Director, People and Culture

Title:                               Director, People and Culture

Classification:               Full-time Salaried, Exempt Position

Salary:                            $120,000 to $150,000

Location:                       Remote or work out of the Washington, DC office

The Director, People and Culture will play a critical role in developing and implementing equitable talent strategies that support a culture of inclusion and belonging and ensure everyone on our team can thrive. This is a unique opportunity to join an organization about to undergo a bold, new strategic planning process with a new leader who is both passionate and deliberate about CSSP’s commitment to racial justice and vision of being an anti-racist intersectional organization.  This is a new position that will report to and work closely with the Executive Vice President and CFO and be a member of the executive leadership team. In the fall of last year and with the help of an external equity organization, we conducted a survey with all of our staff and have clear feedback for immediate, mid-range, and longer-term next steps that will be led by the Director, People & Culture. These items include, but are not limited to, reviewing and refining compensation policies; conducting a pay equity audit; establishing clear competency assessments at each level within the organization; creating and implementing a plan to train and support managers; managing professional development and coaching opportunities; and reviewing and co-designing a revised performance evaluation process.

 What You’ll Take On

In this role, you will lead CSSP’s People and Culture strategy, shaping organization-wide decisions related to people practices and HR priorities through data, analysis, and recommendations that align with CSSP’s values. In alignment with identified key priorities, we anticipate your first 12 - 24 months will be focused on the following areas:

Staff Growth & Development

• Develop and define CSSP’s approach to career pathways (promotion, internal roles, and preparing for outside roles).
• Build and implement an overall staff development strategy that will include:
  • Develop our philosophy for staff growth & development, identifying opportunities for both internally and externally led learning, professional development, and programming that are values-driven and build individual and organizational capacity in areas of equity, diversity, and inclusion.
  • Identify learning priorities and staff development resources that will be most impactful in the retention, growth, and development of staff.
  • Lead key staff learning initiative around manager development and leadership training; including assisting with selecting and working with any outside organizations needed to build internal capacity and/or provide training and coaching.

Compensation

• Develop an equitable compensation philosophy that clearly articulates how CSSP makes compensation decisions, and redesign compensation policies to align to the philosophy and ensure an equitable and sustainable compensation package for all staff.
• Conduct a pay equity audit to ensure internal compensation equity and develop a plan for addressing any inequities.
• Define criteria and process for how employee bonuses are awarded.

Performance Management

• Reimagine CSSP’s performance evaluation process; developing tools, systems, and rituals that allow for ongoing feedback and incorporate multiple perspectives to assess performance.

Additionally, you will:

• Develop, track, and assess annual People, Values, and Culture goals and plans aligned with the strategic planning process and CSSP’s commitment to creating a culture of belonging and inclusivity.
• Manage, develop, and execute talent acquisition and retention strategies, including the creation of job descriptions and hiring processes.
• Maintain responsibility for CSSP’s compliance with federal and state legislation pertaining to all personnel matters (ADA, FMLA, Wage and Hour, benefits, etc.).
• Handle all employment law matters such as FMLA, Wage and Hour, ADA.
• Develop, administer, and communicate HR policies, procedures, and directives including oversight of CSSP’s Employee Handbook.

About you

We are looking for someone who shares a passion for our mission to achieve a racially, economically, and socially just society in which all children and families thrive, and who is inspired by the opportunity to lead our talent and culture strategies to ensure CSSP is a place where everyone can thrive.

• You are a strategic thinker who brings deep experience and expertise in creating talent policies and practices that create and amplify equity. 
• You are highly motivated by and deeply committed to our organization’s values. You actively apply an anti-racist, intersectional approach to the work to better serve historically marginalized groups. You help create a culture that is inclusive, equitable, and inspires engagement and curious learning.
• You ground your work in developing relationships across teams and individuals to collaborate, build buy-in, work cross functionally, and influence others.
• You continuously practice a growth mindset. You welcome feedback, are open to new ideas, and support personal growth and development and organization-wide improvement.
• You are a strong communicator who is fluent in change management strategies. You have a proven track record of success in implementing change across an organization.

Ideal candidates will also have:

• A minimum of 10 years of progressive leadership experience, including as an organizational talent and culture leader for a social impact or non-profit or in a significant role that had decision-making authority around culture policies and practices.
• Experience leading and managing teams.
• Experience in the social service sector, a results orientation and a strong commitment to racial justice required.
• Personal and professional understanding of intersectionality, anti-racism, inclusion, and power dynamics and how these play out across teams and organizations.
• Deep understanding of HR practices and approaches with knowledge of HR compliance laws.
• Ability to think strategically, translate thoughts into action and follow-through with all details.
• Strong problem-solving and interpersonal skills.
• Extremely trustworthy - our staff will be able to trust that they can come to this person and for the conversations to remain confidential unless there is a serious reason not to maintain confidentiality.
• Ability to work well with people with a very wide diversity of demographic and cultural characteristics; must be capable of achieving results while maintaining an inclusive, collaborative leadership style.
• Demonstrated ability to build relationships, develop rapport, and work with teams.
• Ability to act with confidence and professionalism with internal and external stakeholders.
• Strong personal effectiveness, integrity, credibility, discretion, humility, and accountability.
• Comfort operating with a high level of independence and efficiency, coupled with a desire to lead and be part of high-performing teams.

About CSSP

The Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP) is a national, non-profit organization that connects community action, public system reform, and policy change.  We work to achieve a racially, economically, and socially just society in which all children and families thrive.  To do this, we translate ideas into action, promote public policies grounded in equity, support strong and inclusive communities, and advocate with and for all children and families marginalized by public policies and institutional practices. We are headquartered in Washington, DC, with satellite offices in New York City and Los Angeles.

At CSSP, we recognize the long and devastating history of racism and discrimination in our country.  For the past 15 years, we have intensified our focus on racial justice, LGBTQ+ rights, and immigrant rights, including strengthening our organizational capacity to do this work in collaboration with community.  We are committed to holding anti-racism and intersectionality as core values, doing this work in systems and in the community, and including deep historical research as a foundational part of our work developing and advancing programmatic and policy ideas.  CSSP is committed to working towards being an anti-racist organization and to identifying and eliminating aspects of White supremacy in our policies and culture.

What We Offer

CSSP offers an annual salary of $120,000 - $150,000 for this position, commensurate with skills and experience. We also offer a comprehensive benefits package for all full-time employees, including 100% employer paid medical, dental, and vision plans for employee coverage. Other benefits include 100% employer paid disability and life insurance, a generous paid vacation and holiday schedule including winter and summer breaks, paid parental leave, and 11% employer-paid retirement contributions after one full year of employment.  CSSP also provides cell phone and internet stipends, a professional development stipend, and the ability to work remotely. This position would require six to eight trips per year if not located in the Washington, DC area.

How to Apply and Other:

Qualified applicants should send a cover letter with salary requirements and resume to jobs-at-cssp.org (subject: Your Name – Director, People & Culture). In your cover letter, please be sure to indicate where you found this position announcement.  The interview process will include phone screening, panel style interviews, and final interviews.  Finalists will also be asked to participate in a short, written exercise.

Due to the large number of applications, emails and phone calls to CSSP will not be accepted/reviewed.

Applications accepted until June 30th or until the position is filled.

CSSP is an equal opportunity employer.  All qualified applicants will be considered for employment without unlawful discrimination based on race, color, creed, national origin, sex, age, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, gender expression, military status, prior record of arrest or conviction, citizenship status, current employment status or caregiver status