Fast Facts

Cengage Group is seeking a Director, Strategic HR Business Partner to lead talent strategy initiatives and foster collaboration with senior leaders in a remote role. This strategic position focuses on developing talent plans to support business objectives while promoting diversity and inclusion within the organization.

Responsibilities: Key responsibilities include partnering with senior leaders to create talent management strategies, coaching executives, leading performance management processes, and driving organizational change initiatives.

Skills: Required skills include at least 10 years of HR experience, strong communication abilities, analytical skills for data-driven decisions, and proficiency in HR strategies related to diversity and inclusion.

Qualifications: A bachelor's degree is strongly preferred, with additional preference for candidates experienced in global team dynamics and Workday software.

Location: This is a fully remote position available to candidates located in the greater Boston, MA or Cincinnati, OH areas, with occasional travel of up to 20%.

Compensation: $150000 - $180000 / Annually

We believe in the power and joy of learning

At Cengage Group, our employees have a direct impact in helping students around the world discover the power and joy of learning. We are bonded by our shared purpose – driving innovation that helps millions of learners improve their lives and achieve their dreams through education.

Our culture values diversity, engagement, and discovery

Our business is driven by our strong culture, and we know that creating an inclusive and diverse workplace is absolutely essential to the success of our company and our learners, as well as our individual well-being. We recognize the value of diverse perspectives in everything we do, and strive to ensure employees of all levels and backgrounds feel empowered to voice their ideas and bring their authentic selves to work. We achieve these priorities through inclusive programs, benefits, and initiatives that are integrated into the fabric of how we work every day. To learn more, please see https://www.cengagegroup.com/about/inclusion-and-diversity/.

Reporting to the SVP, Talent Strategy Partner, the Director, Strategic HR Business Partner is a strategic leader who drives the talent agenda within a business unit or function. You will be a thought partner with senior business leaders to develop and help drive their talent strategy that will enable the team to deliver against its business strategy and objectives. You will work with our Centers of Excellence, HR Services, Talent and Total Rewards to implement this strategy, applying a strategic and customer focused approach. You will be a core member of our high-performing and highly collaborative HR team, ensuring alignment with all HR goals and Cengage’s credo and ethos. If you possess a mentality of critical thinking, a practical approach to drive results, and a dedication to ongoing improvement, you are the person we are looking for!

Where you'll work: This is a remote work from home position for candidates located in the greater Boston MA or Cincinnati OH areas. The role requires occasional in person travel up to 20% of the time

What you'll do here:

• As a member of the leadership team for a business unit or function, form effective partnerships with senior leaders to understand the business strategy and translate that strategy into strategic and operational Talent plans
• Serve as a trusted advisor and coach to senior leaders (VP+) on highly critical and often complex talent and people related issues
• Accountable for driving toward excellence in Talent Management across the Employee lifecycle. Bring the voice of the customer back to the broader HR team to ensure program design incorporates the needs of the business
• Partner with Talent Acquisition to recruit and onboard senior leaders; create and implement targeted TA strategies to achieve business goals
• Lead the performance management and talent review process and partner with leaders to ensure appropriate development plans are in place to support employee growth
• Guide leaders to identify functional competencies and performance dimensions for specific roles
• Coach and build capability of managers to be effective people leaders
• Partner with SVP, Talent Strategy Partner and senior leadership teams to develop a workforce planning strategy that helps develop accurate forecasts for near and long-term hiring and skill development needs.
• Implement plans to ensure adoption of new processes and protection of Cengage’s culture and values
• Partner with the Inclusion & Diversity lead to support development and execution of inclusion programs
• Lead projects that are prioritized and critical to the talent agenda – examples include, but not limited to – compensation reviews, proactive retention, etc.
• Be a catalyst for organizational change; orchestrate organizational re-design efforts as needed, including Mergers & Acquisitions
• Leverage data and business mentality to pull out insights and proactively anticipate implications for talent strategy; present recommendations to influence actions
• Actively contribute to the global HR community to increase the capability and strategic value of the human resource function through high levels of performance and customer service. Share standard processes and seek input on solutions to tough problems.
• Effectively communicate progress and key findings and results from projects and discussions with key partners including HR team members, employees, and leaders within the business and the function.

Skills You Will Need Here:

Required:

• Minimum 10 years of experience as an HR professional with a minimum of 5 years supporting an organization’s leadership team
• Experience in developing and implementing talent strategies for high performance organizations
• Superior collaboration and communication skills with executive presence. Strong presentation skills and comfort level with addressing groups of all types and sizes.
• Experience in supporting and driving Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion programming
• Comfortable operating in a dynamic and sophisticated environment
• Ability to use data to develop insights and recommendations
• Strong coaching, conflict resolution and ability to have difficult conversations
• Ability to lead-by-example and promote a positive, team-based environment.
• Comfort with ambiguity and constant change, able to methodically work through sophisticated problems, set priorities and complete commitments.
• Proficiency with Outlook, Word, Excel and PowerPoint.
• Ability to travel up to 20% for required team meetings and other business unit events
• Bachelor’s degree strongly preferred or equivalent experience

Preferred:

• Experience working with Global/International teams
• Workday experience a plus

Cengage Group is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action employer. We do not discriminate based upon race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, veteran status, marital status, parental status, cultural background, organizational level, work styles, tenure and life experiences. Or for any other reason. You may view Cengage’s EEO/Affirmative Action Policy signed by CEO Michael Hansen and Equal Employment Opportunity is the Law notice by visiting their corresponding links.

Cengage Group is committed to providing reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities in our job application procedures. If you need assistance or an accommodation due to a disability, you may contact us at [email protected] or you may call us at +1 (617) 289-7917.

About Cengage Group

Cengage Group, a global education technology company serving millions of learners, provides affordable, quality digital products and services that equip students with the skills and competencies needed to be job ready. For more than 100 years, we have enabled the power and joy of learning with trusted, engaging content, and now, integrated digital platforms. We serve the higher education, workforce skills, secondary education, English language teaching and research markets worldwide. Through our scalable technology, including MindTap and Cengage Unlimited, we support all learners who seek to improve their lives and achieve their dreams through education.

Compensation

At Cengage Group, we take great pride in our commitment to providing a comprehensive and rewarding Total Rewards package designed to support and empower our employees. Click here to learn more about our Total Rewards Philosophy.

The full base pay range has been provided for this position. Individual base pay will vary based on work schedule, qualifications, experience, internal equity, and geographic location. Sales roles often incorporate a significant incentive compensation program beyond this base pay range.

In this position, you will be eligible to participate in the company’s discretionary incentive bonus program. This position's bonus target amount, which is not guaranteed and is dependent on individual performance and overall company results among other factors, is provided below. 

25% Annual: Individual Target$150,000.00 - $180,000.00 USD