People Partner, Pilot and Central Operations

Niron Magnetics, Inc.•Minneapolis, MN

26d•$110,000 - $160,000•Onsite

About The Position

The Pilot and Central Operations role is at the heart of building something new at Niron, a first-of-its-kind facility scaling breakthrough processes towards the first full-scale manufacturing plant. This People Partner role is not just for when things go wrong, but for building the organization alongside the teams. Reporting to the Chief People Officer, this role offers a high degree of autonomy and will evolve as Niron scales. The People Partner will act as both a strategic partner for leaders and provide hands-on support for employees, embodying Niron's core competencies of collaboration, open communication, decisive action, prioritizing people and safety, and delivering business results. Leaders in this role will help others grow, align teams, and remove execution barriers. Expect to spend most of your week with the teams, on the production floor and in their meetings, proactively identifying issues.

Requirements

7+ years in HR Business Partner, People Partner, or broad HR roles, including direct employee relations work.
Experience supporting manufacturing, operations, engineering, or other technical teams, including hourly, shift-based employees.
A track record of coaching leaders, including new supervisors, and influencing decisions at every level.
Comfort with ambiguity and building things that don't exist yet, without waiting for a playbook.
Bachelor's degree in HR, business, organizational development, or a related field, or equivalent experience.

Nice To Haves

Experience at a startup or scale-up, or supporting a plant startup, production ramp, or new site.
Experience partnering with a new executive to build a team or function.
Working knowledge of Minnesota employment law.

Responsibilities

Be a trusted partner to leaders and employees by building strong relationships, demonstrating a 'Build as One Team' approach, fostering collaboration, and helping teams work through challenges.
Proactively identify trends and feedback early before they become problems by deeply understanding the work, people, and team dynamics.
Advise leaders on decisions regarding structure, roles, staffing, and team effectiveness, utilizing data and insights from the production floor.
Serve as an accessible resource for all employees, from technicians and operators to senior leaders.
Invest in and build frontline and new leaders by coaching supervisors, leads, and managers on feedback, accountability, performance management, and employee development.
Partner with operational leaders to establish scalable leadership practices that reinforce Niron's culture, expectations, and values.
Assist the new COO in establishing the structure, roles, and ways of working for the new plant startup team.
Design practical leader development programs for first-line supervisors that accommodate production schedules.
Partner with Talent Acquisition and business leaders to attract, assess, and hire talent aligned with Niron's mission, values, and competency expectations.
Build onboarding processes that ensure new technicians and operators become productive and engaged, and remain with the company past their first 90 days.
Support talent reviews, succession planning, and career development processes to identify, develop, and retain key talent.
Collaborate with People Partners and business leaders across sites to create consistent and scalable people practices while maintaining agility in a fast-growing environment.
Balance startup speed and flexibility with the steady, consistent application of employment law and policy.
Own engagement surveys and feedback mechanisms for assigned groups, helping leaders translate results into actionable plans.
Assist leaders in navigating organizational growth and change by providing clear communication, practical guidance, and change management support.
Partner with EHS and operational leaders to reinforce Niron's commitment to safety, inclusion, and employee well-being.
Champion a culture of feedback, accountability, innovation, and collaboration that reflects Niron's core competencies and values.
Handle employee relations with good judgment, guiding leaders through performance management, investigations, corrective action, and conflict resolution with fairness, consistency, and integrity.
Address employee concerns fairly and quickly, conducting investigations where appropriate and escalating sensitive matters to the CPO.
Apply policies consistently and build scalable people practices for a growing manufacturing company, including those for hourly, shift-based work.
Identify where flexibility benefits the business and where policy, compliance, and legal requirements are non-negotiable.
Help leaders make difficult talent decisions with empathy, good judgment, and a focus on both business outcomes and employee experience.