The Role
The People & Culture Director fosters a values-driven workplace culture, advises on employee relations, oversees performance management, and ensures compliance with labor laws, enhancing employee engagement and organizational health.
Summary Generated by Built In
ABOUT THE ROLE
The People & Culture Director plays a key role in fostering a healthy, values-driven workplace culture where employees and managers can thrive. This role partners across the organization to strengthen manager capability, employee engagement, team effectiveness, and organizational trust while ensuring thoughtful and consistent people practices.
The Director serves as the primary strategic advisor on employee and labor relations matters, supports performance and development conversations, provides strategic oversight and escalation support for leave and accommodations processes, and helps ensure compliance with employment laws and collective bargaining agreements. This role balances compassion and accountability, helping leaders navigate complex situations with clarity, care, and consistency.
The ideal candidate is a collaborative and emotionally intelligent leader who believes strong culture and clear expectations go hand in hand.
ABOUT SAM
As SAM heads into its second century, we are boldly reimagining what we can and should be. Our goal is to be a model for the future of museums - a bold, dynamic hub of creativity, belonging, and cultural leadership, shaping the future of art and community. Embracing new ways of engaging communities and seeking innovative partnerships - all while keeping art and community at the center of what we do. This ambitious effort represents a transformative shift and radically redefining how art museums operate. This is a pivotal moment for SAM, and we are seeking great talent to join us on our journey. Working at SAM is not just a job—it's a chance to be part of a vibrant, creative community.
RESPONSIBILITIES
- Partners with leaders and managers across the organization to strengthen workplace culture, employee engagement, team effectiveness, and organizational health
- Serves as a trusted advisor and coach to managers on employee relations matters, performance conversations, conflict resolution, workplace concerns, and organizational change
- Leads employee relations processes including investigations, performance management, corrective action, and dispute resolution with a balanced, fair, and employee-centered approach
- Acts as an escalation point for leave administration processes, accommodations, and related employee support programs in alignment with organizational policies and applicable laws
- Supports employee experience initiatives that contribute to employee wellbeing and retention
- Partners closely with labor leadership and management representatives to support positive labor-management relationships
- Participates in labor-management committee meetings, collective bargaining preparation, grievance response, and labor negotiations
- Helps create and maintain people policies, practices, and resources that reflect organizational values, operational needs, and legal compliance
- Monitors and ensures compliance with federal, state, and local employment laws, regulations, collective bargaining agreements, and HR best practices
- Drafts, updates, and maintains employee handbook content, policies, guidelines, and manager resources
- Supports recruitment and onboarding efforts for senior leadership and other key organizational roles, as needed
- Uses data, feedback, and employee insights to identify trends and recommend improvements to organizational practices and the employee experience
- Maintains knowledge of emerging trends, best practices, and regulatory changes in human resources, employee relations, labor relations, and organizational culture
- Supports departmental planning, budgeting, and operational priorities within the People & Culture function
- Performs other duties as assigned
- Contribute to an institutional focus of delivering exceptional, welcoming, and inclusive customer service—creating positive, meaningful experiences for all visitors, every time
- Participates in institutional learning opportunities to grow our collective understanding and integration of antiracism, cultural competency, and equity values into SAM’s work
WE ARE LOOKING FOR
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in Human Resources, Organizational Development, Business Administration, or a related field, or equivalent professional experience
- 7+ years of progressive Human Resources or People & Culture experience, including significant experience in employee relations and manager coaching
- Experience working in a unionized environment, including labor-management collaboration and collective bargaining support
- Demonstrated ability to navigate sensitive and complex workplace situations with sound judgment, discretion, empathy, and professionalism
- Strong working knowledge of federal, state, and local employment laws and regulations
- Experience supporting organizational culture initiatives, leadership development, change management, or employee engagement efforts
- Excellent interpersonal, facilitation, coaching, and communication skills
- Strong conflict resolution and relationship-building capabilities with the ability to influence across all levels of the organization
- Ability to balance strategic thinking with operational execution in a fast-paced and evolving environment
- Commitment to fostering inclusive, respectful, and people-centered workplaces
- Ability to navigate complex and sensitive conversations with empathy, discretion, and clarity, tailoring communication to diverse audiences
- Strong ability to coach and advise leaders on handling challenging situations such as performance issues, employee relations matters, and organizational change with fairness and respect
- Builds trust and credibility with employees and leaders by modeling transparency, consistency, and integrity in all interactions
- Fosters an environment of psychological safety, ensuring employees feel heard, respected, and safe to share perspectives or concerns without fear of reprisal
- Uses emotional intelligence to defuse conflict, read situations effectively, and balance organizational needs with employee well-being
- Serves as a confidential sounding board and thought partner for leaders, helping them anticipate reactions and communicate effectively during times of change or conflict
- Translates complex HR and compliance issues into clear, actionable guidance that leaders and employees can understand and implement
- Strong verbal and written communication skills, demonstrating tact, discretion, and a compassionate directness that creates clarity
- Demonstrated ability to organize effectively, manage time efficiently, and deliver high-quality work with precision
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, guided by critical thinking and good judgement in complex or sensitive situations
- Strong supervisory and leadership skills
- Thorough knowledge of employment-related laws and regulations
- Proficient with Microsoft Office Suite or related software and proficiency or ability to quickly learn the HRIS, ATS, and LMS systems
Preferred Qualifications
- Master’s degree or certification in Human Resources (e.g. SHRM, SPHR, CCP, CERP)
- Experience in the non-profit sector, preferably arts and culture
- Skilled spreadsheet creation, management and data collection
FLSA Status: Full Time, Exempt
Reports To: Chief People Officer
Work Location: Seattle Art Museum - Downtown Location
BENEFITS
Benefits include a fully employer paid HMP medical plan or an employee contribution PPO plan, dental, vision, and basic life insurance/LTD/AD&D, Flexible Spending Account, Short Term Disability, Supplemental Dental Insurance and participation in SAM’s 403b retirement plan.
Following 1 year of service and 1,000 hours worked, SAM makes a discretionary 3% employer contribution regardless of participation and provides an employer match program. Historically, this contribution has been made annually.
Additional benefits include paid time off for vacation, PSST, bereavement leave, and jury duty, 11 scheduled holidays, 1 paid floating holiday, a subsidized unlimited Orca card, onsite fitness facility, and an EAP. FT Staff also receive a Patron level membership to SAM, a Tier III membership to the American Alliance of Museums and discounts to museum shop and programming.
ACCOMODATION
The Seattle Art Museum will consider reasonable accommodations for all employees with disabilities to perform the essential functions/duties of this position. If you need an accommodation during the application or interview process, please contact [email protected]. For candidates, we ask that, if possible, you wait until you're invited to a screen, online technical assessment or interview before requesting an accommodation.
SAM is proud to be an equal opportunity employer and we are committed to fostering a respectful, inclusive, and welcoming workplace for all employees and volunteers. Guided by our mission to connect art to life and engage diverse communities, we strive to create a sense of belonging for all of the communities we serve. All qualified candidates will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, national origin, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, military status, or any other protected characteristic
Not sure you check every box? Research shows that candidates from underrepresented backgrounds often only apply if they meet 100% of the criteria. If you believe you could excel in this role, we encourage you to apply!Skills Required
- Bachelor's degree in Human Resources or related field, or equivalent professional experience
- 7+ years of progressive Human Resources experience with employee relations and manager coaching
- Experience working in a unionized environment and collective bargaining support
- Strong knowledge of employment laws and regulations
- Strong interpersonal and communication skills
- Ability to navigate sensitive workplace situations with empathy
- Commitment to fostering inclusive and people-centered workplaces
- Strong problem-solving and analytical skills
- Supervisory and leadership skills
- Proficient with Microsoft Office, HRIS, ATS, and LMS systems
Am I A Good Fit?
Get Personalized Job Insights.
Our AI-powered fit analysis compares your resume with a job listing so you know if your skills & experience align.
Success! Refresh the page to see how your skills align with this role.
The Company
What We Do
For over 90 years, the Seattle Art Museum (SAM) has been a leading visual arts institution in the Pacific Northwest. Through its three locations — the Seattle Art Museum in downtown Seattle, the Seattle Asian Art Museum in Volunteer Park, and the Olympic Sculpture Park on the downtown waterfront — SAM connects art to life through special exhibitions, educational programs, and installations drawn from its collection of approximately 25,000 objects from more than 140 cultures. SAM Social Media Policy: bit.ly/SAMSocialMediaPolicy.
