Senior HR Generalist

Kelly; Rockford (IL); On-site; USD 80,000 - 85,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Company-paid holidays

Sick and personal leave

Health and dental insurance

401(k)

FSA

Short-term disability

Long-term disability

Life insurance

Job summary

Kelly is seeking a Senior HR Generalist for our client in Rockford, Illinois. This permanent, direct-hire role offers competitive pay, excellent benefits, and a welcoming workplace focused on employee growth. Bilingual English/Spanish candidates are highly preferred.

You will oversee recruiting, onboarding, training, employee relations, and compliance across the organization, coordinate HR reporting, and support performance reviews and audits in a manufacturing environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience in HR, business or related field.
• 4+ years progressive HR experience in manufacturing or industrial settings.
• Strong knowledge of U.S. employment law and HR best practices.
• Experience leading HR processes and executing operations.
• Bilingual English/Spanish is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Oversee recruiting operations, onboarding, and safety compliance.
• Review HR work for accuracy and compliance with standards.
• Establish consistent HR processes, workflows, and documentation.
• Promote accountability for service, deadlines, and KPIs.
• Coordinate workforce planning, headcount and approvals.
• Manage HR reporting and regular communications.
• Support recruiting for critical, leadership roles as needed.
• Ensure sourcing for manufacturing roles including CNC machinists and technicians.
• Review candidate compensation alignment and approvals.
• Oversee onboarding, orientation, and system setup.
• Monitor onboarding outcomes to support retention and engagement.
• Administer employee lifecycle including promotions and leave processes.
• Maintain SuccessFactors data and HR records consistently.
• Lead employee relations, investigations, and policy enforcement.
• Coordinate performance reviews and advise on best practices.
• Analyze attendance, turnover, and performance trends for leadership.

Skills

Bachelor’s degree in HR

4+ years HR experience

US employment law knowledge

Manufacturing HR experience

Leadership & stakeholder mgmt

Education

Bachelor’s degree in HR/Related field

Tools

SuccessFactors

LMS platforms

HRIS systems

Job description

Rockford, IL | Direct Hire | $80,000–$85,000 per year

Kelly is seeking a Senior HR Generalist for our client in Rockford, Illinois. This permanent, direct-hire opportunity offers competitive pay, excellent benefits, and a welcoming, supportive workplace focused on employee growth. Bilingual English/Spanish candidates are highly preferred.

Schedule: Daytime hours

Pay:

$80,000–$85,000, depending on experience

Why Join?

• Direct-hire employment with full benefits and paid vacation from the start
• Career growth, advancement, and internal promotion opportunities
• Comprehensive training and development
• A supportive team culture and management
• A strong focus on continuous improvement

Benefits

• Company-paid holidays
• sick and personal leave
• health and dental insurance
• 401(k)
• FSA
• short-term disability
• long-term disability
• life insurance

What You’ll Do

• Oversee recruiting operations, onboarding, and safety-compliance activities.
• Review HR work for accuracy, compliance, and alignment with organizational standards.
• Establish consistent HR processes, workflows, and documentation.
• Promote accountability for service, deadlines, and operational KPIs.
• Workforce Planning, Recruiting & Onboarding
• Partner with the President and leadership team to align workforce plans with business needs.
• Oversee structured hiring processes, including headcount planning and approvals.
• Coordinate HR reporting and regular communication.
• Support recruiting for critical, specialized, and leadership roles as needed.
• Ensure effective sourcing for manufacturing roles, including CNC machinists, technicians, and production staff.
• Review candidate selections for alignment with compensation structures and internal equity; obtain salary-range approval.
• Oversee consistent, compliant onboarding, including orientation, documentation, and system setup.
• Monitor onboarding outcomes and improve processes to support retention and engagement.
• Oversee employee lifecycle administration, including job changes, promotions, compensation adjustments, and leave processes such as FMLA, ADA, STD/LTD, and military leave.
• Maintain accurate SuccessFactors data and consistent records across HR systems.
• Provide escalation support for complex employee questions and issues.
• Lead employee relations matters, investigations, conflict resolution, and policy enforcement.
• Oversee corrective action and disciplinary processes, ensuring consistent documentation.
• Coordinate performance reviews and advise managers on employee relations and best practices.
• Analyze attendance, turnover, and performance trends to inform leadership decisions.
• Ensure compliance with applicable federal, state, and local employment laws, including FLSA, FMLA, ADA, and EEO requirements.
• Maintain employee records and audit-ready documentation.
• Review and validate HR metrics, including turnover, absenteeism, headcount, and time-to-fill.
• Prepare for internal and external audits.
• Oversee OSHA compliance, recordkeeping, and reporting, including OSHA 300/301 logs.
• Review incident reports, investigations, and corrective actions; partner with leadership on safety improvements and risk mitigation.
• Oversee training programs, SuccessFactors LMS administration, and compliance tracking.
• Support compensation processes, including business cases, cost analysis, adjustments, approvals, documentation, and reporting.
• Lead termination and dismissal processes, ensuring appropriate documentation and legal compliance.
• Coordinate approvals, including severance cases.
• Improve HR operations, systems, and processes to increase efficiency, compliance, and employee satisfaction.
• Participate in HR networking and manufacturing community events, and stay current on regulations and HR best practices.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, or a related field—or equivalent experience.
• At least 4 years of progressive HR experience.
• Strong knowledge of U.S. employment law and HR best practices.
• Experience in a manufacturing or industrial environment.
• Demonstrated ability to lead HR processes and oversee operational execution.
• Strong communication, leadership, and stakeholder-management skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• SHRM-CP, SHRM-SCP, PHR, or SPHR certification.
• English/Spanish bilingual skills.
• MBA.
• Advanced experience with HRIS systems, especially SuccessFactors, and LMS platforms.
• Experience overseeing recruiting operations and safety compliance.

As part of our promise to talent, Kelly supports those who work with us through a variety of benefits, perks, and work-related resources. Kelly offers eligible employees voluntary benefit plans including medical, dental, vision, telemedicine, term life, whole life, accident insurance, critical illness, a legal plan, and short-term disability. As a Kelly employee, you will have access to a retirement savings plan, service bonus and holiday pay plans (earn up to eight paid holidays per benefit year), and a transit spending account. In addition, employees are entitled to earn paid sick leave under the applicable state or local plan. Trust the office staffing pioneer. Finding the right job isn’t always easy. Kelly Professional & Industrial takes the guesswork out of your job search by connecting you with great opportunities that work for you. That means your schedule, your interests, and your career plan. In fact, our company created the staffing industry with the goal of connecting people with great office jobs‑so you could say we’re pretty good at it!

About Kelly

Work changes everything. And at Kelly, we’re obsessed with where it can take you. To us, it’s about more than simply accepting your next job opportunity. It’s the fuel that powers every next step of your life. It’s the ripple effect that changes and improves everything for your family, your community, and the world. Which is why, here at Kelly, we are dedicated to providing you with limitless opportunities to enrich your life-just ask the 300,000 people we employ each year.

Kelly is committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all qualified employees and applicants regardless of race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, national origin, disability, veteran status, age, marital status, pregnancy, genetic information, or any other legally protected status, and we take affirmative action to recruit, employ, and advance qualified individuals with disabilities and protected veterans in the workforce. Requests for accommodation related to our application process can be directed to the Kelly Human Resource Knowledge Center. Kelly complies with the requirements of California’s state and local Fair Chance laws. A conviction does not automatically bar individuals from employment. Kelly participates in E-Verify and will provide the federal government with your Form I-9 information to confirm that you are authorized to work in the U.S.

Kelly may use AI-powered tools during the recruitment and hiring process. For full details, including how Kelly uses AI, your rights, and how to request a reasonable accommodation, visit the Recruitment Artificial Intelligence Notice.