Director, HR Strategy & Effectiveness (0993)

Sylvania; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 148,000 - 199,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Dental and vision plans

Pension plan

Vacation time

Job summary

SFUSD seeks a Director of HR Strategy & Effectiveness to lead cross-functional HR initiatives, oversee performance management, stakeholder engagement, and operational excellence across the district.

You will work with the Associate Superintendent and HR leadership to advance district priorities, design service standards, dashboards, and accountability, while guiding teams through complex change and modernization efforts.

Qualifications

• Education: Bachelor's degree in education, public administration, HR, or related field.
• Master’s degree preferred for advanced leadership roles.
• Four or more years of professional experience in strategy and operations, HR, or related field.

Responsibilities

• Provide leadership and supervision to HR project teams and initiatives.
• Develop cross-functional project plans, timelines, and KPIs for district priorities.
• Lead executive communications and stakeholder engagement across the district.
• Oversee budgeting and resource allocation for strategic HR initiatives.

Education

Bachelor's degree in education, public administration, HR, or related field

Master’s degree preferred

Four or more years of experience in strategy and operations, HR, or related field

Job description

Job Class: 0993 Director

Salary Range: $148,215 - $198,901/annually

Appointment Type: Permanent Exempt (what does this mean?)

Length of Appointment: 3 years

Calendar: Full Time / Full Year

Who We Are

With an annual budget of $1.4 billion, the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) is California's seventh-largest school district, serving more than 49,000 students who speak more than 44 documented languages across 121 schools in the City and County of San Francisco every year. We aim for all SFUSD students to graduate as independent thinkers with a sense of agency who have attained academic and creative skills to lead productive lives and contribute to our community.

What It Means to Work Here

The SFUSD community is unified by our Core Values: Student-centered: We put students’ needs first. Fearless: We persist through challenges. United: We celebrate and build on each other’s strengths. Social Justice: We stand with those most vulnerable in our community. Diversity-driven: We respect and seek to understand each person.

• Student-centered: We put students’ needs first
• Fearless: We persist through challenges
• United: We celebrate and build on each other’s strengths
• Social Justice: We stand with those most vulnerable in our community
• Diversity-driven: We respect and seek to understand each person

We are also inspired by Vision, Values and Guardrails which captures our aspirations and vision for the future of public education in San Francisco. Alongside the District’s strategic plan. SFUSD is reimagining how public education will change over the next decade to meet the dynamic future of San Francisco. As a CORE district, SFUSD is also a leader in critical systems change for more comprehensive school accountability and innovations that help strengthen the instructional core, which is the foundation of our strategic plan and Vision 2025.

Who We Want

We want talented people from diverse backgrounds and experiences, who are inspired by our mission, steeped in equity, and who are motivated to unleash our children’s potential. We want people who are strong collaborators, skilled communicators, and problem solvers who are comfortable in a community of continuous learning.

Essential Duties

The duties specified below are representative of the range of duties for this role and are not intended to be an inclusive or exhaustive list.

As the 0993 Director, HR Strategy & Effectiveness, you will be responsible for:

Employee Support Services

• Provide high-quality customer service to all employees, handling elevated concerns in a timely fashion and ensuring that our employees feel respected and understood in person, on the phone, and written formats
• Design and implement high-functioning employee experience systems to improve pain points from initial employment application through an employee’s retirement
• Review, design, lead, and coach peers and the department on customer service essentials
• Lead end-to-end process improvement efforts across HR, identifying opportunities to simplify workflows, eliminate unnecessary steps, clarify ownership, improve service levels, and leverage technology and automation.

Strategic Planning and Execution

• Support the Associate Superintendent in advancing strategic priorities and district-wide initiatives
• Establish and manage the Division's performance management system, facilitating teams and subject matter experts to define service standards, key performance indicators, dashboards, operating routines, and continuous-improvement processes across HR functions.
• Develop cross-functional project plans, timelines, performance metrics, and accountability structures to ensure successful execution inside and outside of HR to ensure effective support to schools.
• Identify risks, barriers, and opportunities and recommend solutions to district leadership

Executive and Organizational Leadership

• Support strategic functioning of Associate Superintendent and HR leadership team, ensuring seamless integration into priorities and alignment across departments
• Lead cross-departmental initiatives to ensure alignment, collaboration, and efficient use of resources
• Support the development and implementation of organizational policies, procedures, and operational improvements

Stakeholder Engagement and Communications

• Build and maintain effective relationships with district leaders, staff, community organizations, labor partners, families, and Board of Education
• Lead the Division's internal communications strategy, including regular employee and stakeholder communications that increase transparency, understanding, and accountability.
• Launch and support employee recognition and engagement programs.
• Coordinate responses to sensitive issues requiring executive-level attention
• Analyze data to provide meaningful insights into District operations and effectiveness

Operational Excellence

• Oversee systems for tracking district priorities, action items, and organizational performance
• Monitor progress on strategic goals and prepare reports for executive leadership
• Support budget planning and resource allocation related to strategic initiatives
• Ensure effective compliance systems and internal controls for employment-related requirements, including employment eligibility and work authorization

Leadership and Supervision

• Provide leadership, coaching, and supervision to assigned project teams
• Foster a culture of collaboration, accountability, equity, and continuous improvement
• Support talent development and organizational capacity-building efforts

The strongest candidates will have:

• 7-10 years of demonstrable success leading complex, cross-functional initiatives from strategy through implementation, including the ability to establish clear goals, milestones, measures of success, and accountability structures through influence and without formal authority.
• Strong analytical skills and demonstrated experience using quantitative and qualitative data to identify problems, develop solutions, monitor performance, and drive decision-making
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to translate complex information into clear recommendations, executive communications, presentations, and stakeholder-facing materials
• Demonstrated ability to improve organizational systems, processes, or services, with a focus on customer or employee experience, operational efficiency, and measurable results
• Strong project and change management skills, including the ability to manage multiple high-priority initiatives in a complex and rapidly changing environment
• Sound judgment and discretion when navigating sensitive, confidential, politically complex, or high-stakes issues
• An orientation toward continuous improvement, including the ability to identify root causes, challenge existing practices, and translate ideas into sustainable systems
• Experience working in K–12 education, including experience as a teacher or school administrator
• Experience in human resources, organizational effectiveness, strategy and operations, management consulting, project/program management, or a related field

Minimum Qualifications

Education

• Possession of a baccalaureate degree in education, public administration, human resources, business administration, or other closely related field from an accredited college or university; Master’s degree preferred
• Four (4) years of professional experience in strategy and operations, human resources, organizational effectiveness, project or program management, change management, public administration, or a closely related field

What We Offer

SFUSD offers a competitive salary of $148,215 - $198,901/annually, commensurate with experience in a similar position. We offer a comprehensive benefits plan including dental and vision plans, a defined benefit pension plan, disability, life insurance, flexible spending account options and vacation time. We also offer an inclusive and equity-centered environment where we encourage staff to bring their whole selves to work.

Verification

Applicants may be required to submit verification of qualifying education and experience at any point during the recruitment and selection process. If education verification is required, information on how to verify education requirements, including verifying foreign education credits or degree equivalency, can be found at http://sfdhr.org/how-verify-education-requirements.

Note: Falsifying one’s education, training, or work experience or attempted deception on the application may result in disqualification from this and futurejobopportunities with the San Francisco Unified School District.

District Nondiscrimination Statement

San Francisco Unified School District prohibits discrimination, harassment, intimidation, sexual harassment and bullying based on actual or perceived race, color, ancestry, nationality, national origin, immigration status, ethnic group identification, ethnicity, age, religion, marital status, pregnancy, parental status, reproductive health decision making, physical or mental disability, medical condition, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, veteran or military status, or genetic information, or association with a person or a group with one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics or any other basis protected by law or regulation, in its educational program(s) or employment.

For more information about the District's non-discrimination policy, please review Board Policy 4030.

Title IX Nondiscrimination Statement and Grievance Procedures

Any person may report sex discrimination, including sexual harassment (whether or not the person reporting is the person alleged to be the victim of conduct that could constitute sex discrimination or sexual harassment), in person, by mail, by telephone, or by electronic mail, using the contact information listed for the Title IX Coordinator, or by any other means that results in the Title IX Coordinator receiving the person's verbal or written report. Such a report may be made at any time (including during non-business hours) by using the telephone number or electronic mail address, or by mail to the office address, listed for the Title IX Coordinator.

For more information on the District’s Sexual Harassment policy and grievance procedures, please review Board Policy 4034.

District Title IX Coordinator

District Title IX Coordinator:
Eva Kellogg
Office of Equity
555 Franklin Street, 3rd Floor, San Francisco, CA, 94102
415-355-7334 or [e-mail]

Title IX Nondiscrimination Statement and Grievance Procedures

Any person may report discrimination on the basis of a physical or mental disability (whether or not the person reporting is the person alleged to be the victim of discrimination on the basis of a physical or mental disability), in person, by mail, by telephone, or by electronic mail, using the contact information listed for the Section 504 Coordinator.

District Section 504 Coordinator

District Section 504 Coordinator:
Alicia Rodriguez
1515 Quintara St., San Francisco, CA, 94116
[phone] or [e-mail]