Associate Director, Head of People Operations Wellbeing Collective

Who are we?

We are Unilever’s Wellbeing Collective, an exciting big and fast-growing Global Business Unit within Unilever built with a start-up mindset. Our portfolio of companies include Liquid I.V., Nutrafol, OLLY, SmartyPants, ONNIT, Equilibra and Welly. Each of these companies has a fantastic variety of benefit-led products, with strong innovation and growth potential. Our mission, with our science-backed and disruptive portfolio, is to improve the health and wellbeing of millions of consumers and become a leading Health and Wellness organization.

We work in an agile and entrepreneurial way, collaboratively within the team and with our Unilever colleagues around the world. We work in a project based networked way where everyone needs to be able to take a step back and think strategically as well as rolling up their sleeves and get their hands dirty.

About the Role

The Associate Director, Head of People Operations for Unilever’s Wellbeing Collective will lead all aspects of HR operations across our group of US based companies, ensuring seamless, efficient, and compliant people processes that enable our teams to thrive. This role is both strategic and hands-on - responsible for building and evolving our HR operations infrastructure, systems, and vendor ecosystem, while driving continuous improvement and scalability as the group grows.

The ideal candidate is an experienced HR operations leader who thrives in complex, fast-changing environments and is passionate about designing processes that balance compliance, efficiency, and exceptional employee experience.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership

• Develop and execute a group-wide People Operations strategy aligned with the organization’s growth plans and talent priorities.

• Establish a consistent HR operations framework across all entities, ensuring alignment while allowing for local flexibility.

• Partner closely with the respective company Chief People Officer’s to identify and deliver operational efficiencies, automation, and best-in-class employee support.

HR Systems & Processes

• Own and optimize all HR systems (e.g., HRIS, payroll, benefits, performance management tools) to ensure data integrity, compliance, and usability.

• Lead system integrations and process alignment for new acquisitions, ensuring smooth onboarding into the group’s HR infrastructure.

• Drive adoption of digital tools that improve the employee and HR team experience.

Payroll, Benefits, and Compliance

• Oversee payroll administration, ensuring accuracy, timeliness, and compliance across geographies.

• Manage benefits administration, including vendor selection, renewals, and employee communications.

• Ensure compliance with all applicable employment laws and reporting requirements, partnering with Legal and Finance as needed.

Vendor and Partner Management

• Lead relationships with key HR operations vendors (e.g., payroll providers, benefits brokers, HRIS platforms), negotiating contracts in partnership with procurement and optimizing service delivery.

• Evaluate new tools and partners to enhance scalability, cost-efficiency, and employee satisfaction.

Team Leadership and Development

• Build and lead a high-performing People Operations team, fostering a culture of accountability, service excellence, and continuous improvement.

• Partner with the company HR teams to ensure cohesive delivery of the People strategy across the organization as well as customization of plans and processes to meet the respective company needs.

Qualifications & Experience

• 10+ years of progressive HR Operations or HR Shared Services experience, including leadership roles.

• Proven track record managing HR operations across multiple states and/or entities

• Experience overseeing HR systems (HRIS), payroll, and benefits administration.

• Strong understanding of compliance requirements.

• Exceptional stakeholder management and vendor negotiation skills.

• Strategic mindset with the ability to execute hands-on in a fast-paced, scaling environment.

• Experience with M&A integrations or onboarding new acquisitions preferred.

Attributes

• Systems thinker who thrives on creating structure and clarity.

• Pragmatic problem solver with a focus on impact and scalability.

• Highly collaborative leader with exceptional influencing and negotiation skill