Director, People Operations & Talent

Job Title: Director, People Operations & Talent

Reports To: Senior Director of Human Resources

WHO WE ARE:

CRIPCS is the nation’s first adult charter school and a national model for high-quality adult education, career training, and student support. Our mission-driven team advances innovative, equity-centered solutions that empower adult immigrants and English language learners while strengthening our community and economy. Through our award-winning three-pronged model—foundational coursework, career certification, and comprehensive supports—and guided by our core values: Integrity, Respect, Perseverance, Compassion, Inclusivity, and Collaboration we advance our strategic priorities to empower our people and culture and build for the future.

ROLE SUMMARY:

The Director, People Operations & Talent is the operational and programmatic engine of CRIPCS’s and Community Capital Corporation’s (CCC) Human Resources function. This is a builder role — the Director is responsible for designing and implementing the systems, processes, and frameworks that the team will execute. The Director’s primary focus is providing continuous oversight and adjusting infrastructure needs in recruitment, onboarding, employee engagement, employee recognition, and other people operations processes to fit the needs of the organization. The Director also supervises and provides leadership to two direct reports, conducts employee relations investigations, and establishes the operational discipline the function requires.

The Director reports to the Senior Director of Human Resources and directly supervises a team of two.

CORE WORKSTREAMS AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

The following outlines core duties and responsibilities for this position.

Talent Acquisition and New Hire Development

• Evaluate and maintain a recruitment system that enables CRIPCS to consistently attract mission-aligned talent, including sourcing strategy, interview structure, competency-based hiring practices, and offer process; informed by organizational hiring patterns and onboarding outcomes.
• Own overall responsibility for CRIPCS’s recruitment function, directing the team’s execution of the administrative portions of the recruitment process — postings, ATS management, scheduling, candidate communications, and offer letters — and the strategic execution, including hiring manager intake, candidate evaluation, and cultural fit assessment.
• Refine a structured, mission-aligned onboarding program that sets new hires up for long-term success at CRIPCS, establishing the framework, tools, and 90-day integration arc that the team will own and execute.
• Define new hire success metrics to include 30/60/90-day check-in standards, new hire feedback mechanisms, and manager partnership expectations; track outcomes to continuously improve both onboarding and recruitment practices.
• Build the orientation materials and cultural resources that help every new employee understand CRIPCS’s mission, values, policies, and systems starting day one.
• Partner with hiring managers to build inclusive, competency-based hiring practices that reflect CRIPCS’s values and create conditions for early retention.
• Work with managers to maintain and update job descriptions to accurately reflect employees’ appropriate scope and level of responsibility.
• Assess team capacity and recruitment infrastructure needs on an ongoing basis, and make recommendations to the Senior Director on staffing and process investments as the function matures.

Employee Relations & Wellness Strategy

• Conduct standard employee relations investigations, gathering facts, interviewing parties, documenting findings, and recommending outcomes within a clear escalation framework.
• Build and maintain the ER escalation protocol and case documentation standards that the People Partner will use for intake and case execution.
• Escalate complex, high-risk, or legally sensitive investigations to the Senior Director of Human Resources.
• Maintain a structured ER case tracking log to document all matters, corrective actions, and outcomes.
• Coach team members on individual ER cases as needed, building their capacity to execute within established frameworks over time.
• Own the strategic relationship with CRIPCS’s wellness program vendor, including the RFP process, contract negotiation, and renewal decisions; set the overall wellness strategy and programming calendar in partnership with the Senior Director. The People Partner owns all employee-facing execution.
• Partner with the Senior Director to strengthen organizational culture and build programs that support staff engagement and belonging.

People Operations, Systems & Data

• Serve as the operational owner of CRIPCS’s people systems (currently ADP Workforce Now), providing oversight to the team in ensuring data integrity, access controls, and process discipline.
• Develop and maintain people policies, standard operating procedures, and process documentation including the Employee Handbook, ensuring alignment with current legal requirements and CRIPCS’s values.
• Oversee compensation administration in partnership with the Senior Director, including the annual total rewards review cycle, new hire offers, and internal promotions and salary adjustments.
• Operate with compliance awareness across all people operations work, recognizing regulatory implications and maintaining current knowledge of DC and federal employment law.
• Partner with the Senior Director to develop the execution plan for CRIPCS’s performance management system for non-instructional staff ahead of the planned 2027 launch, with the HR team supporting administrative design and build-out.
• Use people data to identify patterns, surface gaps, and inform organizational decisions in partnership with the Senior Director.

Team Leadership and Development

• Directly supervise two HR operational team members, providing regular coaching, clear expectations, and formal performance feedback.
• Build team capacity through professional development, skill scaffolding, and a culture of accountability and continuous improvement.
• Cover or triage operational issues in areas managed by direct reports when needed to maintain continuity of service.
• Design and deliver people programs and practices that ensure all staff have consistent access to the support, information, and opportunities they need to thrive.

Strategic Partnership and Communications

• Serve as a thought partner to the Senior Director on organizational design, workforce planning, and long-term people strategy.
• Own HR operational communications including policy rollouts, benefits updates, systems changes, and staff-facing program announcements.
• Represent the HR function in cross-departmental projects and with senior stakeholders as delegated by the Senior Director.
• Other duties as assigned.

WHAT YOU’LL BRING:

• Process Design and Systems Thinking: Builds clear, repeatable processes from scratch and documents them in ways that others can follow and maintain; comfortable operating without a playbook and building one.
• Employee Relations Experience and Sound Judgment: Conducts investigations with care and consistency, knows when to escalate, and can coach others through difficult situations without overstepping.
• People Leadership: Invests in direct reports, provides honest feedback, holds people accountable with warmth, and builds team capacity over time.
• HRIS and Operational Fluency: Works comfortably in people systems (ADP Workforce Now strongly preferred), understands data integrity as a non-negotiable, and can design operational processes that hold up under audit.
• Onboarding and Talent Experience: Has designed or significantly contributed to onboarding programs and recruitment processes in a comparable organization.
• Communication and Stakeholder Partnership: Explains complex people concepts clearly, keeps stakeholders informed, and navigates cross-functional relationships with professionalism and care.
• Mission Alignment: Brings genuine energy and care to CRIPCS’s work with adult learners and immigrant communities; models the organization’s core values in all relationships with colleagues and partners.

EDUCATION, CERTIFICATION, AND OTHER EXPERIENCES:

• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business, Organizational Leadership, or a related field; a combination of relevant experience and education will be considered.
• 5 to 8 years of progressive HR or people operations experience, including at least 2 years in a role with direct supervisory responsibility.
• Demonstrated experience designing onboarding programs and leading talent acquisition operations in an organization of 100 or more employees.
• Working knowledge of DC and federal employment law, with the ability to recognize compliance implications across operational work.
• Hands-on experience with an HRIS or HCM system; ADP Workforce Now experience strongly preferred.
• Experience developing and maintaining people policies and employee handbooks in a compliance-driven environment.
• HRCI or SHRM certification strongly preferred (PHR, SPHR, SHRM-CP, or SHRM-SCP).
• Proficiency in Spanish, Amharic, or French is a plus, given the linguistic diversity of CRIPCS’s staff and student population.
• Experience working in a nonprofit, charter school, or mission-driven organization preferred.
• Demonstrated commitment to CRIPCS’s core values and Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) and the ability to model those values in relationships with colleagues and partners.

SALARY RANGE AND BENEFITS:

• A competitive annual starting salary range of $<INSERT>–$<INSERT> commensurate with experience.
• 46 total days of time off (a combination of paid holidays, vacation, sick, and personal time) per year. This number increases over time.
• A flexible, hybrid work schedule.
• Competitive health benefits and retirement match (up to 6% of the base salary) after your qualifying period.
• Deep investment in individualized professional development, inclusive of coaching, conference attendance, and tuition reimbursement.

Even if you don’t feel that all the requested qualifications are your current strengths, we still welcome you to apply. We invite all candidates of all backgrounds to apply.

HOW TO APPLY:

Carlos Rosario is partnering with She Rose Solutions to find the next Director of People Operations & Talent. Please use this link to submit your application. She Rose Solutions will review all applicants and, upon qualification, contact you to determine next steps. If you need a reasonable accommodation to assist with your job search or application for employment, please contact us by sending an email to operations@sherosesolutions.com.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS:

The individual in this role will be expected to move between campuses and meeting spaces to support staff, engage with leadership, facilitate training sessions, and participate in organizational meetings and events. They will also be expected to sit for extended periods while developing HR strategy, managing systems, and overseeing administrative and compliance functions, and may occasionally be expected to transport materials up to approximately 20 pounds without assistance.

The physical requirements described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

EEOC STATEMENT:

Carlos Rosario International Public Charter School is an equal opportunity employer, and is committed to providing equal employment opportunity in recruitment, hiring, training and development, promotion, termination, compensation and all other terms, conditions and privileges of employment. In accordance with federal and DC laws, Carlos Rosario School does not discriminate with regard to employment on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity, sex, age marital status, personal appearance, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, genetic information, family responsibilities, political affiliation, disability, matriculation, veteran status, or other protected status under applicable law.

If you need a reasonable accommodation to assist with your job search or application for employment, please contact us by sending an email to rosariohr@carlosrosario.org or contact the Human Resources Department at (202) 797-4700. If possible, in your email please include a description of the specific accommodation you are requesting and a description of the position for which you are applying.

• 46 total days of time off (a combination of paid holidays, vacation, sick, and personal time) per year. This number increases over time.
• A flexible, hybrid work schedule.
• Competitive health benefits and retirement match (up to 6% of the base salary) after your qualifying period.
• Deep investment in individualized professional development, inclusive of coaching, conference attendance, and tuition reimbursement.