HR Generalist

Use your skills to transform your local community. Goodwill Industries of Northwest North Carolina offers numerous career opportunities with competitive pay, excellent benefits, and the reward of knowing your hard work is helping others.

WHY WORK FOR GOODWILL?

Goodwill Industries of Northwest North Carolina, Inc. (Goodwill) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization headquartered in Winston-Salem, NC. We employ more than 1,100 team members who are dedicated to our mission of providing employment and training services that help people find jobs and reach financial stability. With 52 retail stores, 20 career centers, and dozens of attended donation centers across a 31-county territory, Goodwill is a complex enterprise offering a wide range of career opportunities.

At Goodwill, the work we do makes a difference in the lives of the individuals we serve and, in turn, in the community in which we live. Our business operations provide stability to our organization that is not always enjoyed by nonprofit organizations solely funded by outside sources. Our employees enjoy excellent benefits and a unique work environment that is professional, fast paced, and fulfilling.

Our organization’s values shape our culture and guide our interactions with program participants, customers, and each other. Our shared commitment to Living the Mission; Promoting Teamwork; Driving Improvement; Taking Responsibility for Actions and Behaviors; and Respecting and Appreciating Others is what makes us successful and inspires all that we do.

Want to learn more about Goodwill? Click on the links at the top of this page or go to: www.goodwillnwnc.org.

Job Summary

The HR Generalist is a trusted business partner to key leaders and team members across all locations in the Northwest NC territory. This role serves as the primary employee relations contact, coaches leaders, and executes core talent management programs (performance, succession, and development). The HR Generalist balances strategic consultation with hands‑on HR operations to strengthen culture, mitigate risk, and drive workforce outcomes.

Key Job Responsibilities

• Serves as the initial Employee Relations contact responsible for coaching and resolving issues involving policy adherence, performance, conduct, and workplace conflict. 

• Assists third-party ER partner in investigations and advising leaders on disciplinary processes, performance improvement plans, and terminations.

• Monitors ER metrics and presents insights to leadership with action plans.

• Develops strong support relationships with DGR leaders, providing guidance and counsel on daily issues.

• Serves as a liaison between our external ER vendor (Davidson group) and field leaders to help create a seamless internal customer service experience.

• Facilitates performance management cycles (goal‑setting, check‑ins, calibration); coaches leaders on high‑quality feedback and development planning.

• Supports succession planning and IDPs.

• Partners with Talent Acquisition on workforce planning, internal mobility, and critical role pipelines.

• Partners with training team to deploy targeted development initiatives.

• Uses a structured talent framework to align activities with business strategy and measure impact on retention, readiness, and promotion.

• Responsible for building consultative relationships with leadership teams, translating business goals into people development and HR solutions.
• Provides data‑driven insights (turnover, ER trends, staffing, productivity) and recommendations to key leaders.
• Champions an inclusive, values‑aligned culture; ensuring practices uphold dignity, fairness, and compliance.

• Interprets and applies federal, state, and local employment laws.

• Updates SOPs.

• Conducts policy training and compliance spot‑checks.

• Ensures secure employee records and strict confidentiality.

• Participates in and leads departmental and organizational projects as a SME, providing insights and recommendations to ensure compliance and a team-member focused approach.

Education

Bachelor’s degree in HR, Business, or related field required; advanced coursework preferred. SHRM‑CP/PHR (or higher) highly preferred.

Qualifications

• 5–8 years of progressive HR generalist experience with substantial employee relations responsibility.
• Proven success supporting multi‑site operations (e.g., retail, manufacturing, hospitality, nonprofit, distribution).
• Demonstrated facilitation of performance/talent review processes.
• Experience coaching frontline and senior leaders.
• UKG experience highly preferred.
• Advanced computer skills.
• Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite. 
• Excellent communication skills—both written and verbal.
• Strong decision-making capabilities with a strong focus on compliance and integrity.
• Ability to work independently and multi-task.
• Excellent time management and problem-solving skills.
• Must be able to prioritize tasks and adjust to accommodate urgent needs.
• Ability to think critically and look for solutions.
• Project management experience, highly preferred.
• Bilingual in Spanish preferred.
• Driver’s license and access to a personal vehicle required. 
• Ability to travel up to 75%, required.

BENEFITS

Goodwill believes strongly in supporting our team members and offers excellent benefits, professional development, and opportunities for internal career growth. We are continuously looking for opportunities to expand our benefits program to accommodate the needs of our team members. While this list is not all-inclusive, some of the many benefits we offer to all employees are:

• Competitive Paid Time Off (PTO) 
• Money Purchase Pension Plan
• 403(b) Retirement Savings Plan
• Employee Assistance Program
• Free Telehealth
• Employee Referral Program
• Quarterly Incentive Programs (for all retail positions)
• Corporate Discount Programs

In addition, we offer the following benefits for our full-time team members working 30 or more hours per week:

• Medical Insurance
• Prescription Coverage
• Dental and Vision Coverage
• Flex Spending Accounts (Medical and Dependent Care)
• Short & Long-Term Disability 
• Life Insurance
• Tuition Reimbursement

EOE. E-Verify Employer.