Human Resources Director

Amazon Watch is a growing non-profit organization working to protect the rainforest, advance and amplify the rights of Indigenous peoples in the Amazon Basin, and halt further advancement of the climate crisis. We work in partnership and solidarity with Indigenous peoples, who are the best stewards of the forest, but are increasingly under assault by industrial development, the expansion of extractive industries including oil and mining, the onslaught of far-right regimes, and climate change related catastrophes. We also work closely with partners in the environmental and climate justice movement in campaigns for human rights, corporate accountability and the preservation of the Amazon’s ecological stability, which is now dangerously close to reaching a tipping point. 

We are seeking a passionate and seasoned professional to serve as our Human Resources Director. The HR Director will be a member of the Leadership Team with the primary responsibility of helping Amazon Watch achieve our equity goals and manage our internal decolonization efforts. The HR Director will have a special focus on relationship building, conflict resolution and organizational development. 

Amazon Watch is a woman-of-color led organization committed to racial, social and climate justice. With a staff and funding community primarily made up of people with considerable race, class and citizenship privilege, disrupting ideologies and patterns of colonialism and white saviorism requires deep, ongoing personal, interpersonal and institutional work. The HR Director will help Amazon Watch develop and implement new measures to actively and explicitly work for decolonization, equity and inclusion at all levels of the organization - both interpersonally among staff, team and partners, and institutionally with its hiring to ensure equity values are at the center.

This is a full-time position based in our Oakland, CA headquarters, however during the COVID-19 pandemic all Amazon Watch staff will work remotely. Flexible work hours may be required including some weekends and evenings.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• In collaboration with the Leadership Team, develop and lead internal DEI objectives and guidelines to ensure diversity at every level of the organization, including recruitment, hiring, and onboarding processes to center equity
• Promote a culture of open and constructive feedback, staff consultation, ongoing learning and transformation, accountability and equity
• Oversee and participate in all recruitment and hiring processes, including making recommendations on hiring practices and outreach efforts
• Manages HR administration, including employee benefits (e.g., annual open enrollment, new employee enrollment, answering employee questions etc.), compliance testing, billing issues, managing online benefit administration platform and relationships with HR vendors
• Oversee employee performance management, including annual review process, helping managers set goals with employees that align with organizational priorities as well as professional and personal growth for employees
• Manages employee performance improvement plans and termination process with managers and senior leadership, and in accordance with organization policy
• Provides support and guidance to management and other staff when complex and sensitive issues arise, including providing reasonable accommodations, and investigating allegations of wrongdoing and terminations
• Maintains compliance with federal, state, and local employment laws and regulations; reviewing policies and practices to maintain compliance
• Maintains knowledge of trends, best practices, regulatory changes, and new technologies in human resources, talent management, and employment law
• Oversee the organization’s Human Resources functions – including payroll, holidays, pension contributions, healthcare, evaluations, recruitment, inductions
• Work with the Associate Director, Controller and Board Compensation Committee on compensation survey updates and present results to Management Team
• Maintain and oversee all HR files
• Work with Management Team to manage the organization’s contract process including developing templates and ongoing tracking systems to ensure compliance, review and approval of external contracts
• Plans and manages staff retreats and team meetings, including DEI trainings
• Develops and oversees professional development plans, initiatives and trainings for all team members

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Demostrable and progressively senior level experience in Human Resources
• Demonstrated leadership in the creation of a diverse, equitable, and inclusive work culture that encourages and celebrates differences with a strong commitment to creating a workplace culture grounded in the values of racial equity, inclusion and justice
• Strong communication skills that convey writing with clarity and directness and comfort with individual and group mediation, facilitating conversations, giving and receiving feedback, openness to generative conflict
• Excellent judgment and emotional intelligence including negotiation, mediation, and conflict resolution skills
• A keen awareness and ability to consult with staff and adapt practices and processes to address the varied needs and concerns of individuals with diverse backgrounds and cultures, working remotely, both domestic and internationally
• Experience in supporting organizational effectiveness, staff development, and fair and consistent performance management practices
• Interpersonal ability to build trust and goodwill with staff and senior management
• Strong ability to prioritize, manage projects, work autonomously as well as in teams
• Spanish and/or Portuguese fluency a strong plus