Managing Director, Human Resources

Cabrera Capital Markets

Chicago (IL)

On-site

USD 250,000 - 400,000

Full time

14 days+

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Benefits offered by this job

Medical Coverage

Dental Coverage

Vision Coverage

401(k) Match

Profit Sharing

FSA/HSA

Job summary

Cabrera Capital Markets seeks a Managing Director of Human Resources to lead the firm’s people function across the employee lifecycle and to oversee the Chicago office facilities.

Reporting to the President and partnering with the CEO and Managing Directors, this role will shape compensation, workforce planning, recruiting, onboarding, learning, performance, and employee relations while aligning culture with Cabrera’s values of Excellence, Inclusion, Integrity, Client-centered, and Innovation.

Qualifications

Bachelor’s degree required; MBA or equivalent graduate degree preferred.
10-15 years progressive HR leadership, with at least five years in a senior HR leadership role.
Experience in financial services, professional services, or another knowledge-intensive environment.
Demonstrated experience leading HR at a firm of comparable scale — ~80 to 500 professionals.
Fluency with compensation constructs, workflows, and cultural dynamics of producer-driven or client-facing businesses.

Responsibilities

Lead the HR function and oversee facilities for Cabrera Capital Markets.
Develop and execute compensation philosophy, band structure, and rewards architecture; run annual compensation cycle with executive leadership.
Drive workforce planning, headcount budgeting, and people-related budgeting decisions.
Own employer branding, campus recruiting, onboarding, and talent pipeline development.
Design and implement learning and development programs; strengthen performance management and succession planning.
Oversee employee relations, engagement, and internal communications; ensure policy compliance and data integrity.

Skills

Executive presence

Judgment

Strategic leadership

Coaching

Communication

Systems thinking

Values alignment

Education

Bachelor's degree

MBA preferred

Job description

Position Summary & Purpose

The Managing Director of Human Resources leads the human resources function at Cabrera Capital Markets.

Reporting to the President and partnering closely with the Chief Executive Officer and the firm’s Managing Directors, this leader is responsible for the strategy and execution of the firm’s people function across every dimension of the employee lifecycle. The role also includes oversight of the firm’s Chicago office facilities function.

The successful candidate joins the firm at a point of intentional evolution. Foundational elements of the HR function are in place — documented process flows across the core employee lifecycle, an HR Generalist, and vendor relationships that support the day‑to‑day operation of the function. Other elements remain in various states of development, and the Managing Director will build, assess, refine, and progress each in partnership with the President, the Chief Executive Officer, and the Managing Director group.

Compensation, Total Rewards, Workforce Planning, and People Budgeting

Today: Benefits administration runs day to day, while compensation strategy, workforce planning, and people-related budgeting are not yet fully formalized.

You'll: Build the compensation philosophy, band structure, and rewards architecture; run the annual compensation cycle with the CEO, President, and Finance; lead workforce planning and headcount planning with business heads; support people-related budgeting and investment decisions; and own retention structures, deferred compensation, and benefits.

Talent Acquisition, Employer Brand, Campus Recruiting, and Onboarding

Today: Recruiting practices vary by business line, and Cabrera has an important internship program that should be leveraged as a broader talent pipeline.

You'll: Run full-cycle recruiting across all business lines; develop a campus recruiting strategy that strengthens the internship program and early-career pipeline; set the retained‑versus‑contingent framework and external search partnerships; own employer brand, recruiting marketing, and candidate experience; and build a consistent firm‑wide onboarding experience.

Learning and Professional Development

Today: Learning and development is not yet organized through a formal firm‑wide program.

You'll: Design leadership development, functional and technical skill‑building tied to Cabrera's business lines, and career progression pathways that retain talent.

Performance Management, Talent Review, and Succession Planning

Today: Cabrera has an established mid‑year annual performance review and compensation cycle. The current process is more administrative and cycle‑driven than feedback‑driven, with an opportunity to strengthen the quality, consistency, and timeliness of performance feedback, manager capability, calibration, and ongoing development conversations.

You'll: Strengthen the performance management cycle so it supports meaningful feedback, manager accountability, calibration, progressive discipline, annual talent review, and succession planning for critical roles.

Employee Experience, Engagement, and Relations

Today: Employee relations matters are managed through close partnership between HR and business leaders as situations arise. There is an opportunity to strengthen consistency, documentation standards, manager guidance, proactive listening, and the mechanisms for acting on employee feedback.

You'll: Build the annual engagement cycle and practical mechanisms for listening to and acting on employee feedback; serve as the senior point of contact for employee relations, escalation, and resolution; support managers with thoughtful guidance; and own offboarding with the same care as other lifecycle moments.

Culture, Values, and Internal Communications

Today: Cultural cohesion across business lines is an active focus area for firm leadership.

You'll: Own the internal HR voice on people, policy, and culture matters; partner with the CEO and President on firm‑wide people communications.

HR Operations, Systems, Analytics, Policy, and HR Technology Strategy

Today: An HR Operations Playbook exists, and Paycom and Monday.com are in place.

You'll: Maintain and evolve the playbook; own the firm’s HR technology strategy and roadmap; strengthen data integrity, workflows, reporting, and system governance; build practical workforce analytics; and oversee the employee handbook, PTO, work‑from‑home policy, leave, and regulatory HR compliance.

Facilities and Office Operations

Today: Facilities and reception are handled effectively at the operational level.

You'll: Provide oversight and strategic direction through direct management of the Receptionist / Facilities role; own vendor relationships tied to the office environment.

Management & Decision‑Making Responsibilities

Directly manage a two‑person team: the HR Generalist and the Receptionist / Facilities role.

Today: An HR Generalist and Receptionist / Facilities role are in place.

You'll: Coach and develop the HR Generalist; build cross‑training so HR operations continue when team members are out; provide direction to the Receptionist / Facilities role; and run both the strategic and day‑to‑day sides of the function.

Qualifications

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities Requirements

Executive presence — the ability to hold one’s own with senior leaders and owner‑operators, and to deliver difficult messages with care.
Judgment — the ability to make sound decisions on incomplete information and to navigate ambiguity.
Comfort with both strategic leadership and hands‑on execution.
Demonstrated ability to develop and coach members of the HR team.
Strong written and verbal communication.
Systems thinker — able to see connections across people, process, technology, data, compensation, performance, talent, and business operations; designs scalable solutions rather than isolated fixes.
Demonstrated commitment to the values that anchor Cabrera Capital: Excellence, Inclusion, Integrity, Client‑centered, and Innovation.

Education & Work Experience

Bachelor’s degree required. MBA or equivalent graduate degree preferred. 10-15 years of progressive HR leadership, with a minimum of five years in a senior HR leadership role.
Experience in financial services, professional services, or another knowledge‑intensive environment.
Demonstrated experience leading HR at a firm of comparable scale — approximately eighty to five hundred professionals.
Fluency with the compensation constructs, workflows, and cultural dynamics of producer‑driven or client‑facing businesses.
Experience in founder‑led or family‑run business environments preferred.

Required Licenses & Certificates

Physical Demands & Work Environment

While performing the duties of this position, the employee is regularly required to sit, talk, and hear to express oneself and exchange information with others. The employee is frequently required to use a desktop computer or laptop and regularly use a desk phone and/or cell phone. The employee may occasionally be required to stand, walk, reach with hands and arms, and lift or move up to 15 pounds.

The employee generally will work in an office environment with a typical office setting. If seated on the trading floor, the noise level is usually moderate with elevated voices and sounds from the televisions. The position may involve extended periods of working at a desk or using a computer or other office equipment. The employee may be required to occasionally travel within the city or surrounding areas of their job, domestically, and/or internationally, for meetings or other job‑related activities.

The above job description is intended to describe the general nature and level of work performed by individuals assigned to this position. It is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities, and qualifications required of employees in this role. Management reserves the right to modify, add, or remove duties and assign other responsibilities. This job description is not an employment contract, and employment with Cabrera Capital Markets is at‑will, meaning that either the employee or the company may terminate the employment relationship at any time, with or without notice, and for any reason, in accordance with applicable law.

The employee must be able to perform the essential functions of the position satisfactorily and, if requested, reasonable accommodation may be made to enable employees with known disabilities to perform the essential functions of the position, unless such accommodation would cause an undue hardship.

Work Authorization Requirement: Applicants must be currently authorized to work in the United States on a permanent basis. This position does not offer employment visa sponsorship now or in the future. Candidates requiring sponsorship, including F-1 OPT, CPT, H-1B, TN, E-3, or any other employment‑based visa sponsorship, are not eligible for consideration.

We offer a competitive and well‑rounded benefits package designed to support your health, well‑being, and financial future: