Director, Executive Talent Management

Kyndryl•Rye Brook, MA

4d•$156,360 - $356,280•Remote

About The Position

Kyndryl's ability to execute depends on having the right leaders in the right roles at the right time. This role is where that gets built: it turns succession data into real bench strategy and shapes the solutions for the leadership situations that matter most. The leader in this role will be building strong, well-reasoned recommendations that translate to actions that build leadership bench. Working from the succession slates, readiness data, and risk flags produced through Succession Planning process this role determines what they actually mean — where the organization's leadership bench is genuinely strong, where it's fragile, and what should be done about it. It builds the recommendation on the highest-stakes people calls: who should be accelerated into bigger roles, where a developmental bet is worth making now, and where a critical gap likely needs an external answer. This is the role that gives succession planning (250 roles) its teeth, taking the twice a year event into an ongoing pipeline management system. The role also connects succession strategy with executive recruiting, partnering with Executive Recruiting on workforce planning and participating in talent review and search calibration discussions. By evaluating internal bench strength against external market availability, this leader helps determine when to build, buy, borrow, or move talent and converts succession insights into clear executive hiring priorities. This creates a shared fact base across readiness, mobility options, role requirements, and market conditions so Talent Leadership, HR Business Partners, and Executive Recruiting can align on where to invest in development, when to move proven talent, and when to go to market. This role will manage cadence of talent brokering and other regular connections with Executive Talent Acquisition and Executive Compensation. It's also the role Talent Leadership and HR Business Partners can lean on when a leadership situation is too complex or too urgent for a standard process — a critical resignation, a successor who's struggling to scale, a leadership vacuum created by a reorg or M&A. In those moments, this person shapes the options and has a critical point of view that helps drive the solution.

Requirements

10+ years in HR/talent, with at least 4–5 specifically in executive talent management, organizational effectiveness, or leadership strategy at a large, complex organization
Experience supporting or advising on high-stakes leadership decisions involving senior executives (SVP+) — comfortable operating close to that altitude even without final decision authority
Demonstrated ability to critically evaluate a succession plan (not just build one) and convert it into a strategic bench narrative the VP can act on
Comfort operating without a script: this role will regularly face situations with no precedent and no playbook
Strong executive presence and written/verbal communication — able to prepare materials and talking points suitable for CHRO- or Board-level review
Experience supporting global or multi region talent initiatives
Experience facilitating talent calibration or review sessions

Nice To Haves

Ability to partner effectively with a process owner (the Associate Director) without either duplicating their work or deferring to it — this role shapes strategy, the AD runs the mechanics
Global or matrixed organization experience strongly preferred given Kyndryl's scale
Familiarity with workforce analytics or HR reporting tools
Background in organizational development or workforce planning

Responsibilities

Translate the succession data and process outputs, partnering with Talent Leadership and the Associate Director, Succession Planning to form a bench strategy: where the real gaps are, which ones are urgent, and what to do about each
Partner closely with Executive Talent Acquisition to translate succession insights into executive talent actions, aligning internal succession pipelines with external market strategies and determining when leadership needs should be addressed through acceleration, development, talent moves, or executive hiring.
Build the recommendation — and the supporting rationale — on who should be accelerated, who needs a developmental stretch, who's a flight risk, and where the organization has no credible internal answer
Stress-test the succession plan itself — pressure-test readiness calls, challenge optimistic timelines, surface single points of failure the process didn't catch
Partner with the Associate Director for Succession Planning to make sure process outputs are actually decision-useful, not just complete
Serve as the key line of support when a leadership situation doesn't fit a standard process — an underperforming executive, a fractured leadership team, a critical vacancy with no ready successor, leadership fallout from M&A or restructuring
Act as a strategic partner to Executive Recruiting on critical leadership searches, providing insight on internal talent availability, succession implications, market gaps, and long-term bench impact to ensure balanced internal and external talent decisions.
Work together with the Talent team (Leadership Development, Executive Development) to design bespoke interventions (targeted coaching, interim leadership structures, team effectiveness diagnostics) rather than defaulting to generic programs
Shape the options and point of view that inform the HR’s position with business leaders on high-stakes people calls
Operate with enough credibility that the VP and business leaders bring you problems early, before they become crises
Balance rigor (defensible process, consistent standards) against speed (leadership problems don't wait for the next scheduled review)