People Resources Business Partner

Gainesville Regional Utilities; Gainesville (FL); On-site; USD 80,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

Gainesville Regional Utilities seeks a People Resources Business Partner to partner with leaders across units, guiding HR strategy and hands-on execution throughout the employee lifecycle. The role emphasizes strategic support, talent acquisition, onboarding, development, and retention, with a focus on compensation, labor relations, workforce analytics, and change management.

The successful candidate will report to the Chief People Officer in the Office of People Resources and drive value-added

Qualifications

• Requires a four-year college degree in HR or related field; utility experience preferred.
• Six years of professional HR experience required or equivalent.
• SHRM-CP or HRCI-PHR desirable.

Responsibilities

• Supports GRU’s vision and strategy by building a culture aligned with the Customer First mission.
• Consults management on HR policies, laws, and GRU procedures across functions.
• Develops and implements HR strategies aligned with business goals and HR policies.
• Manages talent acquisition, onboarding, and retention for assigned units.
• Guides performance management, mentoring, coaching, and career planning for leaders and staff.
• Assists with compensation strategy and recognition programs to boost engagement.
• Resolves conflicts and fosters positive employee relations and morale.
• Manages workforce planning and succession planning; supports professional development.
• Delivers leadership training and HR policy guidance; ensures regulatory compliance.
• Optimizes organizational design to improve productivity and business performance.
• Uses HRIS for data integrity and decision support; reports HR metrics.
• Stays current with employment laws and HR trends.

Education

Bachelor’s degree in HR or related field

Tools

HRIS systems

Job description

Career Opportunities: People Resources Business Partner (810)

Application Deadline: Applications must be received by 11:59pm EDT, October 11, 2026..

Gainesville Regional Utilities, the most comprehensive utility service provider in Florida, is seeking a People Resources Business Partner who will develop strong partnerships with leaders of multiple business units focusing on both strategic support and practical implementation. The People Partner will have the depth and breadth of experience to proactively support their partners through the full employee life-cycle, from attraction, recruitment and onboarding, to employee development and retention, to separation. To support these efforts, you will also assist your partners with compensation, employee and labor relations, workforce analysis and development, and change management.

Join our team and help us build a workplace where people can do their best work in providing essential services to our community every day.

FLSA Exemption Status

Exempt

Summary

Highly responsible managerial work responsible for building GRU’s talent management infrastructure and strategy for one or more GRU departments, including aligning the organization’s people and business strategies, serving as the lead HR advisor for assigned business units. The business partner is a champion, strategic partner, and change agent for the business. They have a deep understanding of Human Resources and the business and formulate partnerships to deliver value-added service to management and employees. The PRBP works to achieve GRU’s mission and objectives while promoting the corporate values and shaping a positive organizational culture.

Positions allocated to this classification report to the Chief People Officer and work under general supervision. Work in this class is distinguished from higher classes by its lack of overall department management and from lower classes by the use of considerable initiative and independent judgment in providing departmental support for the full scope of human resources activities within the Office of People Resources.

Examples of Work

*This section of the job description is not intended to be a comprehensive list of duties and responsibilities of the position. The omission of a specific job function does not absolve an employee from being required to perform additional tasks incidental to or inherent in the job. Performance of lower-level duties may be required.

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS

• Supports GRU’s vision and strategy by helping build a culture that aligns with the Customer First mission of GRU.
• Serves as a consultant and communicates to management in all areas of human resources by providing technical and analytical expertise, guidance and interpretation of GRU policies and Federal, State and local laws and regulations.
• Develops and implements HR strategies and initiatives aligned with the overall business strategy and mission, supported by H. R. policies, procedures, practices and systems for all functional areas of People Resources.
• Manages the talent acquisition, onboarding, and retention processes for their assigned business units.
• Provides guidance on performance management and ensures the business leaders have a plan for mentoring, coaching and career planning for their frontline leaders and employees.
• Assists with maintaining, updating, and executing a competitive compensation and benefits strategy, implementing reward and recognition interventions to increase employee engagement.
• Works with management and employees to resolve conflicts and help facilitate positive employee relations, maintain a good working environment, build morale, and increase employee engagement and retention.
• Helps the organization become future ready by managing the workforce planning processes, succession planning efforts, and supporting professional development to meet future workforce needs.
• Assists in preparing the existing workforce for future opportunities by identifying training, reskilling, and upskilling needs, and delivering leadership training.
• Equips leadership to handle people matters in the organization by providing HR advice where necessary, being up to date on employment laws and regulations, providing guidance on People policies, procedures, practices and processes.
• Optimizes organizational design to increase productivity and improve business performance within the assigned departments.
• Utilizes the HRIS system to ensure employee changes are properly documented, employee data is accurate and meaningful employee data is provided for decision-making.
• Reports to HR leadership and provides decision support through HR metrics.
• Ensures legal compliance with state and federal laws.
• Stays current with new developments in the human resources profession.

NON-ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS

• May act in the absence of supervisor.
• May represent Office of People Resources as a member of various strategic and project planning teams. Performs other duties as required.

Qualifications

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential job function satisfactorily. Below are the required education, experience, knowledge, skills and abilities to perform the essential functions.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

• Graduation from an accredited four (4) year college or university with major course work in Human Resources, Organizational Development, Industrial-Organizational Psychology, Business or related field; Utility experience strongly preferred.
• Six (6) years of professional Human Resources experience.
• OR an equivalent combination of education and experience which provide the necessary knowledge, skills and abilities and other competencies necessary for success in the target position.

CERTIFICATIONS OR LICENSES

Licenses

• None

Certifications

• SHRM CP or HRCI PHR are desirable.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Thorough knowledge of principles, theories, and practices of human resource management. Strong generalist experience in all areas of Human Resources.
• Thorough knowledge of principles, theories, and practices of Talent Acquisition, Talent Management, Employee Relations, Classification and Compensation, and Learning and Organizational Development.
• Ability to execute and think systematically about the organization, with excellent problem-solving skills; has a bias towards action; results driven.
• Competence to build and effectively manage interpersonal relationships at all levels of the organization.
• Demonstrable experience with Human Resources systems, databases and metrics, including an understanding of data interpretation, collection, and creation.
• Ability to architect strategy along with leadership skills.
• Excellent active listening, negotiation and presentation skills. Ability to navigate confrontational situations, ensuring all parties are treated with respect.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills, organizational skills, and attention to detail.
• In-depth knowledge of employment and labor law.
• Advanced project and program management skills, including skills in coordinating and managing cross-functional teams.
• Thorough knowledge of local, state and federal regulations pertaining to equal opportunity and affirmative action, ADA and Veterans Preference.
• Understands finance principles, risk and reward, and business outcomes.
• Ability to maintain security and confidentiality.

Physical & Environmental Requirements

To perform this job successfully, an individual must possess certain physical abilities and be able to withstand work related environmental conditions.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is often required to sit for prolonged periods of time.

WORK ENVIRONMENT

• May be required to work outside regular business hours, including nights, weekends, and holidays.
• Required to work during emergency situations in varying climatic conditions.