Human Resources Specialist

National Geographic Society • Washington, DC

20h • $76,000 - $80,000 • Onsite

About The Position

The Human Resources (HR) team works to find, grow, and retain talent and build the NGS community by designing strategies that enhance employee culture. As the National Geographic Society (NGS) prepares for the landmark 2026 opening of the Museum of Exploration (MOE), the HR team is expanding to support a rapidly growing workforce. Reporting to the Senior HR Business Partner (Sr. HRBP), the HR Specialist provides essential client support and tactical execution for the Campus & Experiences and Legal & Business Affairs divisions. This role serves as a foundational support to the Sr. HRBP, supporting a client base of approximately 350 employees. The Specialist handles day-to-day HR inquiries, manages the worker lifecycle in Workday, and assists with high-impact projects that ensure the HR function is positioned to support a world-class visitor-centric operation. Your Impact Responsibilities Include:

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business, Sociology, Psychology, or a related field. Relevant military experience and training in personnel management, administration, or leadership may be considered in lieu of a degree.
• 3+ years of progressively successful experience in Human Resources or a related field. Experience as a military non-commissioned officer (NCO) or officer with a focus on personnel actions, unit administration, or human capital is highly encouraged and will be counted toward years of experience.
• Ethical Mindset: Must maintain strict confidentiality and demonstrate a strong ethical foundation regarding payroll, benefits, and sensitive employee data.
• Communication & Urgency: Stellar organizational and interpersonal skills with the ability to work with a customer-first mindset and a high sense of urgency.
• Collaboration: A highly collaborative spirit with the ability to be a representative for the HR team.
• Regulatory Knowledge: Working knowledge of federal, state (DC), and local employment laws and regulations.

Nice To Haves

• Technical Skills: Proficiency with HRMS platforms; Workday experience is highly desirable.
• Problem Solving: Ability to solve a range of straightforward problems by analyzing solutions through standard procedures.
• Operational Sector Experience: Prior experience supporting a non-exempt, frontline, or visitor-centric workforce.

Responsibilities

• Client Support & Operational Excellence (45%) Communication Channel Management: Monitor activity coming through the dedicated HRBP email and Slack channel from staff within the C&E and Legal & Business Affairs divisions and provide support as appropriate. Serve as the primary initial point of contact for day-to-day inquiries from the frontline and shift-base workforce.
• Policy Guidance: Provide timely and accurate responses to standard inquiries regarding the interpretation and application of Human Resources policies and procedures.
• Lifecycle Management: Manage Workday transactions for the full employee lifecycle, including promotions, job changes, anniversary tracking, contingent worker oversight, and temporary staff requests.
• Onboarding & Offboarding: Coordinate introductory meetings, assist with the delivery of new hire orientations, and manage the end-to-end offboarding process, to include conducting exit interviews and identifying and tracking organizational trends.
• Compliance & Reporting: Accurately process unemployment claims and new hire DC reporting.
• Strategic Support & Engagement (30%) Leadership & Engagement Initiatives: Provide administrative and logistical support for HRBP divisional leadership programs and help coordinate intentional employee engagement activities, such as Connection Days and the HRBP Forum.
• Retention Framework: Support the Sr. HRBP by executing a formalized stay & exit interview process for frontline staff to proactively identify and address concerns that may impact staff retention.
• Summer Internship Program: Provide critical support to the organization's Summer Internship Program, including school outreach, advertising through the Handshake platform, planning programmatic events, managing website updates, and acting as a liaison with Technology, Security, and Payroll teams. Manage the administrative lifecycle by entering positions in Workday and reviewing departmental requests.
• Special Projects & Tactical Partnership (25%) Sr. HRBP Partnership: Manage complex calendar logistics for the Sr. HRBP, including scheduling check-ins, divisional introductions, and follow-up communications post-training or orientation.
• Risk Mitigation & Support: Assist the Sr. HRBP with maintaining divisional documentation, help draft separation agreements for legal review, and serve as an on-the-ground point of contact to identify emerging team needs.
• Presentation Development: Create high-quality, professional slide decks and communications for leadership briefings, workshops (e.g., CliftonStrengths), and other reports.
• Project Support: Support the Sr. HRBP with research for special projects and administrative tasks related to internal investigations.

Benefits

• The National Geographic Society offers a competitive and holistic total rewards package.
• Our compensation structure and transparent pay philosophy are based on industry-specific market data for similar-sized nonprofit organizations.
• The salary range for this position accounts for a wide range of factors including but not limited to organizational need; specific skill sets; experience and training; certifications; and more.
• At the National Geographic Society, individuals are typically hired at or near the starting point of the salary range for their role, and compensation decisions are dependent on the facts and circumstances of each case.
• The salary range for this position is $76,000.00 - $80,000.00.
• In addition, the National Geographic Society offers a competitive and comprehensive benefits package that includes, but is not limited to, medical, dental, and vision insurance; engaging and comprehensive wellness program; 401(k) retirement savings plan with matching contributions after 6 months of employment; flexible paid time off benefits with up to 22 days of paid annual leave per calendar year (15 days for new hires in their first year, prorated based on the number of pay periods remaining in the year) and 10 days of sick leave; 12 paid holidays and a paid winter break between December 25 and 31 (May not apply to all roles that are required to work during high volume seasons or essential workers. Please check with the hiring manager for confirmation.); paid parental leave, adoption and surrogacy expense reimbursement, fertility benefits; learning and development opportunities; Lifestyle Spending Account; pet adoption assistance and insurance; pre-tax transportation benefits with a generous employer subsidy; employer-paid life insurance and disability benefit; and a variety of National Geographic discounts and perks.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Number of Employees: 251-500 employees