Human Resources Director in Portland, Oregon - #72419 | VanderHouwen

Description

Job Id: 72419

Human Resources Director
Our client is seeking a strategic and hands-on Human Resources Director to lead and evolve the people function for a growing multi-location consumer brand. This is a high-impact leadership role for someone who thrives in fast-paced, operationally driven environments and can build scalable people programs that support both rapid expansion and long-term organizational transformation. The ideal candidate brings strong HR leadership experience in restaurant, hospitality, food service, or similarly high-volume hourly workforce environments, with the ability to balance culture, compliance, and business strategy.

This role is on-site in Portland, Oregon.

Human Resources Director Responsibilities

• Lead the full human resources function across a geographically dispersed, multi-state organization, developing and executing people strategies that align with business growth, operational goals, and organizational transformation initiatives.
• Serve as the senior HR leader responsible for building, optimizing, and scaling all core people processes, including employee relations, performance management, compensation, policy development, compliance, talent planning, onboarding, retention, and workforce planning.
• Partner closely with executive leadership and operational stakeholders to create HR programs that support a high-volume hourly workforce, improve employee engagement, and strengthen organizational effectiveness across all locations.
• Oversee compliance with federal, state, and local employment regulations across multiple jurisdictions, ensuring HR policies, procedures, and practices are current, practical, and consistently implemented.
• Develop scalable hiring and onboarding strategies to support rapid expansion, including workforce ramp-ups associated with new location launches and other growth initiatives.
• Act as a trusted advisor to leadership on organizational design, employee relations matters, performance concerns, change management, succession planning, and culture development.
• Assess and modernize existing HR infrastructure, identifying opportunities to improve systems, processes, and policies to better support a growing and evolving business.
• Establish and monitor HR metrics, workforce trends, and retention insights to inform decision-making and proactively address organizational challenges.
• Lead, mentor, and potentially expand the HR function as the business continues to scale, ensuring strong partnership with internal departments including operations, finance, and leadership teams.

Human Resources Director Qualifications

• 7+ years of progressive human resources leadership experience, including experience in a senior HR leadership role with broad ownership of the people function.
• Demonstrated experience supporting multi-state, multi-location organizations with complex workforce structures, including significant hourly employee populations.
• Strong background in restaurant, food service, hospitality, food manufacturing, or other high-volume operational environments; direct restaurant or food service experience strongly preferred.
• Proven experience leading HR through periods of organizational growth, transformation, operational change, or business reinvention.
• Deep knowledge of employment law, HR compliance requirements, employee relations, policy development, and workforce risk management across multiple states.
• Experience developing scalable people programs for businesses experiencing rapid growth, frequent hiring cycles, or expansion into new markets.
• Strong executive presence with the ability to influence leaders, navigate ambiguity, and balance strategic thinking with hands-on execution.
• Experience supporting workforce planning and hiring strategies for large-scale hourly recruiting initiatives.
• Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Business Administration, or a related field preferred; relevant advanced certifications such as SHRM or HRCI are a plus.

Compensation: DOE)

VanderHouwen Contractors Enjoy Exceptional Benefit Perks!
As an eligible contract employee with VanderHouwen, you’ll have access to a full suite of benefits designed with your well-being in mind. Our comprehensive package includes medical, dental, vision, life insurance, short- and long-term disability, and a matching 401(k) to help secure your future.

Meet VanderHouwen
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VanderHouwen is an award-winning, Women & Diversity-Owned, WBENC certified professional staffing firm. Founded in 1987, VanderHouwen places experienced professionals across the nation! Our recruitment teams specialize in either Technology and IT, Engineering, Human Resources, or Accounting and Finance career markets. Partner with us to land your next exciting career!

VanderHouwen is an Equal Opportunity Employer and participates in E-Verify. VanderHouwen does not discriminate based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local, state, or federal civil rights laws.