Regional Director of HR

Team

Kennedys HR team supports the firm with all people related matters.

The team is based in London, Manchester and Chelmsford for the UK, Dublin for EMEA, Singapore, Hong Kong and Australia for APAC, Basking Ridge for US, and Miami and Mexico for LATAM.  The areas of HR that we have responsibility for are Business Partnering, Recruitment, Reward, HR Systems and Analytics, Learning and Development, Corporate Social Responsibility, and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. 

The Head of HR – US has a dual reporting line to the Regional Managing Partner for the U.S. and the Chief People Officer. The location for this position is Basking Ridge, NJ, although the office will be moving to Berkeley Heights, NJ, later this year.  We would consider candidates in New York, NY and Philadelphia, PA that are able to regularly commute to our NJ office in Basking Ridge/Berkeley Heights.

Key responsibilities

• Act as a Trusted Advisor to the Regional Managing Partner – US, US partnership, Chief People Officer, and other US Regional Directors in order to provide advice and guidance consistent with the firm's vision, as well as federal, state and local laws and regulations
• Oversee and lead all aspects of the US HR function, including but not limited to: performance management; promotion; learning and development; benefits and compensation; leave management; grievances, employment termination; diversity, equity and inclusion; recruitment, budgeting, and compliance
• Supervise, develop, mentor and coach regional team members to ensure first class service across the region and maintain a strong professional reputation for the department and its members
• Strategically analyze internal processes and systems to enable the HR team to deliver effective and efficient solutions to day-to-day and long term HR issues and challenges
• Manage the HR aspects of global and regional projects, such as office openings, mergers, and acquisitions
• Lead and counsel partners and Business Services supervisors on employment related issues

Additional responsibilities

• Lead and manage the regional HR team
• Lead and deliver the annual key HR processes (salary review, bonus, promotions, appraisals etc), regularly reviewing and evolving processes in conjunction with Regional Managing Partner
• Identify top talent and assist in their development in order to ensure the appropriate succession planning and advancement for the team
• Work closely with the Chief People Officer and other Heads Of on strategic, global HR projects and initiatives
• Lead and oversee the US HR budget in conjunction with Regional Managing Partner, Chief People Officer, Regional Director of Finance – US, other global Heads of HR, with the goal of managing spend and maintaining high standards
• Analyze and act upon financial reporting and trends for the region, such as billable hours targets, workload allocation, and spend
• Liaise with US General Counsel, employment counsel, and when appropriate, employment practices liability carrier, regarding significant employment issues and resolve issues in an efficient and effective manner
• In consultation with Regional Managing Partner and US General Counsel, lead employment related investigations
• In conjunction with regional Learning and Development personnel and the global HR Learning and Development team, shape and inform the Learning and Development annual plans by identifying development priorities for the region and providing feedback into proposed learning initiatives
• Collaborate with other heads of across the business globally to deliver the best solutions for the firm
• Consistent with global approval process, overall responsibility for regional recruitment for all levels of personnel, including strategic monitoring of headcount and recruitment budgets and ensuring the global recruitment approval process is followed correctly
• Embrace diversity and inclusion initiatives in order to widen the access of candidates from a variety of backgrounds into law
• Act as a facilitator for CSR and D&I projects and initiatives for the region
• Oversee the accurate and timely recording of US data into the firm's HRIS, HRPro, and US-based systems
• Develop and lead the US Reward strategy and work with the global HR Reward and Operations team to shape and inform the global Reward strategy by identifying areas for alignment and development priorities for the region; ensure the firms' competitiveness and compliance in the relevant market for policies, compensation, benefits and wellbeing for partners and employees
• Oversee annual insurance renewals and benefit offerings such as health, vision, dental, long and short term disability, life insurance and 401(k).

Required Experience

• 5-10 years' of HR management responsibility gained within a law firm (law firm experience preferred but candidates with experience gained within a professional services environment will be considered)
• Excellent communication skills, significant people management experience and demonstrable leadership skills
• Experience of working with and proven ability to influence senior stakeholders and maintain excellent stakeholder relationships
• Strong math aptitude and ability to analyse, interpret and manipulate data
• Proven proficiency in Excel 
• Ability to manage multiple projects and deadlines at any one time.

Please let us know if you require any additional support or adjustments to be made in order to submit your application to Kennedys. 

*where a level of experience is indicated, this is a guideline only and represents the amount of time we would usually expect a candidate to accumulate the requisite level of experience. This does not preclude applications from candidates with more or less experience.

About Kennedys

Kennedys is a global law firm with expertise in dispute resolution and advisory services. With over 2,750 people worldwide across 45 offices in the UK, Europe, Middle East, Asia Pacific and America we have some of the most respected legal minds in their field.

Our lawyers handle both contentious and non-contentious matters, and provide a range of specialist legal services, for many industry sectors but we have particular expertise in litigation and dispute resolution, especially in defending insurance and liability claims.

We're a fresh-thinking firm, and we're not afraid to bring challenging new perspectives to the table way beyond the traditional realm of legal services. We empower our clients with a diverse range of ideas, tools and technology to make their lives easier, as well as delivering exceptional results, every time.

What do we have to offer?

We welcome high-performing lawyers, business services professionals, secretaries, graduates and apprentices to join our rapidly expanding global firm. Whatever your role at Kennedys, you'll be involved in exciting and stimulating work, where your input will make a difference.

Our culture and values form a big part of who we are and we take them seriously. We make a difference by being approachable, straightforward, supportive and distinctive. Our values are at the core of who we are and what make us a great firm to work with and for.

The Firm recognises the value of investing in our people's development and believes our culture and values contribute to the quality of our work and of our client relationships. With a culture of on-the-job and experiential learning, peer to peer learning, mentoring, resources and tools that enable you to drive your career, we can support your development in your current and future roles.  A variety of other opportunities are available including secondments to clients and our global offices.

We strive to celebrate diversity, empower our people and ensure everyone can bring their authentic selves to work.  We've created a culture based on client service, professional excellence, hard work and trust, where diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) is a key priority.  We recognise that many of our people want to work for an employer that is aligned to their values, which is why we are building an inclusive culture, decarbonising our operations and supporting our people to thrive at work.  Our people are the key to driving this change and helping us to make a difference to our clients, our people and the communities in which we live and work.

Kennedys is an equal opportunities employer and is committed to ensuring our recruitment processes are as inclusive as possible. We expect all employees to be aware of and comply with all relevant policies and procedures within their jurisdiction, including those relating to Information Security, Data Protection and Quality Management, refer any breach promptly to Risk & Compliance and to complete all mandatory training when requested.