HR Generalist

Cremer North America•Cincinnati, OH

10h•Onsite

About The Position

Cremer Oleo is investing in strengthening its North American operations and building a more consistent, engaged employee experience across its manufacturing sites. This HR Generalist (Human Resources Generalist) role offers the opportunity to work directly with plant leadership, shape frontline culture, and help drive meaningful improvements in retention, engagement, and operational effectiveness. Cremer North America Cremer Oleo is part of the global Cremer Group, a privately owned German organization headquartered in Hamburg with operations spanning North America, Europe, Latin America, and Asia. The company focuses on oleochemical manufacturing, chemical distribution, and contract manufacturing solutions that support a broad range of industries and leading global brands. As the business continues to grow its North American manufacturing presence, Cremer Oleo is strengthening its Human Resources (HR – Human Resources) capabilities to support plant leadership, enhance employee experience, and build sustainable workforce practices across its operations. What You Will Do The HR Generalist supports the full employee lifecycle for a manufacturing site, with a strong emphasis on hourly workforce practices, employee relations, supervisor coaching, and people process discipline. This role ensures consistent application of policies and employment law, delivers high-quality HR service to employees and leaders, and partners with Operations, EHS, and Quality to sustain a safe, engaged, and high-performing workplace. Talent Acquisition is outsourced; this role coordinates hiring execution with external providers while owning plant onboarding and early-tenure success. The HR Generalist also coaches Supervisors and Shift Leads on performance management, training execution, and people leadership, and plays a central role in coordinating internal HR communications at site level. Employee Relations & Supervisor Coaching: Serve as the first point of contact for plant employees and front-line leaders on policy interpretation, workplace concerns, and employee relations matters. Assist Operations Senior HR Business Partners in coaching Shift Leads and Supervisors. Build frontline leadership capability through regular floor presence and real-time coaching. Conduct investigations and recommend corrective actions with strong documentation discipline. Performance Management Execution & Leader Enablement: Support execution of the site’s performance management cycle (goal setting, mid-year reviews, annual reviews) for hourly and salaried populations. Train Shift Leads and Supervisors on performance expectations, ratings philosophy, and feedback conversations. Ensure documentation standards are met in ADP and Cornerstone systems. Partner with the Operations Senior HR Manager to embed strong performance culture and accountability. Hiring Coordination & Onboarding Ownership: Act as site point person for hiring execution with outsourced Talent Acquisition and staffing providers. Own plant onboarding for all hires. HR Operations, Compliance & Systems: Maintain employee transactions and data accuracy in ADP. Support and advise Technical Training & Capability Built Coordinator in managing: training assignments, completion tracking, and reporting in Cornerstone. Audits, policy acknowledgements, and compliance training documentation. Lead local leave and attendance administration while ensuring compliant, up-to-date employee records through close coordination with employment agencies and benefits providers. Rewards / Pay Support: Partner with a Compensation Analyst on pay-related analysis and site cycles. Support merit and bonus communication execution. Engagement & Internal Communications: Coordinate HR-related internal communications for the site. Ensure messages are clearly cascaded to Employees and reinforced through shift meetings and floor communications. Partner with the Operations Senior HR Business Partner on engagement actions and culture initiatives. Metrics & Continuous Improvement: Maintain a monthly people dashboard: turnover and early attrition, absenteeism, hiring cycle times, and onboarding completion. Who You Are You are a hands-on Human Resources (HR – Human Resources) professional who thrives in a fast-paced manufacturing environment. You bring strong employee relations judgment, operational discipline, and the ability to build credibility with frontline leaders and hourly employees alike. You are comfortable being present on the plant floor, coaching supervisors in real time, navigating complex workplace situations, and ensuring policies are applied consistently and fairly. You balance empathy with accountability and are confident handling investigations, performance management conversations, and attendance issues with clarity and professionalism.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in HR or Business, or SHRM-CP / PHR
2+ years HR Generalist experience in manufacturing or industrial operations
Strong employee relations and investigation capability
HRIS experience (ADP preferred)
LMS exposure (ideally Cornerstone)
Frontline Leader Coaching
Employee Relations & Judgment
Retention & Employee Experience Focus
Operational Excellence
Data-Driven Problem Solving

Responsibilities

Serve as the first point of contact for plant employees and front-line leaders on policy interpretation, workplace concerns, and employee relations matters.
Assist Operations Senior HR Business Partners in coaching Shift Leads and Supervisors.
Build frontline leadership capability through regular floor presence and real-time coaching.
Conduct investigations and recommend corrective actions with strong documentation discipline.
Support execution of the site’s performance management cycle (goal setting, mid-year reviews, annual reviews) for hourly and salaried populations.
Train Shift Leads and Supervisors on performance expectations, ratings philosophy, and feedback conversations.
Ensure documentation standards are met in ADP and Cornerstone systems.
Partner with the Operations Senior HR Manager to embed strong performance culture and accountability.
Act as site point person for hiring execution with outsourced Talent Acquisition and staffing providers.
Own plant onboarding for all hires.
Maintain employee transactions and data accuracy in ADP.
Support and advise Technical Training & Capability Built Coordinator in managing: training assignments, completion tracking, and reporting in Cornerstone.
Audits, policy acknowledgements, and compliance training documentation.
Lead local leave and attendance administration while ensuring compliant, up-to-date employee records through close coordination with employment agencies and benefits providers.
Partner with a Compensation Analyst on pay-related analysis and site cycles.
Support merit and bonus communication execution.
Coordinate HR-related internal communications for the site.
Ensure messages are clearly cascaded to Employees and reinforced through shift meetings and floor communications.
Partner with the Operations Senior HR Business Partner on engagement actions and culture initiatives.
Maintain a monthly people dashboard: turnover and early attrition, absenteeism, hiring cycle times, and onboarding completion.