Director, Talent Management

This commitment to human-first innovation is what brings us together and propels us forward. We are united by our North Star: to unite people and brands to empower healthier, happier lives.

Emerge to the Top of Your Career

At MERGE, we strive to create a superior work experience where talented and ambitious people grow. An experience that encourages people to think higher and feel deeper. An experience where people engage their minds and hearts to do the best work of their careers.

As our Director, Talent Management, you will own the execution and continuous improvement of MERGE’s core Talent Management programs while overseeing the operating discipline behind the broader Talent roadmap. This is a hands-on role for an experienced operator who creates structure, anticipates risks, establishes accountability, and drives work through completion.

What You’ll Do

Talent Management & Employee Experience

• Own the end-to-end execution of performance management cycles, including planning, goal setting, talent reviews, assessments, systems, communications, training, and follow-through.
• Develop clear project plans, establish ownership, and proactively manage timelines, dependencies, and risks.
• Ensure leaders and employees understand Talent processes, expectations, and required actions.
• Maintain and continuously improve Talent Management toolkits, workflows, templates, and process documentation.
• Monitor completion, exceptions, and recurring challenges, providing Talent leadership with concise reporting and recommendations.
• Own offboarding processes, including exit interviews, documentation, reporting, and identification of recurring themes.
• Partner with Talent leadership to operationalize new or updated programs across the agency.

Employee Relations & Risk Management

• Serve as a primary resource to managers and employees on employee relations and performance matters.
• Independently manage routine and moderately complex matters, escalating sensitive or high-risk issues appropriately.
• Guide managers through employee concerns, documentation, coaching, and performance development plans.
• Ensure matters are addressed promptly, consistently, and in accordance with company practices and applicable employment requirements.
• Support workforce changes, organizational restructurings, and other employee actions by coordinating required processes, documentation, communications, and follow-through.
• Maintain complete, accurate, and appropriately confidential employee relations records.
• Identify recurring themes, organizational risks, and gaps in manager practice, and recommend appropriate action.

Talent Roadmap & Program Management

• Own the integrated Talent roadmap, operating calendar, and portfolio-management cadence across Talent functions.
• Translate priorities into clear project plans with defined owners, milestones, dependencies, decisions, and deadlines.
• Hold initiative owners accountable for timely execution while ensuring functional leaders retain ownership of their deliverables and outcomes.
• Proactively identify risks, resource constraints, and competing priorities, escalating issues that require leadership decisions.
• Directly project-manage priority cross-functional initiatives as assigned.
• Provide Talent leadership with concise, regular reporting on progress, risks, decisions, and next steps.
• Ensure completed initiatives are documented and effectively transitioned into ongoing operations.

Operational Continuity & Team Leadership

• Cross-train on payroll processes and serve as designated continuity support during planned or unexpected gaps in primary payroll coverage.
• Maintain sufficient working knowledge of payroll timelines, controls, and ADP processes to provide hands-on support when needed.
• Partner with the primary payroll owner and other internal stakeholders to ensure payroll remains accurate and on schedule during coverage periods.
• Create and maintain SOPs, controls, and cross-training plans that reduce key-person dependency across critical Talent processes.
• Mentor junior Talent team members and reinforce a culture of accountability, accuracy, responsiveness, and open communication.
• Support recurring compliance requirements, audits, and reporting by maintaining documentation, tracking deadlines, and driving follow-through.
• Partner effectively across Talent, Finance, Legal, Operations, and agency leadership to resolve issues and move work forward.

What Success Looks Like

• Talent programs are completed accurately, consistently, and on schedule, with minimal last-minute escalation.
• The Talent roadmap has clear priorities, owners, milestones, and visibility.
• Initiative owners are held accountable, and risks or stalled decisions are surfaced early.
• Leaders receive timely, practical guidance and understand their responsibilities.
• Employee relations and performance matters are addressed early, documented appropriately, and brought to resolution.
• Critical processes have current documentation, cross-training, and dependable continuity coverage.
• Payroll continues accurately and on schedule during planned or unexpected coverage gaps.
• Talent leadership has reliable visibility into progress, trends, and decisions requiring attention.

What You’ll Bring

• 10+ years of progressive HR experience, ideally within an agency, technology company, or fast-paced professional services environment.
• Significant hands-on experience executing and operationalizing performance management, talent reviews, and employee programs.
• Demonstrated experience managing complex, cross-functional projects and organizational roadmaps.
• Strong employee relations judgment and working knowledge of employment law and regulatory requirements.
• Proven success building scalable processes, SOPs, controls, and operating rhythms.
• Experience supporting payroll processes and working knowledge of payroll controls; ADP experience is strongly preferred.
• Strong leadership, critical-thinking, problem-solving, and stakeholder-management skills.
• Ability to work independently, make sound decisions, and distinguish between matters to resolve directly and those requiring escalation.
• Exceptional attention to detail, follow-through, and written and verbal communication skills.
• Advanced proficiency with HRIS and performance-management systems, Google Workspace, and people reporting and analytics.