Senior HR Business Partner (EMEA)

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Company Description

At Western Digital, our vision is to power global innovation and push the boundaries of technology to make what you thought was once impossible, possible.

At our core, Western Digital is a company of problem solvers. People achieve extraordinary things given the right technology. For decades, we've been doing just that - our technology helped people put a man on the moon and capture the first-ever picture of a black hole.

We offer an expansive portfolio of technologies, HDDs, and platforms for business, creative professionals, and consumers alike under our Western Digital, WD, WD_BLACK, and SanDisk Professional brands.

We are a key partner to some of the largest and highest-growth organizations in the world. From enabling systems to make cities safer and more connected to powering the data centers behind many of the world's biggest companies and hyperscale cloud providers, to meeting the massive and ever-growing data storage needs of the AI era, Western Digital is fueling a brighter, smarter future.

Job Description

As an HR Business Partner, you will provide strategic people consultation across the EMEA region and partner closely with the Leader Support team to oversee compliance, leader enablement, and employee civility. This role will own and drive the region's talent strategy, which is mainly comprised of sales and marketing - translating business plans into talent, engagement, and organization plans. You will also partner with the business and HR Centers of Excellence to deliver on the internal HR strategy. The role will need to lead cross-functionally to design and deliver programs.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

1. Act as a talent strategist, trusted advisor, and leadership coach to senior executive leaders.
2. Own and drive the function's talent strategy in alignment with the business strategy, engaging as a trusted advisor and strategic consultant to senior leaders and site General Managers.
3. Diagnose workforce needs and gaps with a data-driven approach to inform priorities related to workforce planning, organization design, culture, succession planning, and leader development.
4. Build strong relationships with senior executive leaders and General Managers, coaching and influencing them along our technology transformation.
5. Maintain a pulse on the employee experience through engagement data and regular formal and informal listening sessions to inform action plans with leaders.
6. Respond as needed to global or local crises affecting Western Digital employees, acting as an early warning signal for executives and the HR leadership team.

Influence design and drive adoption of enterprise-wide strategic talent programs.

1. Act as a steward of the Human Resources functional strategy and operating model.
2. Drive the enterprise-wide integrated talent management programs such as goal setting, performance feedback, development conversations, and rewards within the aligned functions.
3. Participate in cross-functional working teams on talent programs, serving as the voice of the business and bringing insights from external industry trends into the discussions.
4. Amplify and embed a focus on inclusion across the lifecycle of talent programs.
5. Operate with a solution-oriented and enterprise mindset, collaborating with various Centers of Excellence to optimize the business value of the HR function.

Provide HR leadership to cross-functional business needs and HR team on the ground.

1. Keep a pulse on local business needs, strategically triaging to mobilize the right HR teams for speedy resolution and in alignment with global practices where needed.
2. Represent needs of the site to the HR Centers of Excellence as they design and launch programs.
3. Integrate local talent strategies into global functional people strategy and vice-versa by working with the Lead HR Business Partners where needed.
4. Advocate for adoption of global HR programs in partnership with local Leader Support teams to adapt go-to-market plans as needed.
5. Represent HR in critical internal and external stakeholder meetings or conferences, as needed.
6. Engage with local HR teams supporting/advocating for their overall experience and growth.

Partner with the Leader Support team to oversee leader enablement, employee civility, and compliance for the region.

1. Proactively implement people programs focused on upskilling leaders prior to program launches and provide in-the-moment, real-time coaching on managing employees.
2. Foster employee civility during natural disasters and major events.
3. Stay abreast of country regulatory and statutory requirements, and partner with legal to ensure the company remains in compliance.

Qualifications

1. Bachelor's Degree or equivalent with Master's degree or relevant certification preferred.
2. 10-12 years of experience in Human Resources (in HR consulting, Centers of Excellence, or HR Business Partner roles) in the EMEA region.
3. Demonstrates inclusive leadership with an emphasis on leading with curiosity, results-orientation, accountability, and developing high-performing teams.
4. Proven record of influencing senior executive stakeholders to lead strategic initiatives.
5. Understands competitor landscape, industry dynamics, and internal operations within hardware technology and manufacturing.
6. Leads with a global mindset; experience working globally preferred.
7. Operates with a consultative mindset, leveraging data to conduct diagnostics and deliver compelling insights for effective decision-making.
8. Leads systematically through transformation and change by helping the company and individuals embrace change to positively shape the future.
9. Strong sense of strategic prioritization to deliver enterprise-level priorities while balancing with the more unique functional needs.
10. Approaches problems from a whole systems perspective identifying interdependencies and understanding the systemic consequences of decisions.
11. Excellent communication, presentation, and collaboration skills.
12. Experience with sales comp a plus.