Chief People Officer

Company: Center for Watershed Protection
Location: Lincoln
Posted on: March 29, 2025

Job Description:

LINCOLN ELECTRIC SYSTEMCHIEF PEOPLE OFFICERLincoln Electric System (LES) is a municipal utility, owned by the city of Lincoln, Nebraska, with a service area that covers approximately 200 square miles. LES employs approximately 566 people (approximately 27% of which are represented by two unions with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers) and serves over 153,000 customers. LES is operated under the LES Administrative Board, appointed by the Mayor, and confirmed by the Lincoln City Council. LES' deep involvement in the community is reflected in the LES Administrative Board. Each Board member is a community leader that offers a valuable perspective on diverse issues confronting LES. There are nine members, and each member is allowed to serve a maximum of three, three-year terms, receiving no compensation for their time served.LES seeks an experienced and strategic leader to assume a newly created Chief People Officer (CPO) role. This executive leader is responsible to lead functions that support employee personnel needs, and may lead or guide key functions that provide administrative, operational, and logistical support for employees. The CPO will lead and provide the vision, strategy, and implementation of functions that provide an industry-leading employee experience and organizational culture. He or she is responsible for guiding efforts to provide effective functions for talent acquisition, performance management, training and development, compensation, benefits, labor relations, payroll, and other people-related activities. The CPO is also responsible to oversee all aspects of the utility's employee programs and culture-building activities, which should be positioned to support execution of a robust, ambitious and dynamic strategic plan for LES. The CPO reports to the Chief Executive Officer, manages a team of 15 to 30, and serves as an integral member of the LES Executive Leadership Team.ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• Leads the development and execution of short- and long-term goals, and establishes strategic goals, long-term objectives and short-term priorities for the division.
• Guides and oversees all functions of human resources strategy and operations, providing direction to the teams providing all People functions for the organization.
• Ensures that the organization has effective functional areas for talent acquisition/retention, compensation, payroll, benefits, employee learning & development, human resources policy, labor relations, employee experience, organizational culture programming, and any other capabilities for acquiring, retaining, and supporting a highly qualified and talented workforce.
• Collaborates with executive leadership to assess and address the organization's human resource needs, ensuring alignment with strategic goals and workforce planning.
• Leads the development and administration of human resource policies and works with LES legal counsel to ensure adherence to labor and employment laws and regulatory compliance, while guiding all related processes in collaboration with executive team for decision making, understanding, and organizational consistency.
• Guides and oversees key functions supporting LES employees, as necessary.
• Ensures a high standard of service delivery for all functions assigned to the division and ensures that all division staff prioritize providing an excellent employee experience to LES personnel.
• Creates and drives a high standard for identifying and implementing tools, technologies, and techniques for people management and support services to ensure LES benchmarks favorably against utility industry and other peers in these areas of function.
• Oversees the development of the division's budget and monitors, analyzes, and interprets results of financial and operational results to identify trends and recommend actions regarding variances between budgeted and actual.
• Leads and oversees processes, tools, and functionality for effective employee performance management and accountability.
• Serves as the lead executive for all matters related to labor relations and coordinates all necessary functions within the organization including operational groups, legal counsel, as well as the executive team and other key leadership to ensure effective working relationships with all organized labor units represented in the utility.
• Leads efforts to create and maintain an excellent employee experience to establish healthy organizational culture that facilitates a high performing and highly engaged workforce.SUCCESSFUL CANDIDATEThe CPO must have breadth in enough areas of human resources to be seen as a credible and strategic leader to the Administrative Board, Executive Leadership Team, employees, community, and other partners and stakeholders. This should include demonstrated experience working with key concepts enabling successful organizations including strategic planning and strategic plan execution, organizational behavior, management and leadership studies, and other concepts relevant for people functions in complex organizations.While a strategic leader is important to LES, candidates should also offer fundamental management and tactical skills, including demonstrated experience leading HR/Personnel functions in a complex organization which include succession planning, employee development, performance management, training, organizational development and workforce planning, talent acquisition and retention, onboarding, compensation, benefits, labor relations, payroll, and use of modern tools and processes to enhance the employee experience.Fully qualified candidates will possess strong working knowledge of HR/Labor law and regulations and an understanding of their real-world application. Candidates must also offer accounting, financial, and budgetary knowledge. Strong working knowledge of organizational support functions and shared general services is ideal. As is knowledge about business/enterprise software applications including the value and use of Human Resources Information Systems (HRIS) and their application for organizational effectiveness.Qualified candidates could come from within the utility industry or from outside the industry with enough exposure to complementary human resource issues and staffing needs. Executive/C-Suite level experience is preferred, but not required.It is expected that the CPO will promote an environment of collaboration, accountability, inclusion, transparency, development, and mentoring. In addition, the CPO will possess strong communication skills along with a willingness to promote an environment where team members are comfortable having courageous conversation that lead to overall performance development and improvement.LES is targeting individuals with a bachelor's degree in Business Administration, Human Resource Administration or a related field, as well as a minimum of ten years of progressive experience in human resources including a minimum of five years of management or leadership experience. LES will consider an equivalent combination of education and experience sufficient to successfully perform the essential duties of the job such as those listed above.COMPENSATION, BENEFITS AND RELOCATIONThe total compensation and relocation package is competitive and dependent upon qualifications and experience. LES offers a benefits package that includes a 401k Defined Contribution Retirement Savings Plan. LES' matches 100% of employee contribution, up to 10% of applicable compensation, which vests after three years of service. LES also offers a 457(b) Deferred Compensation Plan and self-funded health and dental insurance programs.TO APPLYInterested candidates should submit a cover letter and resume to no later than April 21, 2025.Patrick ProuseMycoff Fry Partners LLCPO Box 1310Conifer, CO 80433(720) 201-1828
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Keywords: Center for Watershed Protection, Lincoln , Chief People Officer, Executive , Lincoln, Nebraska