Director, HR Business Partner

At ESPN, HR Business Partners sit at the intersection of people and business strategy. We are strategic advisors who partner with leaders and employees to navigate change, build effective organizations, and create an environment where individuals and teams can do their best work. By leveraging business insight, workforce data, and a deep understanding of our people and business, we help drive organizational effectiveness, shape the employee experience, and enable better business decisions.

Position Summary:

The Director, HR Business Partner, is a trusted advisor to executive leaders and employees, translating business priorities into people strategies that drive organizational effectiveness and business results. Working closely with client groups, HR Centers of Excellence, and fellow Business Partners, this role provides strategic guidance across talent management, organizational design, leadership effectiveness, change management, employee relations, and employee experience. The Director leads a small team of HR professionals and plays a key role in shaping organizations, developing talent, and helping leaders navigate an evolving business environment. This role is based at ESPN's Bristol, CT campus.

Responsibilities:

• Serves as a strategic advisor to executive leaders, developing and executing people strategies that support business objectives, organizational priorities, and evolving workforce needs.

• Provides expert consultation to leaders and employees across key People & Culture disciplines, including organizational design, talent management, leadership development, performance management, employee relations, compensation, workforce planning, learning, and change management.

• Leads organizational effectiveness initiatives that enhance organizational design, capabilities, culture, and team performance.

• Leverages business insight, workforce data, and market trends to assess complex situations, identify risks and opportunities, prioritize competing demands, and develop recommendations that influence business and people decisions.

• Fosters an inclusive and engaging workplace culture by driving employee experience, employee relations, and DE&I strategies that support attraction, development, and retention.

• Leads and develops a team of HR professionals, fostering a high-performance culture while ensuring responsive and effective support for client groups.

• Drives talent and succession planning efforts to identify current and future talent needs, mitigate risk, and strengthen leadership readiness.

• Partners with business leaders to assess development needs and implement learning solutions that strengthen organizational capability and support long-term business goals.

• Partners with Compensation and other People & Culture Centers of Excellence to deliver integrated people strategies, programs, and initiatives across the employee lifecycle.

• Oversees the delivery of People & Culture services, ensuring consistent application and interpretation of policies, practices, and procedures.

• Implements, monitors, enforces, and interprets policies and procedures applicable to assigned clients.

• Leads complex, high-impact initiatives requiring sound judgment, strategic thinking, and the ability to navigate ambiguity, balance competing priorities, influence stakeholders, and drive decisions to successful outcomes.

• Operates with a high degree of independence, exercising sound judgment to assess complex situations, prioritize competing demands, make informed recommendations, and drive execution while keeping leadership appropriately informed and aligned.

Qualifications:

• Minimum of 7 years of progressive Human Resources experience, including supporting senior leaders and complex organizations.

• Strong analytical, problem-solving, judgment, and decision-making skills, with the ability to assess complex situations, navigate ambiguity, prioritize effectively, communicate clearly, influence stakeholders, and move work forward with limited direction in a fast-paced environment.

• Demonstrated expertise in organizational development, organizational design, and change management, with experience supporting large-scale organizational transformation.

• Proven ability to build credibility, influence decision-making, and serve as a trusted advisor to executives and senior leaders.

• Strong business acumen, with the ability to balance commercial, operational, and people considerations when developing solutions and recommendations.

• Strategic thinker with a hands-on approach, capable of translating people strategies into actionable plans and measurable business outcomes.

• Exceptional leadership, relationship management, communication, facilitation, and consulting skills, with the ability to influence stakeholders at all levels.

• Deep knowledge of Human Resources practices, employment laws, and regulatory requirements.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience supporting media organizations or other fast-paced, highly matrixed, and rapidly evolving business environments.

• Experience leading global or large-scale organizational change initiatives.

• Ability to leverage workforce analytics, HR technology, and AI-enabled tools to identify trends, assess organizational needs, and develop effective people solutions.

Required Education

• BA/BS in Business, HR or related field and/or equivalent combination of experience. 

Preferred Education:

• MBA is a plus.

The hiring range for this position in Bristol, CT is $168,200 to $205,400 per year. The base pay actually offered will take into account internal equity and also may vary depending on the candidate’s geographic region, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience among other factors. A bonus and/or long-term incentive units may be provided as part of the compensation package, in addition to the full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits, dependent on the level and position offered.