Associate HR Director, Operations

Lactalis American Group; Chicago, Northern (IL, KY); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Education Reimbursement

Paid Time Off

Total Rewards Program

Job summary

Lactalis American Group is hiring an Associate HR Director, Operations based in Chicago, IL. The role shapes HR strategy for Industrial, Supply Chain, and Quality, partnering with VPs to coach leaders, manage employee relations, and drive engagement.

The position requires extensive HR experience in a multi-site setting, strong regulatory knowledge, and collaboration with corporate HR and safety teams. This is a hybrid role with in-office and WFH days.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of HR Business Partner experience across multiple sites.
• Master's degree in HR/Organizational Development or related field preferred.
• Strong knowledge of employment laws and regulatory requirements.

Responsibilities

• Lead HR strategy for Industrial, Supply Chain and Quality functions.
• Coach site HR teams on employee relations, onboarding, performance, and investigations.
• Design programs to improve attraction, retention, and engagement.
• Document job titles, skills, and compensation by hourly and salaried roles.
• Collaborate with Shared Services to support total rewards and HR operations.

Skills

Employee relations

Organizational development

HR strategy

Communication

Change management

Multisite experience

Education

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

Master's degree in HR/OD or related field

Tools

SuccessFactors

Paylocity

Alchemy

Job description

Description

Ready for more than just a job? Build a career with purpose.
At Lactalis in the USA, we’re committed to providing meaningful opportunities for our people to learn, grow, and thrive—whether you’re just starting your journey with us or looking to take the next step in your career. From day one, we offer the tools and support to help you succeed.

As the world leader in dairy, Lactalis is a family-owned company with over 85,000 pragmatic and ambitious professionals across the globe. Each day, we’re proud to produce award‑winning dairy products that bring people together.

In the US, we proudly offer an unrivaled house of beloved brands, including Galbani® Italian cheeses and ricotta, Président® specialty cheeses and butters, Kraft® natural and grated cheeses, Breakstone’s® cottage cheese, Cracker Barrel®, Black Diamond® cheddar, and Parmalat® milk. Our yogurt portfolio includes siggi’s®, Stonyfield Organic®, Brown Cow™, Oui®, Yoplait®, Go-Gurt®, :ratio®, Green Mountain Creamery®, and Mountain High®, along with a growing family of ethnic favorites like Karoun®, Gopi®, and Arz®.

At Lactalis, we live by our core values—Ambition, Engagement, and Simplicity. We foster a workplace where innovation thrives, diverse perspectives are celebrated, and everyone’s unique background and ideas are valued.

Even if you don’t meet every qualification, we encourage you to apply. We want to hear about your PASSION, your STORY, and how your EXPERTISE can help us shape the future of dairy.

From your PASSION to ours

Lactalis Heritage Dairy, part of the Lactalis family of companies, is currently hiring an Associate HR Director, Operations position based in Chicago, IL.

The Associate HR Director, Operations plays a key role in supporting the HR strategy across our technical functions of Industrial, Supply Chain and Quality. This role collaborates particularly closely with Supply Chain and Quality VPs, providing executive coaching and broader HR guidance on employee relations, talent and organizational development, and engagement initiatives. This position is responsible for ensuring our Supply Chain and Quality organizations are strategic partners to our Industrial teams, creating one combined “Operations” unit within Lactalis Heritage Dairy (LHD). Reporting to the HR Director for Operations who will be primarily supporting our Industrial sites, this role may take on indirect leadership of a small subset of manufacturing sites depending on workload.

From your EXPERTISE to ours

Key responsibilities for this position include:

• Develop strong relationships with Human Resources (HR), as well as plant and Distribution Center leadership teams, as appropriate.
• Guide plant HR teams on employee relation topics, including onboarding, recognition, performance, and investigations.
• Recommend programs addressing attraction, turnover, and engagement; contribute and support during program implementation
• Document progressive job titles, skills and rates by Hourly positions then communicate across the plants
• Document progressive competencies and compensation (base salary + bonus) by Salaried position, reflecting established Salary Structure
• Leverage Shared Services (benefits, payroll, HRIS) to assist and engage employees; encourage appreciation for Total Rewards
• Support Talent Acquisition and Talent Development at the field locations.
• Facilitate and manage the training plan, collaborating with manufacturing leadership to identify development needs and ensure training programs support operational goals.
• Lead the Management Review process, providing structure and oversight to ensure ongoing evaluation and improvement of workforce performance and engagement. Facilitate and support employee communication and appraisal processes.
• Interface regularly with Corporate HR Team, and, where needed Legal, Compliance, and Safety.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES

The incumbent may have limited indirect (dotted line) leadership of Plant HR Managers, depending on the bandwidth of the HR Director and the development goals of the Associate HR Director. This role would be expected to collaborate with the HR Director and the Plant Directors to provide functional coaching and development, as appropriate.

WORK CONDITIONS

• Travel is required up to 25% monthly.
• Extended hours may be necessary depending on the project needs.
• To fulfill these responsibilities, tools such as a computer, phone or, and / or allowance(s) may be provided.
• To fulfill these responsibilities, a cell phone is required.
• Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform these essential duties and responsibilities.
• This position requires physical presence in the office, in accordance with the guidelines of the Hybrid Work Policy (3 days in-office, 2 days WFH).
• Demonstrate commitment to a safe working environment that promotes the health and well‑being of all employees and that will further contribute to the Company’s overall performance and success.

Requirements

From your STORY to ours

Qualified applicants will contribute the following:

• Bachelor's degree in Human Resources, Finance, Business, or an equivalent combination of education and experience required.
• Master's degree in Human Resources, Organizational Development, or a related field preferred.
• 8+ years of Human Resources Business Partner experience required; multi-site and international CPG experience preferred.
• 3+ years of Industrial HR experience required.
• Experience in Food Industry preferred.
• Advanced proficiency with Microsoft 365 applications, including Excel, PowerPoint, and Word.
• Experience with SuccessFactors, Paylocity, and Alchemy is preferred.
• Proven track record managing complex employee relations, workplace investigations, retention initiatives, and industrial workforce dynamics.
• Comprehensive knowledge of federal, state, and local employment laws and regulatory compliance standards.
• Strong financial and analytical capability to evaluate, monitor, and optimize labor costs in alignment with business budgets.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills, including the ability to facilitate discussions and deliver effective presentations.
• Excellent planning and organizational skills with the ability to effectively manage multiple competing priorities.
• Ability to translate broader operational targets into actionable talent and HR strategies.
• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to build and maintain effective working relationships with stakeholders at all levels of the organization.
• Experience leading organizational design, workforce planning, and change management initiatives.
• Demonstrated expertise in drafting, updating, and implementing corporate HR policies, procedures, and governance frameworks.

At Lactalis, we offer a comprehensive Total Rewards Program with a variety of affordable benefits and coverage options. We support insurance costs significantly, contribute generously to retirement plans, and offer Paid Time Off from day one. We are committed to your professional growth, providing training and development opportunities, including Education Reimbursement. Join us and grow your career.

Lactalis is an equal employment opportunity employer. We will not discriminate against applicants with regard to any legally-recognized basis including, but not limited to: veteran status, race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, marital status, sexual orientation, and physical or mental disabilities.