Director of HR Operations

Emburse Chrome River; Toronto; On-site; CAD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Emburse Chrome River seeks a Director of HR Operations to build and lead a scalable function across the employee lifecycle, delivering compliant, responsive support. This role will manage HR Generalists, own performance, compliance, and partner with COEs including Total Rewards, Learning, and Talent Acquisition.

Reporting to the Chief HR Officer, the Director will own HRIS strategy, governance, dashboards, and executive reporting, while guiding a strategic project portfolio and the HR team

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in HR, business administration, or related field.
• 7+ years of progressive HR experience including leadership of operations.
• Experience building or scaling global HR operations and HR help desk.
• Deep knowledge of employee relations, investigations, policy administration, compliance, and risk management.
• Experience owning an HRIS roadmap, data governance, integrations, security, and reporting.
• Experience using UKG or other HRIS systems.
• Ability to translate workforce data into concise executive and Board-level reporting.
• Strong program and portfolio-management experience in a high-growth environment.
• Experience with automation and AI to improve HR service delivery.

Responsibilities

• Build, lead, coach, and develop a high-performing HR operations team with clear roles and accountability.
• Design and launch HR tools leveraging technology for employee self-service and knowledge management.
• Own employee performance including investigations, manager guidance, and escalation in partnership with Legal.
• Lead HR compliance and policy administration across geographies with audits and training.
• Own HRIS strategy, governance, data integrity, security, and vendor management.
• Establish HR metrics and dashboards aligned to People priorities and business strategy.
• Develop the HR Global Capabilities Center in India to support the global team.
• Prepare workforce reporting and insights for executives and Board stakeholders.
• Oversee the HR project portfolio and budgeting in collaboration with Finance.
• Drive continuous process improvement with automation and AI-enabled workflows.

Skills

People leadership

HR operations

HRIS governance

Data analytics

UKG HRIS

Budget management

Automation & AI

Executive reporting

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in HR, Business Administration, or related field

Tools

UKG HRIS

Job description

The Director of HR Operations will build and lead a scalable HR operations function that delivers consistent, responsive, and compliant support across the employee lifecycle. As a member of the HR Leadership Team, the incumbent will manage a team of HR Generalists and own employee performance, compliance, be a strategic partner to other HR Centers of Excellence (COEs) including Total Rewards, Learning, and Talent Acquisition. The role will also own HRIS strategy and governance, people metrics, executive and Board reporting, the strategic HR project portfolio, and the HR team budget. The ideal candidate is a builder and operator who can translate business priorities into practical and forward‑looking systems, service standards, insights, and disciplined execution in a fast‑paced, changing environment.

Location: Dallas, Texas or Toronto, Ontario

Reports to: Chief HR Officer

Key Relationships: Executive Leadership Team, Finance, Legal, IT, HR Business Partners, and HR Centers of Excellence

Direct Reports: HR Generalist Team, HR Manager, and HRIS Analyst

Primary Responsibilities

• Build, lead, coach, and develop a high-performing, modern HR operations team with clear roles, service standards, decision rights, and accountability
• Design and launch an HR tools that leverage technology to support and provide answers to employees through disciplined intake, triage, escalation, and knowledge management
• Own employee performance including employee-relations, investigations, manager guidance, documentation, escalation protocols, and trend analysis in partnership with Legal and the HR Business Partners
• Lead HR compliance and policy administration, including required records, audits, controls, training, and consistent practices across applicable geographies
• Own HRIS strategy, governance, data integrity, security, integrations, releases, vendors, and the roadmap for scalable employee and manager self-service
• Establish HR metrics and dashboards that measure employee performance, workforce trends, operational effectiveness, risk, and progress against People priorities and do so in a way that is fully connected to Emburse's business strategy
• Own and develop the HR Global Capabilities Center in India which will provide transactional support to the entire HR team and also support India team operations
• Prepare clear, decision-oriented workforce reporting and insights for the executive team, Board of Directors, and other key stakeholders
• Own the HR project portfolio and integrated plan from a strategic lens, aligning priorities, resources, dependencies, risks, milestones, and communications
• Oversee the HR team budget and collaborate across the HR team on costs, spend, and forecast, in collaboration with the Finance & Accounting teams
• Drive continuous improvement across employee-lifecycle processes through standardization, automation, AI-enabled workflows, change management, and strong cross‑functional partnership
• Partner closely with the HR COEs and HR Business Partners to provide guidance in key areas of expertise and to operationalize projects and programs across the enterprise

Requirements & Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, or a related field
• Seven or more years of progressive HR experience, including leadership of HR operations, shared services, or a comparable function
• Demonstrated success building or scaling global HR operations, an HR help desk, or an employee-support center
• Deep knowledge of employee relations, investigations, policy administration, employment compliance, and risk management
• Experience owning an HRIS roadmap, data governance, integrations, security, reporting, and vendor management
• Experience using UKG or other similar HRIS system required
• Ability to define meaningful HR metrics and translate workforce data into concise executive and Board-level reporting
• Strong program and portfolio-management experience, including prioritization, dependency management, and cross-functional execution
• Financial acumen and experience managing budgets, forecasts, vendor contracts, and investment tradeoffs
• Experience in a high‑growth SaaS, technology, consulting, or Private Equity‑backed environment preferred
• Experience applying automation and AI to improve HR service delivery, data quality, employee experience, and productivity

Characteristics & Attributes

• Builder's mindset with the ability to create structure, operating discipline, and scalable processes
• Strategic operator who remains close to execution and follows through on commitments
• Service‑oriented leader with sound judgment who balances employee experience, business needs, and risk
• Data‑driven systems thinker and clear communicator who develops strong, accountable teams

We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses and identifying potential inconsistencies or verification signals in application materials based on available information. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us.