Vice President of People & Culture

YWCA USA Overview

YWCA USA is a national organization on a mission to eliminate racism, empower women, and promote peace, justice, freedom, and dignity for all. One of the oldest and largest multicultural organizations promoting solutions to enhance the lives of women, girls, and families, YWCA USA has been at the forefront of the most critical social movements for more than 160 years, working on behalf of marginalized communities through advocacy, local programming, and services – from women’s empowerment and civil rights to affordable housing and pay equity, to violence prevention and health care.

Headquartered in Washington D.C., YWCA USA represents almost 200 member YWCAs nationwide. YWCA Member Associations work on the front lines of social change, responding to the specific needs of their communities while upholding the vision and aspiration of the national movement. Nationwide, YWCA services include a wide breadth of policy advocacy and social service programs that support the mission of eliminating racism, empowering women, and promoting peace, justice, freedom, and dignity for all. YWCAs generate institutional change in three key areas: racial justice and civil rights; empowerment and economic advancement of women and girls; and health and safety of women and girls.

Through its affiliation with the World YWCA, YWCA USA is part of a global movement to elevate the status of ALL women and girls. The World YWCA works for women’s empowerment, leadership, and rights in more than 120 countries and 20,000 local communities. It is united by a shared vision that, by 2035, young women and girls will transform power structures to create justice, gender equality, and a world without violence and war, leading a sustainable YWCA movement inclusive of all women.

Position Summary

As the most senior People & Culture leader in the organization, the Vice President sets the strategic vision for talent, culture, and organizational effectiveness, and ensures its alignment with the overall organizational strategy. This is a hands-on builder role, developing people strategy while also executing and implementing alongside a lean team. The Vice President of People & Culture serves as a trusted advisor to the senior leadership team and a visible champion of the organization’s values and employee experience. This leadership position oversees all aspects of people and culture, including talent management and recruitment, employee relations, performance management, leadership and professional development, compensation and salary administration, benefits, and diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership & Business Partnership

• Develop and own the people strategy, including culture development, talent acquisition, performance management, total rewards, learning & development, and ensuring alignment to the organization’s strategic goals and KPIs.
• Partner with the Chief Operating Officer and executive leadership team to advise on org design, workforce planning, and change management.

Culture, Engagement, and Equity

• Develop and strengthen the organization’s culture, including embedding equity, inclusion, and belonging throughout the employee lifecycle, including recruitment, development, performance management, compensation, promotion, and retention.

Talent Development & Management

• Champion manager effectiveness through coaching programs, feedback cadences, and leadership development initiatives.
• Serve as the escalation point for complex employee relations matters, ensuring fair and legally compliant resolutions.
• Lead and develop the People & Culture team (currently one direct report), with an eye toward scaling the function as headcount grows.

Oversight & Operational Alignment

• Own the total rewards philosophy: compensation benchmarking, benefits design, and equity structure.
• Own People & Culture metrics and reporting — present workforce insights, engagement data, and retention trends to the executive team and board as needed.
• Develop and monitor annual budget for People & Culture

Compliance & Risk Management

• Ensure federal and state compliance of all HR
• related functions including payroll, benefits, and hiring and employment practices and policies
• Ensure HRIS, compliance, and people operations infrastructure is scalable and audit-ready
• Oversees and monitors updates to the Employee Handbook and other HR policies

Experience, Education, Proficiencies, and Values

• Experience, Education, and Certifications
  • 10+ years in HR/People roles, with at least 3 years in a senior leadership capacity.
  • SHRM-SCP, SPHR, or equivalent senior-level certification strongly preferred.
  • Bachelor’s degree in human resources, organizational development, business administration, or related field; Master’s degree a plus.
  • Proven track record of building and scaling people programs in resource-constrained environments.
  • Experience as an HR Business Partner or strategic HR leader in a nonprofit or mission-driven organization strongly preferred.
• Proficiencies
  • Strong executive presence and comfort advising C-suite stakeholders
  • Deep knowledge of employment law, compensation practices, and compliance
  • Data-driven mindset, comfortable using HRIS analytics and presenting to leadership
  • Strong strategic thinking and business acumen with the ability to align people strategies to organizational priorities
  • Demonstrated expertise in culture-building, talent development, and change leadership, with ability to coach and guide people leaders in the organization
  • Excellent relationship-building, influencing, and communication skills with the ability to partner effectively at all levels
• Values and Attributes
  • Deep commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion as foundational values.
  • Trusted advisor and collaborative partner with strong integrity and judgment.
  • Proactive, forward-looking, and solutions oriented leader.
  • Skilled at balancing strategic vision with practical implementation.

Physical Demands and Work Environment

The physical demands described here represent those that an employee must meet to perform the essential functions of this position successfully. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the functions.

• YWCA USA operates in a remote work environment and maintains a headquarters office in Washington, DC.
• Some travel may be needed to attend staff and/or Board meetings, or events
• The role requires long periods of sitting and using a computer, as well as some light physical tasks, such as printing, filing, etc.
• Ability to communicate effectively in person, by video, and by phone.

Compensation and Benefits

Compensation

• $170,000 Annually

Benefits

• Comprehensive benefit package: Medical, Dental, Vision, with monthly premiums paid 100% for the employee and 50% of dependents
• Competitive PTO
• Sick Days
• Paid Holidays
• Short-term Disability Insurance
• Long-term Disability Insurance
• Group Life, Accidental Death & Dismemberment Insurance
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Worldwide Travel Assistance (WTA)
• Flexible Spending Account
• Generous employer contributions to the YWCA Retirement Fund after one year of service
• 403(b) Retirement Savings Plan

• Comprehensive benefit package: Medical, Dental, Vision, with monthly premiums paid 100% for the employee and 50% of dependents
• Competitive PTO
• Sick Days
• Paid Holidays
• Short-term Disability Insurance
• Long-term Disability Insurance
• Group Life, Accidental Death & Dismemberment Insurance
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Worldwide Travel Assistance (WTA)
• Flexible Spending Account
• Generous employer contributions to the YWCA Retirement Fund after one year of service
• 403(b) Retirement Savings Plan