Who We Are:
Since 1906, New Balance has empowered people through sport and craftsmanship to create positive change in communities around the world. We innovate fearlessly, guided by our core values and driven by the belief that conventions were meant to be challenged. We foster a culture in which every associate feels welcomed and respected, where leaders and creatives are inspired to shape the world of tomorrow by taking bold action today.
JOB MISSION:
The Senior HR Business Partner is responsible for high level partnership with senior leaders in our European Commercial Wholesale business. This role will lead the strategic people agenda aligned to overall business objectives and commercial goals. As a cultural ambassador, you will collaborate with leaders and their teams to drive, shape, execute, and lead the people strategy whilst maintaining an agile, tactical approach as the business grows. This is a key role in our European HR Team and requires a candidate with a strategic mindset and highly skilled in partnering and influencing senior leaders. This role will be based in Amsterdam, Netherlands or Warrington, UK.
MAJOR ACCOUNTABILITIES:
- Serve as trusted partner, thought leader, change agent, coach, and expert consultant to the business to develop and execute a people strategy in line with the overall regional strategy
- Partner with senior business leaders to provide leadership, advice, and vision in support of key business growth strategies
- Manage ongoing strategic work with business leaders on HR areas such as talent acquisition, mobility, change management, compensation, L&D, org effectiveness/design, succession planning, and workforce planning
- Provide leaders with talent-related coaching to guide them through key business objectives, issues and requirements
- Consider how organisational change will affect the Wholesale business, collaborating with leaders to align solutions whilst coordinating with key HR stakeholders to facilitate implementation
- Maintain a tactical approach when driving ideas, and lead projects across 15 countries, understanding local nuances and challenges by working with local country HR and Retail leadership teams.
- Support the annual Performance Management and Talent Management processes, ensuring learning and development requirements are correctly identified and actioned in line with business needs
- Lead and champion our culture and core values, integrating them into all people practices across corporate offices and retail stores
- Contribute, collaborate and support HR COE’s and HR teams
- Build a competitive organisation and empower leadership with people analytics to drive decision making
- Champion DE&I, wellbeing and community initiatives
- Build and maintain effective relationships with wider HR team, local/regional/global stakeholders and external partners
KEY REQUIREMENTS FOR SUCCESS:
- Proven experience in a strategic senior level HR partnering role, operating in a fast-paced multi country European or global business
- Experience partnering directly with commercial wholesale teams is preferred
- Passion for the sports industry, experience in the sector is preferred
- Knowledge of multiple European employment laws
- Bachelor’s degree in business, HR, or a related field
- Strong working knowledge of Microsoft Office, data and analytics, organisational design and change management
- Comfortable navigating stakeholders in a fast paced environment
- Analytical and data driven with strong attention to detail. Workday experience is beneficial
- Accountable decision maker who is able to think outside of own remit and see the wider business impact of own decisions – European and Global mindset is a key requirement
- Outstanding and confident communicator, able to collaborate and influence at all levels
- Proactive self starter with a results and deadline driven approach
- Highest levels of integrity and professional credibility
- Some European travel will be required in this role (20%)
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Equal Opportunity Employer:
New Balance is committed to equality of opportunity for all current and prospective associates regardless of age, disability, race, religion or belief, gender, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, marriage and civil partnership and gender reassignment. We are an equal opportunity employer and support a culture of diversity and inclusion.
If you have not already done so, please let us know if you require any support so we can make the right adjustments and considerations should they be required.
Skills Required
- Proven experience in a strategic senior-level HR partnering role in a fast-paced, multi-country European or global business
- Knowledge of multiple European employment laws
- Bachelor's degree in business, human resources, or a related field
- Strong working knowledge of Microsoft Office, data and analytics, organizational design, and change management
- Ability to navigate stakeholders in a fast-paced environment
- Analytical and data-driven approach with strong attention to detail
- Ability to make accountable decisions with a European and global mindset
- Outstanding communication, collaboration, and influencing skills
- Proactive, self-starting, results- and deadline-driven approach
- High integrity and professional credibility
- Experience partnering directly with commercial wholesale teams
- Passion for or experience in the sports industry
- Workday experience
- Willingness to travel within Europe up to 20%
New Balance Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about New Balance and has not been reviewed or approved by New Balance.
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Healthcare Strength — Benefits coverage is described as comprehensive, including medical, dental, and vision options alongside wellness resources like health coaching. Fitness reimbursement is also cited as part of the overall health and wellness offering.
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Retirement Support — Retirement support is positioned as strong, with a 401(k) plan and a company match described as dollar-for-dollar up to a stated contribution level in some locations. Life insurance and disability benefits are also included as part of the broader financial protection package.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Time-off offerings are characterized as generous, with paid holidays, vacation time, and paid sick leave highlighted. Flexible schedules and telecommuting options are also described as supporting work-life balance.
New Balance Insights
What We Do
In 1906, New Balance began as a humble one-man operation founded on the belief that “we were born to move,” and has since grown into an international corporation, selling footwear and apparel in over 120 countries and employing over 8,000 associates worldwide. Our mission has always been to support the performance of athletes, and with an unparalleled focus on quality and craftsmanship, we’ve come to set the standard for comfort and fit in an industry all too often driven by hype. We’re incredibly proud of our history and how far we’ve come, but companies don’t thrive for over a century by being content. Whether it’s setting a new style trend, retooling our manufacturing process, or building a new state-of-the-art headquarters, we pursue innovation with a spirit of fearless independence. As the only privately held major footwear company in the world, we’re free to do things our way, pushing limits and testing boundaries as we continually reimagine what could be. After all, the status quo isn’t static. But doing things our way wouldn’t mean much if we weren’t also doing them the right way. We invest in our associates as they invest in us, and as we move forward, we make a point of giving back, supporting communities around us through ambitious philanthropic efforts and involvement programs. We are a company that cares, and our culture is one of integrity and teamwork where together we become greater than the sum of our parts.
