Associate Director, People Partner

New Engen•Seattle, WA

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

New Engen is a digital marketing agency focused on helping brands grow smarter by blending media, creative, analytics, influencer, and retail strategies into performance-driven campaigns. They offer specialized solutions through entities like Donut Studios for content creation and Acorn Creator Suite for influencer marketing. The agency fosters a collaborative environment where strategists, creatives, analysts, and makers work together to help brands and each other thrive. They emphasize hard work, humility, and purposeful building.

Requirements

8+ years of progressive HR experience, with significant experience in an HR Business Partner, People Partner, People Strategy, Talent, or organizational effectiveness role.
Experience managing and developing HR Business Partners or other experienced People professionals.
Demonstrated experience partnering with senior and executive leaders on complex organizational and talent decisions.
Strong experience with organizational design, workforce planning, job design, job architecture, or career frameworks.
Experience designing or leading company-wide talent programs such as performance management, talent reviews, succession planning, career development, or leadership development.
Strong business acumen and the ability to connect People strategy to business priorities and outcomes.
Ability to move comfortably between high-level strategy and practical execution.
Strong coaching and influencing skills, including the ability to challenge leaders thoughtfully and navigate competing perspectives.
Comfort operating in ambiguity and creating structure where a clear playbook may not yet exist.
Strong analytical instincts and the ability to use people data and business context to identify trends and inform decisions.
Experience leading organizational change or other complex, cross-functional initiatives.
Bachelor’s degree in HR, Business, Organizational Development, or a related field preferred.

Nice To Haves

Experience in an agency, professional services, technology, or similarly fast-moving and matrixed organization is a plus.
Talent Acquisition or recruiting leadership experience is a plus, but not required.
Advanced degree or HR certification is a plus.

Responsibilities

Lead and develop the HR Business Partner function, ensuring HR Business Partners act as trusted, proactive advisors who understand the business and assist leaders in making sound decisions about their teams.
Manage and coach a team of HR Business Partners, establish the strategy and expectations for business partnering, and elevate the function to identify patterns, anticipate needs, and shape broader organizational strategy.
Partner with senior leaders on organizational design, job design, and workforce strategy, addressing questions about capabilities, team structures, accountability, and career progression.
Own and evolve frameworks for job structure, role clarity, leveling, career paths, and organizational design to ensure consistency in team building.
Lead the approach to workforce and talent planning, collaborating with leaders to align talent, capabilities, and organizational structures with business direction.
Connect workforce planning, performance, succession, development, retention, and hiring into a cohesive talent strategy.
Own and evolve company-wide talent practices, including performance management, talent reviews, succession planning, career development, and manager effectiveness, continually evaluating their impact on talent decisions.
Serve as a trusted advisor to senior leaders on complex organizational and talent decisions, using business context, people data, and organizational insights to guide leaders through change, team building, talent development, and problem-solving.
Act as a senior escalation point for complex or high-impact employee matters, collaborating with HR Business Partners and other People team members.
Partner with the Director of People to identify and lead strategic People initiatives supporting broader business priorities, translating complex challenges into scalable strategies, frameworks, and programs.
Collaborate with People Operations to ensure talent strategies align with compensation, benefits, HR systems, policies, and People operations for a cohesive employee experience.