Director of Human Resources

Navia Benefit Solutions, Inc.; Renton (WA); On-site; USD 170,000 - 230,000; Full time

Job summary

Navia Benefit Solutions, Inc. is seeking an experienced HR leader to run day-to-day people operations, payroll, benefits, and recruiting in Renton, WA.

This player-coach role partners with the CHRO to build a capable team and deliver high standards across the HR function. The role requires hands-on ownership of payroll, benefits administration, employee relations, recruiting, and HR operations, with a focus on multi-state compliance and scalable processes.

Qualifications

• 8+ years in HR with at least 3 years managing HR staff directly.
• Hands-on HR leader with payroll, benefits, employee relations, recruiting, and HR operations ownership.
• Comfortable as a player-coach, balancing leadership with hands-on work.
• Leads from the front, solving problems and covering gaps during high volume periods.
• Multi-state compliance depth (FMLA, ADA, FLSA, state leave laws), including California.

Responsibilities

• Lead and grow the HR team; set standards, run one-on-ones, provide actionable feedback, build bench.
• Oversee payroll accuracy and timing across multiple states; HRIS ownership in Paylocity; ensure data integrity.
• Oversee benefits renewals, open enrollment, 401(k) administration and audits, leave programs, and ACA/5500 filings.
• Manage enterprise-wide recruiting support, including executive searches and volume hiring for operations roles.
• Handle employee relations issues, investigations, discipline, terminations, and counsel coordination (including high-risk jurisdictions).

Skills

Payroll

Benefits administration

Recruiting

HR operations

Employee relations

Leadership

Compliance (FMLA/ADA/FLSA)

Cost control

Troubleshooting

Education

Bachelor's degree in HR or related field

SHRM-SCP / SPHR / CEBS certification

Tools

Paylocity

Job description

Description

Why this role exists

This is the person who runs HR day to day.

The CHRO owns enterprise people strategy, executive-level work, and the CDH integration. This role owns the function underneath it, payroll, benefits administration, recruiting, HR operations, and the team that does the work.

This is a player-coach role. We need a leader who can set direction, develop the team, and hold people accountable, but who is also willing to roll up their sleeves and get into the work alongside the team when needed. You should be comfortable troubleshooting a payroll issue, helping work through a difficult employee relations matter, jumping into a recruiting challenge, or helping clear a backlog when the business requires it.

The position will ensure that hiring, payroll, onboarding, benefits, and employee issues are handled at a high standard without everything needing to be escalated. This is the second seat in HR, the go-to person for the CHRO, the first call for the business, and the leader who makes the HR team better.

What you'll own

Leading and growing the team.

Supervise the HR staff directly. Set standards and service levels, run regular one-on-ones, give feedback that actually lands, and build the bench. But don't lead from the sidelines, know the work, stay close to it, and step in when your team needs help. Development of this team is a real deliverable, not an afterthought.

HR operations and payroll:

Oversee the multi-state payroll accuracy and timing across all entities. HRIS ownership in Paylocity with data integrity, workflows, reporting, controls, and audit readiness. Wage and hour compliance across 30+ states. You won't be expected to process every payroll yourself, but you should understand the work well enough to troubleshoot issues, jump in when necessary, and ensure your team gets the job done.

Benefits administration.

Oversee annual renewals and open enrollment, 401(k) administration and audits, leave administration (FMLA, ADA, state programs), COBRA, ACA and 5500 filings, and the broker relationship. Navia administers benefits for a living, so our own program has to be run cleanly. This requires a leader who understands the details and isn't afraid to get into them when the situation calls for it.

Recruiting:

Support full-cycle talent acquisition for the enterprise, team management, requisition intake and prioritization, hiring manager coaching, offer and compensation process, and the metrics that matter (time to fill, quality of hire, cost per hire). Includes volume hiring for operations roles and support on executive searches.

Employee relations and risk.

Investigations, performance issues, accommodations, discipline, and separations. Know when something is routine, when it needs the CHRO, and when it needs outside counsel, and document accordingly. California and other high-risk jurisdictions are part of the job.

What success looks like in the first year

• Payroll and benefits run without surprises; issues get caught before employees find them.
• The CHRO is out of the day-to-day queue and the business stops routing operational questions to him.
• Open requisitions are filled on a predictable timeline with hiring managers who know their part of the process.
• Employee relations matters are handled quickly, documented well, and escalated at the right threshold.
• The HR team is measurably stronger — clearer roles, better coverage, at least one person developing toward a bigger job.
• Enterprise projects (handbook, performance cycle, HRIS transitions) hit their dates.

Requirements

What we're looking for

Required

• 8+ years in HR with at least 3 years managing HR staff directly.
• Hands-on HR leader who has personally owned payroll, benefits, employee relations, recruiting, and HR operations.
• Comfortable operating as a player-coach, balancing leadership and strategic thinking with the willingness to jump into the work alongside the team.
• Leads from the front: willing to get into the details, solve problems, cover gaps, and help the team through periods of high volume or complexity.
• Multi-state compliance depth FMLA, ADA, FLSA, state leave laws, and California specifically.
• Full-cycle recruiting experience, including managing recruiters.
• Real employee relations experience: investigations, terminations, and working with counsel.
• Judgment. You'll be making calls without the CHRO in the room and we need to trust them.

Preferred

• Paylocity experience.
• Comfort in a company that is changing, private equity ownership, acquisitions, systems in transition.
• Experience integrating HR functions post-acquisition.
• Managing HR across multiple legal entities or brands.
• SHRM-SCP, SPHR, or CEBS.