Job Description

Senior HR Generalist HR Operations & Employee Experience Leader

About The River & Our Transformation Story

At The River (Indian River State College) we are more than an academic institution we are a force for transformation in education work and community prosperity. As a nationally recognized leader and recipient of the Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence we are shaping the future of learning while driving innovation in how colleges serve students employees and society.

Our HR transformation is central to this journey. We are:

• Building a Future-Ready HR Function
• Elevating HR into a strategic driver of growth culture and performance.
• Reimagining how we attract engage and grow talent at every level.
• Redesigning the Employee Experience
• Creating seamless digital-first HR services that empower employees and managers.
• Ensuring every interaction with HR reflects fairness clarity and belonging.
• Scaling with Purpose
• Implementing modern systems (Workday ADP) and shared services infrastructure to ensure efficiency accuracy and scalability.
• Aligning HR with world-class benchmarks from Fortune 500 enterprises to award-winning cultures while staying true to our mission-driven values.
• Driving Cultural Renewal
• Embedding leadership principles and accountability.
• Making The River a place where employees are inspired to perform belong and grow.

As a Senior HR Generalist you will be at the center of this transformation turning our strategy into reality by building operational excellence and shaping the everyday experience of our people.

Why Join Us

Joining The River as a Senior HR Generalist offers a rare opportunity to make a lasting impact while building something from the ground makes this role compelling:

• Purpose & Mission
• Your work will directly support our mission of transforming lives through education and community impact. Every policy you shape every employee you support and every process you design will ripple outward into student success.
• Opportunity to Build
• This is not a role of maintenance or status quo. You will have the opportunity andexpectation to design and improve systems policies and services. You will see your ideas implemented atscale.
• Employee Experience Champion
• You will play a direct role in how employees experience The River ensuring that HR is known not just for compliance but for care responsiveness and innovation.
• Culture of Belonging & Accountability
• Youllhelp create an environment where employees feel valued managers feel supported and leadershipsetsa clear inspiring tone.
• Career Growth & Development
• This role will expand your skills across the full HR lifecycle preparing you for future HR leadership roles. You will gain visibility influence and the chance to leave a legacy.

We value the well-being and professional growth of our employees. Our comprehensive benefits package includes:

Health & Wellness: Medical dental vision flexible spending accounts life insurance supplemental plans and access to our Employee Assistance Program (EAP).

Affordable Coverage: PPO/HMO options starting at just $50/month for individual coverage and $180/month for family coverage.

Retirement Security: Participation in the Florida Retirement System (FRS) plus tax-deferred annuities and Roth 403(b) options.

Time for You: Generous paid vacation personal and sick leave to support work-life balance.

Perks & Discounts: Reduced rates on services and tickets to local attractions.

Growth & Development: Professional development programs leadership training and opportunities to advance your career.

At The River you will not just process HR tasks you will help design and deliver the employee experience of the future ensuring our people have the clarity support and culture they need to thrive.

Purpose of the Role

At The River the Senior HR Generalist role is not an administrative back-office function it is a front-line leadership position that connects employees managers and HR strategy in meaningful ways. This role blends operational excellence with a relentless focus onthe employeeexperience ensuring that every interaction with HR reinforces our values strengthens our culture and drives organizational performance.

The Senior HR Generalist will serve as both a builder and operator:

• Building the shared services foundation of HR policies processes and systems that scale.
• Leading employee relations compliance and workforce support with fairness rigor and compassion.
• Acting as a first point of contact and trusted advisor for employees and managers solving problems with speed and clarity.
• Driving forward the professionalization of HR operations at The River raising the standard of service data quality and accountability.

This role requires someone who is energized by both big-picture transformation and day-to-day execution who thrives in ambiguity and who is motivated by the opportunity to shape an HR function into a modern employee-centered and high-performing engine.

What You Will Build & Lead

As a Senior HR Generalist you will:

• Shared Services Infrastructure
• Establish scalable efficient processes across the employee lifecycle onboarding benefits leaves of absence performance reviews offboarding and more.
• Create clarity documentation and automation that make HR services simple transparent and user-friendly.
• Employee Relations & Experience
• Serve as the first line of response for employee relations issues providing guidance mediation and resolution rooted in both fairness and organizational values.
• Lead investigations grievances and compliancematterswith professionalism rigor and consistency.
• Actively shape the employee experience ensuring HR interactions leave employees feeling supported and valued.
• Operational Excellence & Data Integrity
• Raise the bar for HR data quality compliance and reporting ensuring we can rely on our systems to make sound decisions.
• Partner with HRIS and People Analytics colleagues to ensure smooth system operations and leverage data for insights.
• Manager Support & Capability Building
• Providehands-on guidance and coaching to managers on policies employee relations and performance management.
• Build managers confidence and consistency in handling employee issues helping them grow as people leaders.
• Process Improvement & Automation
• Identifyinefficiencies in existing HR workflows and proactively design improvements.
• Embrace digital tools and automation to simplify work reduce errors and enhance service delivery.

Measures of Success

Your success in this role will be measured not only by how well you manage compliance or transactions but by the quality consistency and humanity of the HR experience you create. You will know you are succeeding when:

• Employee Trust & Experience
• Employees report confidence in HR processes and feel respected supported and valued in their interactions.
• Employee feedback shows measurable improvement in onboarding satisfaction issue resolution and overall HR support.
• Manager Confidence & Capability
• Managers rely on you as a trusted advisor gaining confidence and skill in handling employee relations performance management and team culture.
• Leadersdemonstrategreater consistency and accountability in applying HR policies and practices.
• Operational Excellence
• HR processes are documented streamlined and automated where possible resulting in faster turnaround times and reduced errors.
• Compliance with FMLA FERPA Title IX ADA and other key regulations is consistently achieved without compromising the employee experience.
• Data Integrity & Insight
• HR records systems and reports areaccuratetimely and actionable enabling better workforce decision-making.
• Data-driven improvements (e.g. reduced turnover improved leave management or increased service-level efficiency) areevidentwithin 1218 months.
• Problem-Solving & Innovation
• You proactivelyidentifyoperational bottlenecks and propose scalable solutions.
• Demonstrable improvements in efficiency employee satisfaction or compliance can bedirectly linkedto your initiatives.

Experience & Qualifications

We are seeking an HR professional who blends operational mastery with people-centered leadership. Ideal candidates willdemonstrate:

• HR Experience & Breadth
• 58 years of progressive HR experience with a strong background in employee relations HR operations and compliance.
• Prior experience supporting medium-to-large organizations with complex HR environments.
• Employee Relations Expertise
• Hands-on experience managing investigations grievances terminations performance cases and workplace conflict.
• Ability to resolve sensitive issues with fairness confidentiality and alignment to values.
• Operational & Compliance Knowledge
• Working knowledge of FMLA FERPA ADA Title IX EEO wage & hour and other employment regulations.
• Proven ability to ensure compliance whilemaintaininga positive employee experience.
• Process Improvement & HR Technology
• Experience creating improving and automating HR workflows.
• Proficiencywith HRIS systems (Workday and/or ADP strongly preferred).
• Manager Coaching & Support
• Demonstrated ability to coach advise and build capability in managers at multiple levels.
• Skilled at balancing organizational accountability with employee care.
• Mindset & Values Alignment
• A proactive roll-up-your-sleeves problem solver who thrives in building from scratch.
• Deep alignment with The Rivers values: service excellence inclusion innovation accountability and community.

Education

• Bachelors degree in Human Resources Business or related fieldrequired.
• HR certifications (SHRM-CP/SHRM-SCP PHR/SPHR)preferred.

Classification

Supervisory

FLSA Exempt

Employment Type

Compensation and Application Deadline