Positively Partners Principal HR Consultant (Senior HR Business Partner)

About Positively Partners

Positively Partners delivers integrated, people-centered consulting services to social impact organizations. Our services include recruitment, HR outsourcing, and consulting on people practices related to compensation, employee engagement, and inclusion.

Founded by nonprofit leaders in 2016, we help social sector organizations access high-quality, inclusion-focused HR services essential to achieving their missions. We’re a team of learners, HR professionals, and equity practitioners committed to helping employees thrive in support of their organization’s mission. Our home bases are in Boston, MA and Washington, DC, with a remote team across the United States, allowing us to deliver services through a mix of in-person and virtual channels.

You can learn more about Positively Partners and our service offerings at positivelypartners.org.

About PositivelyHR

PositivelyHR is our outsourced HR service, providing mission-driven organizations with comprehensive, high-quality HR solutions. We function as an extension of our clients’ teams, offering expert support in compliance, payroll and tax processing, benefits administration, policy development, and employee relations.

The Opportunity

We are seeking a Principal HR Consultant to join the PositivelyHR team and serve as a strategic thought partner and trusted advisor to our nonprofit clients. In this senior-level role, you will lead client engagements focused on employee relations, performance management, accommodations, leave administration, and HR compliance—guiding people managers and organizational leaders through complex and sensitive personnel matters with empathy, clarity, and confidence.

This role is ideal for an HR professional with deep expertise in employment law and HR best practices, a coaching mindset, and a strong orientation toward practical problem-solving that balances policy, risk, and values. You’ll work closely with a diverse range of leaders—from first-time supervisors to executive teams—helping them navigate challenges, strengthen management capabilities, and foster inclusive, people-centered practices. As a core member of the PositivelyHR team, you’ll also contribute to process development, team learning, and the continued evolution of our services.

Key Responsibilities

Client Advisory & Case Management

• Serve as the primary advisor to people managers and organizational leaders on a wide range of employee relations matters, including performance concerns, interpersonal conflicts, accommodations, and corrective actions

• Provide real-time guidance and problem-solving on employee issues, while scaffolding and equipping managers and leaders with long-term strategies for sustainable resolution

• Partner with people managers to implement performance improvement plans and manage progressive discipline practices, balancing legal compliance alongside equitable and strengths-based practices

• Investigate and support resolution of employee complaints, escalating appropriately and ensuring alignment with legal obligations and organizational values

• Deliver “push in” conflict resolution support, including meditations and facilitated conversations

• Lead and manage leave of absence cases, ensuring compliance with applicable federal and state laws, consistent application of organizational policies, and accurate payroll processing through clear direction and handoffs

• Help organizations assess and mitigate risk by ensuring alignment with employment law, internal policies, and best practices

• Provide clear, actionable recommendations and documentation that supports compliance and effective management

• Collaborate with legal counsel and PositivelyHR leadership to address high-level, high-risk, or highly complex issues

Coaching & Capacity Building

• Coach managers and leaders through sensitive personnel decisions, building their people management skill and confidence when navigating sensitive employee matters

• Support the rollout of HR policies and people practices by helping managers apply them in practical, values-aligned ways

• Facilitate manager learning opportunities–including office hours and workshops–on performance managemen