust. Must have a collaborative and collegial approach to seeking input. Team player who is committed to building a positive environment for all employees
• Strong time management, multitasking, organizational, and prioritization skills