ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR, HUMAN RESOURCES

Sanford Burnham Prebys is much more than a research facility and hub for innovation; it's a vibrant global community of talented scientists and researchers from over 30 countries. This worldwide representation enriches our perspectives and enhances our creative approach to solving complex scientific challenges.

We strive to be leaders not only in biomedical research but also in creating an environment where excellence thrives through collaboration across cultures and backgrounds. Our mission is to advance the biomedical sciences by cultivating the next generation of scientific leaders, providing meaningful opportunities for researchers of all backgrounds to learn, innovate, and make breakthrough discoveries that improve human health.

Together, we translate science into health.

The duties and responsibilities contained in the job description are intended to be examples of the accountabilities for which the person in the position will demonstrate competency through performance. The job description is not intended to be an all-inclusive list. Duties and responsibilities are subject to change and other duties may be assigned as necessary.

PositionSummary:

The Associate Director, Human Resources, is a senior HR leader reporting to the Director of Human Resources. The Associate Director exercises independent judgment within authority delegated by the Director of Human Resources and serves as a primary escalation point for complex, sensitive, or high-risk employee relations and hiring matters.

This role provides senior-level oversight and subject-matter leadership for Talent Acquisition and Employee Relations activities, directly conducts and oversees investigations across a range of employee matters, advises leaders on performance management, workforce engagement, and people-related risk, and partners closely with the Director of Human Resources and Legal as appropriate on matters requiring policy interpretation and institutional judgement.

Duties and Responsibilities:

HR Leadership & People Strategy

• Serve as a strategic HR partner to leadership, guiding workforce planning, organizational effectiveness, and people-related initiatives.
• Collaborate closely with the Director of Human Resources on HR strategy, change management, and continuous improvement of HR programs.
• Advise senior leadership on people-related risk, performance concerns, and organizational trends, brining a consistent, institution-wide perspective to decision-making.

• Provide strategic oversight and guidance for full-cycle recruitment strategies for scientific and administrative roles, with particular focus on high-impact, sensitive, or senior leval searches.
• Serve as a stategic advisor to hiring managers and leadership on search strategy, candidate assessment, and hiring risks for high-impact or sensitive roles.
• Ensure recruitment practices are applied consistently across departments and aligned with instituional standards and values.
• Monitor and improve recruiting metrics such as time-to-fill, quality-of-hire, and key outcomes, and recommend improvements to the Director of Human Resources.
• Ensure an equitable, efficient, and high-quality hiring process and candidate experience, without assuming ownership of recruitment systems or day-to-day administration

• Serve as a senior employee relations leader, addressing Institute-wide matters, including performance management concerns, workplace conduct issues, manager coaching, and employee complaints.
• Conduct workplace investigations across a range of employee matters (performance, conduct, policy violations, and workplace concerns) or oversee investigations as appropriate based on complexity and risk.
• Determine investigative scope, methodology, and documentation standards, and approach (internal or external), in consultation with HR and Legal Leadership as appropriate.
• Ensure investigations are conducted promptly, fairly, and in compliance with institutional policies and applicable laws.
• Analyze and review investigation findings and exercise independent judgment in advising leadership on outcomes, corrective actions, and follow-on steps.
• Identify trends and systemic risks arising from employee relations matters and investigations, and recommend proactive institutional responses (e.g., training, policy clarification, or process improvements).

• Provide strategic coaching to managers and leaders on performance management, conduct issues, and workplace dynamics.
• Support development and/or delivery of manager guidance and training related to employee relations, performance management, and fair employment practices.
• Partner with the Director of Human Resources during organizational changes, leadership transitions, restructurings, or funding-driven staffing actions to advise on people impacts and risk considerations.

• Interpret and apply federal, state, and local employment laws and regulations, ensuring compliant HR practices.
• Apply employment policies and compliant practices through investigation findings, employee relations guidance, and leadership advisement.
• Partner with the Director of Human Resources and Legal to review, interpret, and recommend updates to HR policies and procedures, and support consistent application across the organization.
• Partner with internal and external legal counsel on complex employment matters and risk mitigation strategies.
• Support audits, reporting requirements, and institutional compliance initiatives.

• 7-10 years of progressive HR experience, with substantial focus on employee relations, workplace investigations, and performance management.
• Demonstrated experience independently conducting or leading workplace investigations, including factual analysis, documentation, and recommendations regarding outcomes and corrective actions.
• Prior experience managing or providing senior-leval oversight to HR professionals or serving in a lead or escalation role for employee relations matters.
• Strong working knowledge of federal, state, and local employment law, with substantial California experience preferred.
• Familiarity with HRIS platforms (e.g., Workday, ADP) sufficient to interpret data and trends; system administration experience not required.
• Experience in nonprofit, academic, or medical research environments preferred.

• Demonstrated ability to exercise sound, independent judgment in complex and sensitive employee relations matters, including workplace investigations, performance issues, and institutional risk assessment, with a high degree of discretion, professionalism, and integrity.
• Strong workplace investigation expertise, including fact-finding, credibility assessment, documentation, and synthesis of findings into clear, defensible recommendations.
• Excellent communication, interpersonal, and coaching skills, with the ability to influence and advise leaders and managers at multiple levels and present complex information clearly to varied audiences.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, including the ability to identify trends, assess risk, and recommend proactive, institution-wide solutions in partnership with Legal and senior leadership.
• Proficiency with HRIS platforms and Microsoft Office Suite (particularly Excel and PowerPoint) for analysis, reporting, and executive presentations.

• Standing and Walking: Ability to occasionally (up to 3 hrs) stand or walk and move between different workstations.
• Other physical activity: Constant (6 - 8 hrs) sitting, occasionaly (up to 3 hrs) bending, kneeling, or twisting may be required.
• Lifting and Carrying: Capability to ocasionally lift and carry equipment and materials, typically up to 50 pounds, up to various height and distances.
• Manual Dexterity: Extended periods of repetitive use of their hand, including but not limited to simple grasping, pushing, pulling, reaching and keyboarding.