Human Resources Business Partner (HRBP)

Who We Are

Founded in 1926, the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation is a private, not-for-profit educational, historic, and cultural institution that owns and operates one of the largest and best-known museum complexes in the world. Our mission is “that the future may learn from the past” through preserving and restoring 18th-century Williamsburg, Virginia’s colonial capital. We engage, inform, and inspire people to learn about this historic capital, the events that occurred here, and the diverse peoples who helped shape a new nation.

Today, Colonial Williamsburg is the largest living history museum in the U.S. The Historic Area is the 301-acre restored colonial capital with 89 original buildings and 525 buildings reconstructed to how they appeared in the 18th century through extensive archaeological, architectural, and documentary research. The Historic Area is staffed by highly trained, historically dressed interpreters and expert tradespeople who bring the 18th century to life. The Foundation also owns and operates two world-class museums, the DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Museum, and the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Museum, The Bob and Marion Wilson Teacher Institute, and a renowned research library, the John D Rockefeller Jr Library.

Additionally, Colonial Williamsburg is home to five world class accommodations at the Williamsburg Inn, Williamsburg Lodge Autograph Collection, the Griffin Hotel, the Williamsburg Woodlands Hotels and Suites and the unique Colonial Houses in the Historical Area. Visitors may also indulge in food and drink at our many on site restaurants and taverns that blend a historically inspired dining experience with today’s evolved tastes. Each year over 5 million people visit Williamsburg and another 20 million engage with us digitally.

About the Position

The Human Resources Business Partner (HRBP) supports the alignment of business initiatives with employees and management for their assigned areas. The HRBP will serve as a strategic partner to leadership in the line of business they serve and will assess and anticipate HR-related needs and deliver value-added service that addresses organizational initiatives. Additionally, the role will leverage partnerships across the Centers of Excellence (COE) to ensure HR deliverables are addressed in a timely manner.

Essential Functions:

• Support efforts to understand business initiatives affecting business areas assigned, to include any operational, financial and performance improvement initiatives impacting their groups.
• Assist in gathering and analyzing relevant data to understand the impact on HR strategies and employee performance.
• Actively evaluate and provide feedback and direction in collaboration with colleagues on trends and metrics that have an impact on operations and provides consultation regarding measures to address and develop solutions. (Overtime, Turnover, etc.)
• Ensure people, processes, programs, and systems are aligned to CW’s mission and objectives.
• Consult with leadership to provide applicable HR guidance, critical evaluation and recommended solutions based on operational drivers or outcomes.
• Assist in developing and leading implementation plans and analysis of business information to process various ongoing HR actions.
• Develop leadership presence, establish credibility and trustworthiness at the business unit level, and influence change management effectively.
• Act as a liaison to the HR Centers of Excellence in advising leaders on all HR needs including learning and development, talent management, succession planning, total rewards, and performance management.
• Assist in managing the day-to-day employee relation issues, providing guidance on policies and procedures.
• Support the resolution of routine employee relations issues, through effective, thorough, and objective investigations and recognize when to escalate more complex issues to a higher level when warranted.

• In partnership with leaders, proactively engage and identify people gaps and opportunities, propose changes and facilitate the change processes necessary to mitigate risk.
• Interpret HR specific policies, practices and guidelines and recommend policy changes to support business needs across the organization.
• Interpret and support departmental action planning based on employee engagement survey outcomes and provide coaching to leaders.
• Develop partnerships across the HR functions to collaborate with other members of the HR team (COEs) to share best practices, identify areas of common improvement and participate in team initiatives and projects.
• Coordinate to provide HR specific education, training and development support for managers and employees.
• Assist Colonial Williamsburg in regulatory hearings such as unemployment hearings, appeals, EEOC mediations, etc.
• Provides support in coordination and preparation of all documentation for arbitration, mediation and EEOC hearings.
• Maintain knowledge of trends, best practices, regulatory changes, and new technologies in human resources, talent management, and employment law and recommend programs that will enhance employee and labor relations, and craft new policies for approval.

Required and Preferred Education and Experience:

Required:

• Bachelors degree or an equivalent combination of education, training, and or experience
• 3-5 years of experience in human resources or a related position that includes experience in employee relations, labor relations, performance management, diversity and equal opportunity.

Preferred:

• Professional (PHR) or Senior Professional (SPHR) in Human Resources
• SHRM-CP or SHRM-SCP
• Experience working within not-for-profit industry
• Experience with labor relations in a union environment

Qualifications:

• Demonstrated analytical skills associated with employee relations coupled with excellent interpersonal skills with an emphasis on building partnerships, conflict resolution, negotiation, mediation, facilitation, and communication.
• Demonstrated ability to help create a collaborative work environment, work as a team member and maintain confidentiality while keeping open communications at all levels of the organization.
• Demonstrated ability to analyze work related problems, assess needs and design and implement solutions that support organizational goals.

• Demonstrated ability to recognize and connect the linkages and relationships between functions and processes as well as the impact of decisions on people and the organization.
• Demonstrated ability to establish and manage multiple priorities in a changing and fast paced environment
• Demonstrated ability to be an advocate for organizational change while coaching employees on professional and interpersonal issues which may impact performance.
• Knowledge of HRIS systems and Microsoft Suite.

Other Duties: Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

To comply with regulations by the American with Disabilities Act (ADA), the principal duties in job descriptions must be essential to the job. To identify essential functions, focus on the purpose and the result of the duties rather than the manner in which they are performed. The following definition applies: a job function is essential if removal of that function would fundamentally change the job.