Strategy Director, People Strategy & Operations

Apply; Sydney; Hybrid; AUD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

Xero in Sydney, Australia, seeks a Strategy Director to shape and drive the strategic and operational priorities translating the people strategy into organisation-wide outcomes. You'll report to the GM, People Operations and contribute to leadership discussions with a whole-of-business perspective on investments in people.

You'll lead diverse initiatives, coach others to lift capability, and help the People function operate with clear priority, accountability and impact.

Qualifications

• Consulting, or strategy and operations, transformation background in a complex technology or SaaS organisation.
• Expertise in structured problem solving and coaching others to think this way.
• Sharp analytical instincts to surface insights from varied data sources and inform decisions.
• Ability to build trusted relationships with senior leaders and align across organisational boundaries.
• Experience leading cross-functional portfolios or strategic initiatives with broad impact.

Responsibilities

• Shape and lead a portfolio of strategic initiatives spanning process redesign, culture, governance and capability building across People team.
• Develop strategic narratives and analysis for Xero's Executive Leadership Team and align decision-making.
• Evolve the operating model and rhythm for People Team to improve prioritisation and accountability.
• Reimagine key People processes using technology, data and AI to create scalable solutions.

Job description

The role and its impact

As a Strategy Director, you'll shape and drive the strategic and operational priorities that translate Xero's people strategy into coordinated, organisation-wide outcomes. Reporting to the General Manager, People Operations (who also serves as Chief of Staff to the CEO), you'll be a key contributor to People team leadership discussions, bringing a whole-of-business perspective to some of the most consequential decisions Xero makes about how it invests in its people.

Your remit is broad and deliberately varied: from process and system redesign to capability building, organisational change and board paper writing. You'll lead a portfolio of complex and often ambiguous initiatives, connecting the dots across People teams to ensure strategy, priorities and OKRs add up to something coherent. As a senior individual contributor, you'll Go Further by lifting capability around you through coaching, challenge and expertise, shaping how the function operates, not just what it delivers.

The team and how they connect

The People Strategy & Operations team partners across People Team to shape long-term direction, build the function's operating model and translate strategy into execution. They work closely with senior and executive leaders across Xero, structuring ambiguous problems into clear recommendations and staying close to delivery to ensure those recommendations land.

Initially, the role will focus on

• Shaping and leading a portfolio of strategic initiatives that span process redesign, culture, governance and capability building across People team
• Developing strategic narratives and analysis for Xero's Executive Leadership Team, helping clarify complex topics and align decision-making
• Evolving the operating model and operating rhythm for People Team, driving better prioritisation, faster decisions and clearer accountability
• Reimagining critical People processes and ways of working, embedding best practice and using technology, data and AI to create scalable solutions

Where and how you can work

This role is based in Sydney, Australia, working in a hybrid model that combines in-office collaboration with the flexibility to work from home. Our boost days bring the team together in person for connection and collaborative work, with the rest of the week flexible to suit how you work best.

Here are some of the things we're looking for, for this role

• A background in consulting, or strategy and operations, transformation, ideally in a complex technology or SaaS organisation, has shaped how you approach work
• You bring deep expertise in structured problem solving, the kind that identifies problems beyond the original brief and coaches others to think the same way
• Your analytical instincts are sharp: you navigate varied data sources, surface non-obvious insights and use them to shape strategic decisions
• Building trusted relationships with senior leaders comes naturally, and you know how to manage tension and create alignment across organisational boundaries
• You've led cross-functional portfolios or strategic initiatives with broad organisational impact, adapting through ambiguity rather than waiting for certainty
• Lifting the capability of those around you, through coaching, challenge and expertise, is something you actively seek out, not just something you do when asked