Regional Chief People Officer - North America

WPP Production•New York, NY

4d•$155,000 - $390,000•Hybrid

About The Position

WPP Production is seeking a Regional Chief People Officer (CPO) for North America to partner with regional leadership and the country MD team. This role is crucial in delivering a regional people strategy aligned with business objectives and supporting the global people strategy. The CPO will focus on making WPP Production the employer of choice by enhancing the employee experience through consistent and deliberate interactions. As a key member of the global HR Leadership Team (HRLT), the CPO will contribute to global toolkits, talent management initiatives, and the implementation of Group-wide initiatives across the North America region, which comprises over 1,500 FTEs in various locations. The role also involves close collaboration with peer HR Leaders in LATAM, EMEA, and APAC, as well as Global COEs.

Requirements

A commercially astute and experienced business partner and HR generalist, who can demonstrate driving change through to results.
Able to interpret and use data to diagnose and solve operational and strategic issues.
Deep talent management experience in order to create and maintain a high-performance culture.
Resilient and able to navigate a complex matrix operating structure.
Natural gravitas, with the ability to quickly build effective and high trust relationships.
A champion of our business who is naturally curious and eager to understand the capabilities of Hogarth in order to be impactful.
A creative thinker, strong communicator and problem solver.
Highly organized and able to work autonomously.
Experience of managing HR professionals across borders and cultures.
Able to work in a fluid environment.
Desire to get stuck in, and work the breadth and depth of the talent spectrum.
Able to work from a position of influence as opposed to authority.
Culturally sensitive, understanding that one size does not always fit all.
Business Acumen and Strategic Thinking: Understanding WPP's overall business goals, the dynamics of the production industry, and how HR strategies can align with and support these objectives. This includes translating business challenges into actionable HR solutions.
Talent Management and Workforce Planning: Expertise in attracting, recruiting, developing, and retaining top talent within the creative and production sectors. This involves proactive workforce planning, addressing skill gaps, succession planning, and robust onboarding.
Compliance and Risk Management: Ensuring all HR practices adhere to federal, state, and local employment laws and regulations in North America (e.g., FLSA, FMLA, ADA, OSHA, EEO), as well as developing and updating HR policies.
Employee Relations and Engagement: Overseeing fair application of company policies, labor laws, and providing guidance on conflict resolution, disciplinary actions, and performance management. This also includes developing programs to enhance employee morale and retention.
Communication and Interpersonal Skills: Excellent verbal and written communication to effectively draft policies, create job descriptions, convey important information, build relationships, mediate conflicts, and influence stakeholders across various levels.
Leadership and Coaching: Guiding key stakeholders, developing high-performing HR teams, fostering a positive work environment, and mentoring future leaders within the organization.
Data Literacy and Analytical Skills: Ability to interpret HR metrics and analytics to inform strategic decision-making, identify trends, and measure the effectiveness of HR initiatives.
Change Management: Adapting to new technologies, market demands, and organizational changes, and effectively guiding employees and leadership through these transitions.
Ethical Judgment and Integrity: Acting with honesty, impartiality, protecting employee data, and enforcing fair workplace policies.

Responsibilities

Serve as a strategic talent partner to the Regional CEO and Regional Leadership.
Provide North America insights to the global HR team and community, ensuring regional representation in the design of global systems, processes, and initiatives.
Support country MDs on all aspects of talent management, particularly in locations with limited or inexperienced local HR.
Deliver and implement an annual people roadmap to support business and regional strategic objectives.
Drive employee engagement and retention strategies across North America.
Create more impactful and consistent interactions with employees across the region and globally.
Collaborate with the HRLT or Group to design and develop global HR tools suitable for North America and influence their early adoption.
Ensure the creation and development of succession plans at the Regional ExCo level, identifying and addressing talent gaps and future needs.
Work with Learning to grow and develop the talent pipeline across North America and ensure access to Learning tools and interventions, utilizing monthly dashboards for focus areas.
Ensure development plans are in place and activated for high performers and high potentials within the business, in collaboration with local leaders.
Partner with the central Talent Acquisition team to ensure global practices are adopted in North America and that data informs decisions.
Roll out the WPP Production performance management approach with local leaders, including quarterly reviews, development targets, and addressing performance gaps.
Conduct an annual salary review cycle with local leaders, Regional or country CFOs, and Global HR.
Lead or support employee relations, including terminations, ‘Right to Speaks’, redundancies, and disciplinaries in line with local legislation.
Partner with the Talent Lead and CFO to manage the WPP hiring process across North America.
Maintain knowledge of regulations, industry trends, and local practices across North America.
Act as the regional point of contact for Group-wide initiatives (e.g., WorkDay, Career Architecture, benefit harmonizations).
Support the Global CPO and HRLT on M&A programs, including associated change management initiatives.