Vice President, People Operations

Condé Nast Germany•New York, NY

96d•$250,000 - $300,000•Onsite

About The Position

The Vice President, People Operations, is a senior member of the company’s People Leadership Team and is accountable for workforce planning, human resources strategy and prioritization, and HCM technology optimization, AI transformation in HR practices and planning. The role translates People strategy into scalable global services, processes, technology, and data capabilities that enable an effective employee and manager experience. This leader will oversee a portfolio that may include global People service delivery, HR technology, People data and analytics, process governance, vendor management, and selected operational programs, payroll, and support workforce AI initiatives. Working in a highly matrixed, multi-market environment, the Vice President will evolve common standards while ensuring that regional and local requirements are appropriately addressed. The successful candidate will be both strategic and hands-on: capable of shaping a multi-year operating roadmap, influencing senior stakeholders, and leading complex change, while also ensuring disciplined execution, service quality, controls, and continuous improvement.

Requirements

Approximately 12-15+ years of progressive human resources experience, including significant leadership of People/HR operations in a large, global and matrixed organization.
Demonstrated success leading shared services or employee service delivery, HR technology, HR process transformation and operational governance at scale.
Strong Workday expertise and experience shaping an integrated HR technology roadmap; familiarity with case management, knowledge platforms, analytics and automation tools is highly desirable.
Experience with People data governance, workforce reporting and analytics, including translating data into business insight and action.
Experience using AI tools and solutions with proficiency, preference for Gemini and ChatGPT modeling and use.
Proven record of simplifying and standardizing global processes while navigating local legal, cultural and operational requirements.
Experience leading complex global programs, vendor partnerships and geographically dispersed teams.
Broad understanding of the People function and how People Operations enables People Business Partners, Talent, Total Rewards, Employee Relations and other specialist teams.
Experience in media, technology, digital, consumer, creative or another fast-changing global industry is helpful but not required.
Bachelor’s degree or equivalent professional experience required; and relevant professional certification is a plus.

Nice To Haves

Familiarity with case management, knowledge platforms, analytics and automation tools is highly desirable.
Experience in media, technology, digital, consumer, creative or another fast-changing global industry is helpful but not required.
Relevant professional certification is a plus.

Responsibilities

Build upon and execute a multi-year global People Operations strategy aligned with business priorities and the broader People agenda.
Clarify global, regional and local accountabilities; establish service ownership, decision rights, escalation paths and governance forums.
Develop a transparent service catalogue, operating metrics and capacity model for the function.
Build, coach and develop a geographically dispersed team with strong functional expertise, accountability and customer orientation.
Lead the evolution of People service delivery, including tiered support, case management, knowledge management and employee/manager self-service.
Improve service quality, responsiveness and consistency through clear standards, service-level expectations and root-cause problem solving.
Identify work that can be standardized, automated through AI, centralized or transitioned from People Business Partners so they can focus on higher-value advisory work.
Ensure service design reflects employee needs, accessibility, inclusion and the realities of a global workforce.
Own the strategic roadmap for Workday and the broader People technology portfolio, ensuring platforms are secure, integrated, scalable, and fit for purpose.
Prioritize enhancements and investments based on business value, user experience, regulatory requirements, risk, and total cost of ownership.
Partner with Technology and Information Security on architecture, integrations, access controls, data privacy, release management, and business continuity.
Lead responsible adoption of automation and AI-enabled capabilities within People processes, with appropriate governance and human oversight.
Build on the People data quality, definitions, ownership, security, and retention across systems and markets workflows
Deliver accurate, timely workforce reporting and actionable analytics for senior leaders, People partners and functional teams.
Create dashboards and insights that support workforce planning, organizational effectiveness, talent outcomes, cost management and employee experience.
Ensure compliance with applicable data-protection, records-management, and employee-information requirements.
Lead end-to-end process design and continuous improvement across priority People processes, eliminating unnecessary complexity and handoffs.
Document and maintain global process standards, controls, and operating procedures; ensure readiness for audit and regulatory review.
Partner with Payroll, Finance, Legal, and market teams to manage operational risk and ensure reliable, compliant execution.
Use service data, employee feedback, and external benchmarks to identify improvement opportunities and measure impact.
Sponsor and govern major global People transformation initiatives, ensuring disciplined scope, milestones, resourcing, risk management, and benefits realization.
Manage strategic vendors and contracts in partnership with Procurement, including performance, service levels, innovation, security, cost, and relationship governance.
Build stakeholder commitment through clear communications, practical change plans, training, and sustained adoption support.
Present recommendations, trade-offs, and progress to senior leadership with clarity, candor, and strong business judgment.