The Opportunity

We are seeking a Chief People Officer who understands that culture is not simply an HR initiative but a fundamental business driver. This role represents a true seat-at-the-table leadership opportunity where the CPO will partner closely with executive leadership to shape the next phase of organizational growth.

The CPO will serve as the strategic architect of a scalable people strategy that attracts, develops, and retains high-performing employees while leveraging technology, operational discipline, and modern HR practices to support a growing national footprint. The role requires a balance of strategic thinking and hands-on leadership, ensuring that HR systems, processes, and leadership capability evolve alongside business growth.

What You Will Do:

Scale Culture as a Competitive Advantage

• Architect and implement scalable people systems, processes, and technology infrastructure that support organizational growth while preserving core values and operational excellence.
• Design and deploy measurement frameworks that connect culture, engagement, and people practices directly to business outcomes such as turnover, productivity, safety, customer satisfaction, and profitability.
• Build sustainable talent pipelines and development pathways for skilled and frontline employees across a distributed operational footprint.

The Opportunity

This organization is seeking a Chief Human Resources Officer who understands that culture is not simply an HR initiative but a fundamental business driver. This role represents a true seat-at-the-table leadership opportunity where the CHRO will partner closely with executive leadership to shape the next phase of organizational growth.

The CHRO will serve as the strategic architect of a scalable people strategy that attracts, develops, and retains high-performing employees while leveraging technology, operational discipline, and modern HR practices to support a growing national footprint. The role requires a balance of strategic thinking and hands-on leadership, ensuring that HR systems, processes, and leadership capability evolve alongside business growth.

What You Will Do

Scale Culture as a Competitive Advantage

• Architect and implement scalable people systems, processes, and technology infrastructure that support organizational growth while preserving core values and operational excellence.
• Design and deploy measurement frameworks that connect culture, engagement, and people practices directly to business outcomes such as turnover, productivity, safety, customer satisfaction, and profitability.
• Build sustainable talent pipelines and development pathways for skilled and frontline employees across a distributed operational footprint.

Serve as a Strategic Leadership Partner

• Act as a trusted advisor to the CEO and executive leadership team on organizational strategy, leadership capability, culture, and talent decisions.
• Partner closely with operational leaders and frontline managers to strengthen leadership capability and reinforce a high-performance culture.
• Maintain visibility across operations by engaging directly with employees in the field and understanding the realities of day-to-day work.

Drive Employee Ownership and Engagement

• Champion programs that deepen employee engagement and ownership mentality across the workforce.
• Design communication strategies and education frameworks that help employees understand how their work contributes to organizational success.
• Ensure total rewards and ownership programs drive both long-term retention and cultural alignment.

Build Systems That Scale

• Implement HRIS, talent management, and workforce planning capabilities that enable data-driven decision making.
• Develop recruiting strategies and external partnerships that address skilled labor shortages and support workforce growth.
• Design competitive compensation, benefits, and total rewards strategies that position the organization as an employer of choice.

Champion Safety, Compliance, and Infrastructure

• Partner with operational leadership to embed safety as a core value rather than a compliance exercise.
• Ensure employment practices remain compliant across multiple jurisdictions.
• Build scalable HR infrastructure including policies, leadership training, workforce planning, and organizational development programs.

What You Bring

Required Experience

• 10+ years of progressive HR leadership experience.
• Proven experience operating in high-growth, private equity-backed, family-owned, or entrepreneurial environments.
• Deep understanding of workforce strategies supporting skilled trades, technicians, or operational labor forces.
• Experience designing and implementing employee ownership programs such as ESOP, phantom equity, or similar ownership models.
• Demonstrated success leading cultural transformation initiatives tied to measurable business outcomes.
• Strong business acumen with the ability to translate people strategy into financial and operational performance.
• High emotional intelligence and authentic servant leadership orientation.
• Executive presence with the ability to influence at the Board level while remaining credible with frontline employees.
• Experience building or transforming HR infrastructure and systems.
• Multi-site or national operational experience.

Ideal Background

• Experience within transportation, logistics, manufacturing, industrial services, or field-based operations.
• HR leadership experience in organizations ranging from approximately $50M to $500M in revenue.
• Familiarity with both union and non-union labor environments.
• Experience navigating organizational change, including growth, acquisition, or ownership transition.
• Exposure to employee engagement measurement tools such as Gallup Q12 or similar methodologies.
• Professional HR certification (SHRM-SCP or equivalent) preferred.

Who Thrives in This Role

The ideal leader believes culture is the operating system that drives results. They are equally comfortable analyzing workforce data and engaging directly with frontline employees to understand operational realities.

They lead with curiosity and humility, focusing on removing barriers so others can succeed. This individual brings a strong point of view while maintaining a low-ego, collaborative leadership style. They recognize that the strength of an organization lies in the people doing the work and are motivated to build an environment where employees feel ownership, pride, and long-term commitment.

This leader has the courage to address difficult issues while also demonstrating the patience and empathy required to build trust across the organization.

Why This Opportunity

• Impact: Shape the people strategy for an organization entering a significant phase of growth and transformation.
• Autonomy: Operate as a strategic executive partner with the mandate to build and lead the HR function.
• Influence: Play a critical role in aligning culture, talent, and operations to support long-term business success.
• Partnership: Work closely with executive leadership and investors to help scale the organization
• Act as a trusted advisor to the CEO and executive leadership team on organizational strategy, leadership capability, culture, and talent decisions.
• Partner closely with operational leaders and frontline managers to strengthen leadership capability and reinforce a high-performance culture.
• Maintain visibility across operations by engaging directly with employees in the field and understanding the realities of day-to-day work.

Drive Employee Ownership and Engagement

• Champion programs that deepen employee engagement and ownership mentality across the workforce.
• Design communication strategies and education frameworks that help employees understand how their work contributes to organizational success.
• Ensure total rewards and ownership programs drive both long-term retention and cultural alignment.

Build Systems That Scale

• Implement HRIS, talent management, and workforce planning capabilities that enable data-driven decision making.
• Develop recruiting strategies and external partnerships that address skilled labor shortages and support workforce growth.
• Design competitive compensation, benefits, and total rewards strategies that position the organization as an employer of choice.

Champion Safety, Compliance, and Infrastructure

• Partner with operational leadership to embed safety as a core value rather than a compliance exercise.
• Ensure employment practices remain compliant across multiple jurisdictions.
• Build scalable HR infrastructure including policies, leadership training, workforce planning, and organizational development programs.